Helsinki
Template:Infobox Finnish municipality
Helsinki (Finnish pronunciation: [ˈhe̞l.siŋ.k̟i] ; Swedish: Helsingfors, pronounced [ˈhɛlsɪŋfɔʂ] ) is the capital and largest city of Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. Helsinki has a population of Template:Infobox Finnish municipality/population count (Error: Invalid time.),[1] an urban population of 1,176,976 (31 December 2012)[2] and a metropolitan population of 1,361,506, making it the most populous municipality and urban area in Finland. Helsinki is located some 80 kilometres (50 mi) north of Tallinn, Estonia, 400 kilometres (250 mi) east north east of Stockholm, Sweden, and 300 kilometres (190 mi) west of Saint Petersburg, Russia. Helsinki has close historical connections with these three cities.
The Helsinki metropolitan area includes urban core of Helsinki, Espoo, Vantaa, Kauniainen and surrounding commuter towns.[3] It is the world's northernmost metro area of over one million people, and the city is the northernmost capital of an EU member state. After Copenhagen and Stockholm it's the third largest city in the Nordic nations.
Helsinki is Finland's major political, educational, financial, cultural and research centre as well as one of northern Europe's major cities. Approximately 70% of foreign companies operating in Finland have settled in the Helsinki region.[4] The nearby municipality of Vantaa is the location of Helsinki Airport, with frequent service to various destinations in Europe and Asia.
In 2009, Helsinki was chosen to be the World Design Capital for 2012[5] by the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design, narrowly beating Eindhoven for the title.
In the Economist Intelligence Unit's August 2012 Liveability survey, assessing the best and worst cities to live in, Helsinki placed eighth best overall.[6] In 2011, the Monocle Magazine in turn ranked Helsinki the most liveable city in the world in its Liveable Cities Index 2011.[7]
Etymology of the name Helsinki
According to oral tradition recorded in the 17th century, the early settlers in the modern Helsinki area came in the middle of the 13th century from the province of Hälsingland in central Sweden. The Vantaa River was accordingly known locally as Helsingå (‘Helsinge River’), and the parish founded in the 14th century was called the Helsinge Parish.
When the plans to found a town in the vicinity of the modern district of Koskela or Forsby ("village of the rapids") started to materialise in 1548, the new town-to-be began to be called Helsinge fors, ‘the Helsinge rapids’. This name then evolved into Helsingfors, which is today the name of the city in Swedish. The ordinary people called the place Helsinge or Helsing, which evolved into the current Finnish name Helsinki.
The name Helsinki has been used in Finnish official documents and in Finnish language newspapers since 1819, when the Senate of Finland moved to the town and the decrees issued there were dated with Helsinki as the place of issue. This is how the form Helsinki came to be used in the Finnish literary language. [8]
History
Early history
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/63/Helsinki_1820.jpg/252px-Helsinki_1820.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ac/Suomenlinna_Susisaari.jpg/252px-Suomenlinna_Susisaari.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/50/Helsingin_palokunnantalo.jpg/250px-Helsingin_palokunnantalo.jpg)
Helsinki was established as a trading town by King Gustav I of Sweden in 1550 as the town of Helsingfors, which he intended to be a rival to the Hanseatic city of Reval (today known as Tallinn). Little came of the plans as Helsinki remained a tiny town plagued by poverty, wars, and diseases. The plague of 1710 killed the greater part of the inhabitants of Helsinki.[9] The construction of the naval fortress Sveaborg (In Finnish Viapori, today also Suomenlinna) in the 18th century helped improve Helsinki's status, but it was not until Russia defeated Sweden in the Finnish War and annexed Finland as the autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland in 1809 that the town began to develop into a substantial city. During the war, Russians besieged the Sveaborg fortress and about one quarter of the town was destroyed in an 1808 fire.[10]
Czar Alexander I of Russia moved the Finnish capital from Turku to Helsinki in 1812 to reduce Swedish influence in Finland and bring the capital closer to St. Petersburg. Following the Great Fire of Turku in 1827, The Royal Academy of Turku, at the time the country's only university, was also relocated to Helsinki, and eventually became the modern University of Helsinki. The move consolidated the city's new role and helped set it on the path of continuous growth. This transformation is highly apparent in the downtown core, which was rebuilt in neoclassical style to resemble St. Petersburg, mostly to a plan by the German-born architect C. L. Engel. As elsewhere, technological advancements such as railroads and industrialization were key factors behind the city's growth.
Twentieth century
Despite the tumultuousness of Finnish history during the first half of the 20th century, Helsinki continued its steady development. A landmark event was the XV Olympic games (1952 Olympic Games) held in Helsinki. Finland's rapid urbanization in the 1970s, occurring late relative to the rest of Europe, tripled the population in the metropolitan area, and the Helsinki Metro subway system was built. The relatively sparse population density of Helsinki and its peculiar structure have often been attributed to the lateness of its growth. [citation needed]
Name
Helsinki (Finnish pronunciation places stress on the first syllable: Finnish pronunciation: [ˈhelsiŋki]), is used to refer to the city in most languages, but not in Swedish.
The Swedish name Helsingfors ([hɛlsiŋˈfɔrs] or [hɛlsiŋˈfɔʂ]) is the original official name of the city of Helsinki (in the very beginning, spelled Hellssingeforss). The Finnish language form of the name probably originates from Helsinga and similar names used for the river that is currently known as the Vantaa River as documented already in the 14th century. Helsingfors comes from the name of the surrounding parish, Helsinge (source for Finnish Helsinki) and the rapids (Swedish: fors), which flowed through the original village.
Another suggestion is that the name Helsinge may have originated with medieval Swedish settlers who came from Hälsingland in Sweden. Others have proposed that the name derives from the Swedish word helsing, a former version of the word hals (neck), referring to the narrowest part of the river, i.e. the rapids.[11] Other Scandinavian cities located at this kind of geographical locations were given similar names at the time, such as Helsingør and Helsingborg.
In Helsinki slang the city is nicknamed as either Stadi (from the Swedish word stad, meaning "city") or Hesa (short of Helsinki + slang suffix sa), with Stadi being used to assert that the speaker is native to the city.[12][13] Helsset is the Northern Saami name of Helsinki.
Geography
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ac/Helsinki_SPOT_1021.jpg/250px-Helsinki_SPOT_1021.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/53/La_rue_Luotsikatu%2C_quartier_de_Katajanokka_%28Helsinki%29_%282769251000%29.jpg/250px-La_rue_Luotsikatu%2C_quartier_de_Katajanokka_%28Helsinki%29_%282769251000%29.jpg)
Helsinki is spread across a number of bays and peninsulas and over a number of islands. The inner city area occupies a southern peninsula, which is rarely referred to by its actual name Vironniemi. Population density in certain parts of Helsinki's inner city area is very high, reaching 16,494 inhabitants per square kilometre (42,720/sq mi) in the district of Kallio, but as a whole Helsinki's population density of 3,050 per square kilometre (7,900/sq mi) ranks it as quite sparsely populated in comparison to other European capital cities.[14][15] Much of Helsinki outside the inner city area consists of postwar suburbs separated from each other by patches of forest. A narrow, ten-kilometre-long (6 mi) Helsinki Central Park that stretches from the inner city to the northern border of Helsinki is an important recreational area for residents.
Major islands in Helsinki include Seurasaari, Lauttasaari and Korkeasaari – the lattermost being the site of the country's biggest zoo. Other significant islands are the fortress island of Suomenlinna (Sveaborg) and the military island of Santahamina. Pihlajasaari island is a favourite summer spot for gay men and naturists, very much comparable to Fire Island off New York City.
Urban area
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/06/Greater_Helsinki_Urban_Area.svg/250px-Greater_Helsinki_Urban_Area.svg.png)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/91/Sturen-M%C3%A4kel%C3%A4n_risteys.jpg/220px-Sturen-M%C3%A4kel%C3%A4n_risteys.jpg)
Helsinki urban area spreads to 10 different municipalities[16] and is considered to be the only metropolis in Finland.[17] It has population of 1,159,211, land area of 631,11 km² and population density of 1,836.8 per square kilometre[2] It is by far the biggest and most densely populated area of Finland, 3.7 times bigger than Tampere.
The Helsinki Metropolitan Area consists of the cities of Helsinki, Espoo, Vantaa and Kauniainen. The Metropolitan Area covers 745 square kilometres (288 sq mi) and contains a total population of approximately one million. With about 19 per cent of the country's population in just 0.2 per cent of its surface area, the housing density of the area is high by Finnish standards. The Metropolitan Area also has a high concentration of employment: approximately 580,000 jobs. Despite the intensity of land use, the region also has large recreational areas and green spaces.
The Helsinki metropolitan area is the world's northernmost urban area among those with a population of over one million people, and the city is the northernmost capital of an EU member state. Altogether 1.3 million people, approximately one in four Finns, live in the Greater Helsinki area.
Climate
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ad/Hauhontie6.jpg/220px-Hauhontie6.jpg)
Helsinki has a humid continental climate (Köppen: Dfb). Owing to the mitigating influence of the Baltic Sea and Gulf Stream, temperatures in winter are higher than the northern location might suggest, with the average in January and February around −5 °C (23 °F).[18] Temperatures below −20 °C (−4 °F) occur normally a week or two in a year. However, because of the latitude, days last 5 hours and 48 minutes around the winter solstice with very low Sun rays, and the cloudy weather at this time of year accentuates the darkness. Conversely, Helsinki enjoys long days in summer, during the summer solstice days last 18 hours and 57 minutes .[19] The average maximum temperature from June to August is around 19 to 22 °C (66 to 72 °F). Due to the marine effect, especially in summer daily temperatures are cooler and night temperatures are higher than further away in the mainland. The highest temperature ever recorded in the city centre was 33.1 °C (91.6 °F) on 18 July 1945 and the lowest was −34.3 °C (−30 °F) on 10 January 1987.[20] Helsinki Airport recorded a temperature of 34.0 °C (93.2 °F) on 29 July 2010 and a low of −35.9 °C (−33 °F) on 9 January 1987.
Climate data for Helsinki (Kaisaniemi) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °C (°F) | 8.5 (47.3) |
11.8 (53.2) |
17.1 (62.8) |
21.9 (71.4) |
29.6 (85.3) |
32.0 (89.6) |
33.1 (91.6) |
31.2 (88.2) |
26.2 (79.2) |
19.4 (66.9) |
11.6 (52.9) |
10.0 (50.0) |
33.1 (91.6) |
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | −1.3 (29.7) |
−1.9 (28.6) |
1.6 (34.9) |
7.6 (45.7) |
14.4 (57.9) |
18.5 (65.3) |
21.5 (70.7) |
19.8 (67.6) |
14.6 (58.3) |
9.0 (48.2) |
3.7 (38.7) |
0.5 (32.9) |
9.0 (48.2) |
Daily mean °C (°F) | −3.9 (25.0) |
−4.7 (23.5) |
−1.3 (29.7) |
3.9 (39.0) |
10.2 (50.4) |
14.6 (58.3) |
17.8 (64.0) |
16.3 (61.3) |
11.5 (52.7) |
6.6 (43.9) |
1.6 (34.9) |
−2.0 (28.4) |
5.9 (42.6) |
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −6.5 (20.3) |
−7.4 (18.7) |
−4.1 (24.6) |
0.8 (33.4) |
6.3 (43.3) |
10.9 (51.6) |
14.2 (57.6) |
13.1 (55.6) |
8.7 (47.7) |
4.3 (39.7) |
−0.6 (30.9) |
−4.5 (23.9) |
2.9 (37.2) |
Record low °C (°F) | −34.3 (−29.7) |
−31.5 (−24.7) |
−24.5 (−12.1) |
−16.3 (2.7) |
−4.8 (23.4) |
0.7 (33.3) |
5.4 (41.7) |
2.8 (37.0) |
−4.5 (23.9) |
−11.6 (11.1) |
−18.6 (−1.5) |
−29.5 (−21.1) |
−34.3 (−29.7) |
Average precipitation mm (inches) | 52 (2.0) |
36 (1.4) |
38 (1.5) |
32 (1.3) |
37 (1.5) |
57 (2.2) |
63 (2.5) |
80 (3.1) |
56 (2.2) |
76 (3.0) |
70 (2.8) |
58 (2.3) |
655 (25.8) |
Average snowfall cm (inches) | 20 (7.9) |
24 (9.4) |
15 (5.9) |
0.4 (0.2) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
3 (1.2) |
10 (3.9) |
72 (28) |
Mean monthly sunshine hours | 38 | 70 | 138 | 194 | 284 | 297 | 291 | 238 | 150 | 93 | 36 | 29 | 1,858 |
Source: Climatological statistics for the normal period 1981–2010 [20] |
Climate data for Helsinki-Vantaa Airport (Helsinki Airport) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °C (°F) | 8.2 (46.8) |
10.0 (50.0) |
17.5 (63.5) |
24.0 (75.2) |
29.0 (84.2) |
31.4 (88.5) |
34.0 (93.2) |
31.5 (88.7) |
25.3 (77.5) |
18.2 (64.8) |
11.3 (52.3) |
9.6 (49.3) |
34.0 (93.2) |
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | −2.4 (27.7) |
−2.7 (27.1) |
1.5 (34.7) |
8.7 (47.7) |
15.8 (60.4) |
19.6 (67.3) |
22.5 (72.5) |
20.5 (68.9) |
14.8 (58.6) |
8.6 (47.5) |
2.6 (36.7) |
−0.7 (30.7) |
9.1 (48.4) |
Daily mean °C (°F) | −5.0 (23.0) |
−5.7 (21.7) |
−1.9 (28.6) |
4.1 (39.4) |
10.4 (50.7) |
14.6 (58.3) |
17.7 (63.9) |
15.8 (60.4) |
10.7 (51.3) |
5.6 (42.1) |
0.4 (32.7) |
−3.2 (26.2) |
5.3 (41.5) |
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −8.1 (17.4) |
−8.9 (16.0) |
−5.4 (22.3) |
−0.2 (31.6) |
4.8 (40.6) |
9.5 (49.1) |
12.6 (54.7) |
11.3 (52.3) |
6.9 (44.4) |
2.7 (36.9) |
−2.1 (28.2) |
−6.0 (21.2) |
1.4 (34.5) |
Record low °C (°F) | −35.9 (−32.6) |
−30.2 (−22.4) |
−27.2 (−17.0) |
−12.1 (10.2) |
−5.4 (22.3) |
−0.5 (31.1) |
4.0 (39.2) |
2.0 (35.6) |
−7.3 (18.9) |
−14.5 (5.9) |
−19.9 (−3.8) |
−29.5 (−21.1) |
−35.9 (−32.6) |
Average precipitation mm (inches) | 54 (2.1) |
37 (1.5) |
37 (1.5) |
32 (1.3) |
39 (1.5) |
61 (2.4) |
66 (2.6) |
79 (3.1) |
64 (2.5) |
82 (3.2) |
73 (2.9) |
58 (2.3) |
682 (26.9) |
Mean monthly sunshine hours | 38 | 74 | 131 | 196 | 275 | 266 | 291 | 219 | 143 | 84 | 37 | 26 | 1,780 |
Source: Climatological statistics for the normal period 1981–2010 [20] Sun and record temperatures 1981-2011 only |
Cityscape
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/Wooden_Vallila_houses2_2005-29-08.jpg/195px-Wooden_Vallila_houses2_2005-29-08.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4f/Aleksanterinkatu_Helsinki_summer.jpg/195px-Aleksanterinkatu_Helsinki_summer.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3e/Aleksi_Helsinki_Market_Street.jpg/200px-Aleksi_Helsinki_Market_Street.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/03/HelsinkiToolonlahti.jpg/195px-HelsinkiToolonlahti.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/27/Lutheran_Cathedral_Helsinki.jpg/195px-Lutheran_Cathedral_Helsinki.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/83/ViewOfficeParliamentFinland.jpg/195px-ViewOfficeParliamentFinland.jpg)
Carl Ludvig Engel (1778–1840) was appointed to design a new city centre all on his own. He designed several neoclassical buildings in Helsinki. The focal point of Engel's city plan is the Senate Square. It is surrounded by the Government Palace (to the east), the main building of Helsinki University (to the west), and (to the north) the enormous Cathedral, which was finished in 1852, twelve years after C. L. Engel's death. Subsequently, Engel's neoclassical plan stimulated the epithet, The White City Of The North. Helsinki is, however, perhaps even more famous for its numerous Art Nouveau (Jugend in Finnish) influenced buildings of the romantic nationalism, designed in the early 1900s and strongly influenced by the Kalevala, which is a very popular theme in the national romantic art of that era. Helsinki's Art Nouveau style is also featured in large residential areas such as Katajanokka and Ullanlinna. The master of the Finnish Art Nouveau was Eliel Saarinen (1873–1950), whose architectural masterpiece was the Helsinki central railway station.
Helsinki also features several buildings by the world-renowned Finnish architect Alvar Aalto (1898–1976), recognized as one of the pioneers of architectural functionalism. However, some of his works, such as the headquarters of the paper company Stora Enso and the concert venue, Finlandia Hall, have been subject to divided opinions from the citizens.[21][22][23]
Renowned functionalist buildings in Helsinki by other architects include the Olympic Stadium, the Tennis Palace, the Rowing Stadium, the Swimming Stadium, the Velodrome, the Glass Palace, the Exhibition Hall (now Töölö Sports Hall) and Helsinki-Malmi Airport. The sports venues were built to serve the 1940 Helsinki Olympic Games; the games were initially cancelled due to the Second World War, but the venues eventually got to fulfill their purpose in the 1952 Olympic Games. Many of them are listed by DoCoMoMo as significant examples of modern architecture. The Olympic Stadium and Helsinki-Malmi Airport are in addition catalogued by the National Board of Antiquities as cultural-historical environments of national significance. [citation needed]
As a historical footnote, Helsinki's neoclassical buildings were often used as a backdrop for scenes set to take place in the Soviet Union in many Cold War era Hollywood movies, when filming in the USSR was not possible. Some of the more notable ones are The Kremlin Letter (1970), Reds (1981) and Gorky Park (1983). Because some streetscapes were reminiscent of Leningrad's and Moscow's old buildings, they too were used in movie productions—much to some residents' dismay. At the same time the government secretly instructed Finnish officials not to extend assistance to such film projects.[24]
Government
The city council of Helsinki consists of eighty-five members. Following the most recent municipal election in 2012, the three largest parties are National Coalition (23), Greens (19), and Social Democrats (15).[25] The mayor, Jussi Pajunen, is a member of the National Coalition Party.
Like in all Finnish municipalities, the City Council of Helsinki is the main decision-making organ in local politics, dealing with issues such as city planning, schools, health care, and public transport. The 85-member council is elected every fourth year by municipal elections.
Traditionally, the conservative National Coalition Party (kokoomus) has been the biggest party in Helsinki's local politics, with the Social Democrats being the second biggest. In the 2000 election the Green League, for which Helsinki is the strongest area of support nationally, gained the position of the second most popular party. In 2004 however, the Social Democrats regained that position. In 2008 election, the Green League again became the second biggest party, and they remained so in the 2012 election.
The Left Alliance is the fourth largest party, while the True Finns have increased their support steadily to become the fifth largest party. The Swedish People's Party's support has been steadily declining over the years, most likely because of the diminishing proportion of Swedish speakers in Helsinki. The Centre Party of Finland, despite being one of the major parties in nationwide politics, only has little support in Helsinki like it does in most other big cities.
Demographics
Helsinki has a higher proportion of women (53.4%) than elsewhere in Finland (51.1%). Helsinki's current population density of 2,739.36 people per square kilometer is by far the highest in Finland. Life expectancy for both genders is slightly below the national averages: 75.1 years for men as compared to 75.7 years, 81.7 years for women as compared to 82.5 years.[26][27]
Helsinki has experienced strong growth since the 1810s, when it replaced Turku as the capital of the Grand Duchy of Finland, which later became the sovereign Republic of Finland. The city continued to show strong growth from that time onwards, with the exception during the Finnish Civil War period. From the end of World War II up until the 1970s there was a massive exodus of people from the countryside to the cities of Finland, in particular Helsinki. Between 1944 and 1969 the population of the city nearly doubled from 275,000[28] to 525,600.[29]
In the 1960s, the population growth of Helsinki proper began to ebb mainly due to lack of housing.[30] Many residents began to move to neighbouring Espoo and Vantaa, where population growth has since soared. Espoo's population increased ninefold in sixty years, from 22,874 people in 1950 to 244,353 in 2009. [citation needed] Neighboring Vantaa has seen even more dramatic change in the same time span: from 14,976 in 1950 to 197,663 in 2009, a thirteenfold increase. These dramatic increases pushed the municipalities of greater Helsinki into more intense cooperation in such areas as public transportation[31] and waste management.[32] The increasing scarcity of housing and the higher costs of living in the Helsinki metropolitan area have pushed many daily commuters to find housing in formerly very rural areas, and even further, to such cities as Lohja (50 km (31 mi) northwest from the city centre), Hämeenlinna and Lahti (both 100 km (62 mi) from Helsinki), and Porvoo (50 km (31 mi) to the east).
Language
Finnish and Swedish are the official languages of the municipality of Helsinki. The majority, or 82.5%[33] of the population, speak Finnish as their native language. A minority, at 6.0%, speak Swedish. Around 11.5% of the population speak a native language other than Finnish or Swedish. Helsinki slang combines influences from the Finnish, Swedish and Russian languages. Finnish today is the common language of communication between Finnish speakers, Swedish speakers and speakers of other languages (New Finns) in day-to-day affairs in the public sphere between unknown persons. In case a speaker's knowledge of Finnish is not known, English is usually spoken. Swedish is commonly spoken in city or national agencies specifically aimed at Finland-Swedish speakers, such as the Social Services Department on Hämeentie or the Luckan Cultural centre in Kamppi. Knowledge of Finnish is also essential in business and is usually a basic requirement in the employment market.[34]
Finnish speakers surpassed Swedish speakers in 1890 to become the majority of the city's population.[35] At the time, Helsinki's population was 61,530.[36]
Immigration
Helsinki is the global gateway of Finland. The city has Finland's largest immigrant population in both absolute and relative terms. There are over 130 nationalities represented in Helsinki. The largest groups are from Russia, Estonia, Sweden, Somalia, Serbia, China, Iraq, Germany and Turkey.
Foreign citizens make up 8.0% of the population, while foreign born make up 11.1%.[33] In 2012, 68,375[33] residents spoke a native language other than Finnish, Swedish or one of the three Sami languages spoken in Finland. The largest groups of residents with a non-Finnish background come from Russia (14,532), Estonia (9,065) and Somalia (6,845).[33] Half of the immigrant population in Finland lives in greater Helsinki, and one third in the city of Helsinki.[37]
Economy
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/Kamppi_Center_II.jpg/220px-Kamppi_Center_II.jpg)
The Helsinki metropolitan area generates approximately one third of Finland's GDP. GDP per capita is roughly 1.3 times the national average.[38]
The metropolitan area's gross value added per capita is 200% of the mean of 27 European metropolitan areas, equalling those of Stockholm or Paris. The gross value added annual growth has been around 4%.[39]
83 of the 100 largest Finnish companies are headquartered in Greater Helsinki. Two-thirds of the 200 highest-paid Finnish executives live in Greater Helsinki and 42% in Helsinki. The average income of the top 50 earners was 1.65 million euro.[40]
The tap water is of excellent quality and it is supplied by 120 km (75 mi) long Päijänne Water Tunnel, one of the world's longest continuous rock tunnels. Bottled Helsinki tap water is even sold to countries such as Saudi Arabia.[41]
Education
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bc/Kaisa-talo3.jpg/220px-Kaisa-talo3.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/52/Helsingin_yliopiston_p%C3%A4%C3%A4rakennus.jpg/220px-Helsingin_yliopiston_p%C3%A4%C3%A4rakennus.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Haaga-Helia_University_Of_Applied_Sciences.png/212px-Haaga-Helia_University_Of_Applied_Sciences.png)
Helsinki has 190 comprehensive schools, 41 upper secondary schools and 15 vocational institutes. Half of the 41 upper secondary schools are private or state-owned, the other half municipal. Higher level education is given in eight universities (see the section "Universities" below) and four polytechnics.
Universities
- University of Helsinki
- Aalto University
- Hanken School of Economics
- University of the Arts Helsinki
- National Defence University
University of Applied Sciences
- Haaga-Helia University Of Applied Sciences
- Helsinki Metropolia University of Applied Sciences
- Arcada University of Applied Sciences
Helsinki is one of the co-location centres of the Knowledge and Innovation Community (Future information and communication society) of The European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT).[42]
The educational department takes part in Lifelong Learning Programme 2007–2013 in Finland.
Culture
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/Helsinki_Kiasma.jpg/250px-Helsinki_Kiasma.jpg)
Museums
The biggest historical museum in Helsinki is the National Museum of Finland, which displays a vast historical collection from prehistoric times to the 21st century. The museum building itself, a national romantic style neomedieval castle, is a tourist attraction. Other major historical museum is the Helsinki City Museum, which introduces visitors to Helsinki's 500-year history. The University of Helsinki also has many significant museums, including the University Museum and the Natural History Museum.
The Finnish National Gallery consists of three museums: Ateneum Art Museum for classical Finnish art, Sinebrychoff Art Museum for classical European art, and Kiasma Art Museum for modern art. The old Ateneum, a neo-Renaissance palace from 19th century, is one of the city's major historical buildings. All three museum buildings are state-owned through Senate Properties.
The Design Museum is devoted to the exhibition of both Finnish and foreign design, including industrial design, fashion, and graphic design.
Theatres
Helsinki has three major theatres: The Finnish National Theatre, the Helsinki City Theatre, and the Finland Swedish Svenska Teatern. The city's main musical venues are the Finnish National Opera, the Finlandia concert hall and the Helsinki Music Centre. The Music Centre also houses a part of the Sibelius Academy. Bigger concerts and events are usually held at one of the city's two big ice hockey arenas: the Hartwall Areena or the Helsinki Ice Hall. Helsinki has Finland's largest fairgrounds.
Music
Helsinki is home to two full-size symphony orchestras, the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra and the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, both of which perform at the Helsinki Music Centre concert hall. Acclaimed contemporary composers Kaija Saariaho, Magnus Lindberg, Esa-Pekka Salonen and Einojuhani Rautavaara, among others, were born and raised in Helsinki, and studied at the Sibelius Academy. The Finnish National Opera, the only full-time, professional opera company in Finland, is located in Helsinki. The opera singer Martti Wallén, one of the company's long-time soloists, was born and raised in Helsinki, as was mezzo-soprano Monica Groop.
Many widely renowned and acclaimed bands have originated in Helsinki, including Hanoi Rocks, HIM, Stratovarius, The 69 Eyes, Finntroll, Ensiferum, Wintersun, The Rasmus and Apocalyptica.
Art
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/39/Finnish_National_Theatre.jpg/220px-Finnish_National_Theatre.jpg)
The Helsinki Festival is an annual arts and culture festival, which takes place every August (including the Night of the Arts).
Vappu is an annual carnival for students and workers.
Helsinki Arena hosted the Eurovision Song Contest 2007, the first Eurovision Song Contest arranged in Finland, following Lordi's win in 2006.
At the Senate Square in September / October 2010, the largest open-air art exhibition ever in Finland took place: About 1.4 million people saw the international exhibition of United Buddy Bears.
Helsinki is the 2012 World Design Capital, in recognition of the use of design as an effective tool for social, cultural and economic development in the city. In choosing Helsinki, the World Design Capital selection jury highlighted Helsinki's use of 'Embedded Design', which has tied design in the city to innovation, "creating global brands, such as Nokia, Kone and Marimekko, popular events, like the annual Helsinki Design Week, outstanding education and research institutions, such as the University of Art and Design Helsinki, and exemplary architects and designers such as Eliel Saarinen and Alvar Aalto".[5]
Media
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/69/Linus_Torvalds.jpeg/170px-Linus_Torvalds.jpeg)
Today, there are around 200 newspapers, 320 popular magazines, 2,100 professional magazines, 67 commercial radio stations, three digital radio channels and one nationwide and five national public service radio channels.[citation needed]
Each year, around 12,000 book titles are published and 12 million records are sold.[43]
Sanoma publishes the newspaper Helsingin Sanomat (its circulation of 412,000[44] making it the largest), the tabloid Ilta-Sanomat, the commerce-oriented Taloussanomat and the television channel Nelonen. The other major publisher Alma Media publishes over thirty magazines, including the newspaper Aamulehti, tabloid Iltalehti and commerce-oriented Kauppalehti. Worldwide, Finns, along with other Nordic peoples and the Japanese, spend the most time reading newspapers.[45]
YLE, Finland's public broadcasting station, operates five television channels and thirteen radio channels in both national languages. YLE is funded through a mandatory television license and fees for private broadcasters. All TV channels are broadcast digitally, both terrestrially and on cable. The commercial television channel MTV3 and commercial radio channel Radio Nova are owned by Nordic Broadcasting (Bonnier and Proventus Industrier).
Around 79% of the population use the Internet.[46] Finland had around 1.52 million broadband Internet connections by the end of June 2007 or around 287 per 1,000 inhabitants.[47] All Finnish schools and public libraries have Internet connections and computers and most residents have a mobile phone. Value-added services are rare.[48] In October 2009, Finland's Ministry of Transport and Communications committed to ensuring that every person in Finland would be able to access the Internet at a minimum speed of one megabit-per-second beginning July 2010.[49]
Sports
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ec/2005_World_Championships_in_Athletics_2.jpg/180px-2005_World_Championships_in_Athletics_2.jpg)
Helsinki has a long tradition of sports: the city gained much of its initial international recognition during the 1952 Summer Olympics, and the city has arranged sporting events such as the first World Championships in Athletics 1983 and 2005, and the European Championships in Athletics 1971, 1994 and 2012. Helsinki hosts successful local teams in both of the most popular team sports in Finland, football and ice hockey. Helsinki houses Helsingin Jalkapalloklubi (HJK), Finland's largest and most successful football club. Helsinki's track and field club Helsingin Kisa-Veikot is also dominant within Finland. Ice hockey is popular among many Helsinki residents, who usually support either of the local clubs IFK Helsingfors (HIFK) or Jokerit. HIFK, with 14 Finnish championships titles, also plays in the highest bandy division,[50] along with Botnia−69. The Olympic stadium hosted the first ever Bandy World Championship in 1957.[51]
Helsinki was elected host-city of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but due to World War II they were canceled. Instead Helsinki was the host of the 1952 Summer Olympics. The Olympics were a landmark event symbolically and economically for Helsinki and Finland as a whole that was recovering from the winter war and the continuation war fought with the Soviet Union. Helsinki was also in 1983 the first ever city to host the World Championships in Athletics. Helsinki also hosted the event in 2005, thus also becoming the first city to ever host the Championships for a second time. The Helsinki City Marathon has been held in the city every year since 1980, usually in August. A Formula 3000 race through the city streets was held on 25 May 1997. In 2009 Helsinki was host of European Figure Skating Championships.
Transport
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/54/Visit-suomi-2009-05-by-RalfR-230.jpg/220px-Visit-suomi-2009-05-by-RalfR-230.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a0/Helsinki_Metro_train.jpg/250px-Helsinki_Metro_train.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Helsinki-Malmi_2008-001.jpg/250px-Helsinki-Malmi_2008-001.jpg)
Roads
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/51/Helsinki-Tram-1979.jpg/220px-Helsinki-Tram-1979.jpg)
The backbone of Helsinki's motorway network consists of three semicircular ring roads, Ring I, Ring II, and Ring III, which connect expressways heading to other parts of Finland, and the western and eastern arteries of Länsiväylä and Itäväylä respectively. While variants of a Keskustatunneli tunnel under the city centre have been repeatedly proposed, as of 2011 the plan remains on the drawing board.
Helsinki has some 390 cars per 1000 inhabitants.[52] This is less than in cities of similar density, such as Brussels' 483 per 1000, Stockholm's 401, and Oslo's 413.[53][54]
Rail transport and buses
Public transport is generally a hotly debated subject in the local politics of Helsinki. In Helsinki metropolitan area, public transportation is managed under Helsinki Region Transport, the metropolitan area transportation authority. The diverse public transport system consists of trams, commuter rail, the subway, bus lines, two ferry lines and on-demand minibuses.[55]
Today, Helsinki is the only city in Finland to have trams or metro trains. There used to be two other cities in Finland with trams: Turku and Viipuri (Vyborg, now in Russia), but both have since abandoned trams. The Helsinki Metro, opened in 1982, is the only rapid transit system in Finland. In 2006, the construction of the long debated extension of the system west into Espoo was approved, and serious debate about an eastern extension into Sipoo has taken place.[56]
The possibility of a Helsinki to Tallinn Tunnel is currently being researched. The rail tunnel would connect Helsinki to the Estonian capital Tallinn, further linking Helsinki to the rest of continental Europe by Rail Baltica.
Aviation
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e5/Helsinki_region_roads.jpg/250px-Helsinki_region_roads.jpg)
Air traffic is handled primarily from the international Helsinki Airport, located approximately 19 kilometres (12 mi) north of Helsinki's downtown area, in the neighbouring city of Vantaa. Helsinki's second airport, Malmi Airport, is mainly used for general and private aviation. Helicopter flights to Tallinn are available from Hernesaari Heliport.
Sea transport
Ferry connections to Tallinn, Mariehamn and Stockholm are serviced by various companies. Finnlines passenger-freight ferries to Gdynia, Poland, Travemünde, Germany and Rostock, Germany are also available. St Peter Line offers passenger ferry service to Saint Petersburg several times a week.
International relations
Special partnership cities
Helsinki has a special partnership relation with:
Gallery
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The South Harbour
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Stockmann department store along the Aleksanterinkatu's Christmas street
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Restaurant Vltava on the right and Sanomatalo in the background
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Rooftops of the southern inner city districts
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Wall of the Parliament House
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The Esplanadi Park in early June
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Finnish National Theatre and Aleksis Kivi statue in Rautatientori
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Altar of the Temppeliaukio Church that is built underground
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Hietaniemi beach in the summer
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Itis shopping centre is a large shopping mall in the Eastern suburbs
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The district of Töölö
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The Design Museum
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Interior of the Old Market Hall
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Huvilakatu in Ullanlinna
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The Helsinki Cathedral, seen from the South Harbour
References
- Notes
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population_count
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- ^ "Cities of Finland". Eurostat. Retrieved 10 February 2013.
- ^ "Helsinki Region Marketing Ltd — Helsinki Region in Brief". Web.archive.org. 2 December 2007. Archived from the original on 2 December 2007. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
- ^ a b "City of Helsinki appointed World Design Capital 2012". Worlddesigncapital.com. 25 November 2009. Retrieved 13 April 2010.[dead link] [dead link]
- ^ "Liveabililty Ranking and Overview August 2012 - Economist Intelligence Unit". Eiu.com. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
- ^ "Most liveable city: Helsinki — Monocle Film / Affairs". Monocle.com. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
- ^ Jäppinen, Jere (15 November 2011). "Mistä Helsingin nimi on peräisin?". Helsingin Sanomat: D2.
{{cite journal}}
: CS1 maint: year (link) - ^ "Ruttopuisto – Plague Park". Tabblo.com. Retrieved 3 November 2008.[dead link]
- ^ Niukkanen, Marianna; Heikkinen, Markku. "Vuoden 1808 suurpalo". Kurkistuksia Helsingin kujille (in Finnish). National Board of Antiquities. Retrieved 14 July 2013.
- ^ "Utbildning & Vetenskap: Svenskfinland". Veta.yle.fi. Retrieved 8 July 2009.[dead link]
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
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- ^ "Geography of Helsinki, Overview of Finland". easyexpat.com. Retrieved 5 February 2014.
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- ^ Tukiainen, Matti. "Helsinki, Finland – Sunrise, sunset, dawn and dusk times around the World!". Gaisma. Retrieved 11 February 2011.
- ^ a b c "Ilmatieteen laitos – Sää ja ilmasto – Ilmastotilastot – Ilman lämpötila" (in Finnish). Finnish Meteorological Institute. Retrieved 8 July 2009.[dead link] Cite error: The named reference "fmi.fi" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
- ^ "Stora Enson pääkonttori, Kanavaranta 1". "Helsingin Aallot" blog (in Finnish). 25 February 2007. Retrieved 5 February 2011.
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- ^ Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, Political Department: Template:PDFlink
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- ^ Tapani Valkonen ym. (17 December 2007). "Tutkimuksia 10/2007: Elinajanodotteen kehitys Helsingissä ja sen väestönosaryhmissä 1991–2005" (PDF). Helsingin kaupunki, tietokeskus. Retrieved 30 December 2007.
- ^ Tilastolaitoksen historiaa. "Tilasto". Stat.fi. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
- ^ "Helsingin historia". Hel.fi. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
- ^ "Maan alle". Aatos.fi. 30 December 1972. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
- ^ Butzin, Bernhard (1991). "Helsinki — aspects of urban development and planning". GeoJournal. 2 (1). Springer, Netherlands: 11–26. doi:10.1007/BF00212573. ISSN 0343-2521.
{{cite journal}}
:|access-date=
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(help) - ^ "HSL Helsingin seudun liikenne – About HSL". Hsl.fi. 1 January 2010. Retrieved 13 April 2010.[dead link]
- ^ "HSY – Default". Hsy.fi. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
- ^ a b c d "12 06 28 Tilastoja 23 Peuranen" (PDF) (in Finnish). City of Helsinki. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
- ^ "Immigrants Learning Swedish over Finnish Run into Problems | News | YLE Uutiset". yle.fi. Retrieved 16 September 2011.
- ^ "Helsingin nimistön vaiheita". Scripta.kotus.fi. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
- ^ "Kysy.fi | Helsingin kaupunginkirjasto" (in Template:Fi icon). Igs.kirjastot.fi. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link) - ^ Katriina Pajari (7 December 2008). "Kolmannes maahanmuuttajista asuu Helsingissä – HS.fi – Kaupunki". HS.fi. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
- ^ "Helsinki Region Statistics". Helsinginseutu.fi. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
- ^ "Kansilehti2.vp" (PDF). Retrieved 13 April 2010.
- ^ "Helsingin Sanomat – International Edition – Metro". Hs.fi. 9 November 2005. Retrieved 8 July 2009.
- ^ [2][dead link]
- ^ "European Institute of Innovation and Technology: Home". Eit.europa.eu. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
- ^ "Media moves". ThisisFINLAND (Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland).
- ^ "Circulation Statistics". The Finnish Audit Bureau of Circulations (Levikintarkastus Oy). Retrieved 25 July 2009.
- ^ "World Press Trends: Newspapers Still Reach More Than Internet". World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers. Retrieved 19 November 2012.
- ^ "Internet used by 79 per cent of the population at the beginning of 2007". Statistics Finland. Retrieved 22 December 2007.
- ^ "Market Review 2/2007" (PDF). Finnish Communications Regulatory Authority (FICORA). 31 August 2007. Retrieved 4 September 2007.[dead link]
- ^ "Information technology has become part of Finns' everyday life". Tilastokeskus.fi. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
- ^ "1Mb Broadband Access Becomes Legal Right". YLE. 14 October 2009. Retrieved 16 October 2009.
- ^ Video from the Finnish final 2009 against OLS from Oulu: Youtube.com
- ^ [3][dead link]
- ^ [4][dead link]
- ^ "Runge" (PDF). European Academy of the Urban Environment. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
- ^ "Tietokeskus: suunnatframe". Hel2.fi. Retrieved 8 July 2009.
- ^ Barry, Keith (10 November 2013). "New Helsinki Bus Line Lets You Choose Your Own Route". Wired. Retrieved 4 April 2014.
- ^ "Länsimetro rakentaa tulevaisuutta turvallisesti". Lansimetro.fi. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
- ^ Yan, Yangtze (14 July 2006). "Beijing, Helsinki forge sister city relationship". Chinese Government. Chinese Government Official Portal. Retrieved 5 August 2013.
{{cite web}}
: External link in
(help)|publisher=
- ^ "Sister Cities". Beijing Municipal Government. Retrieved 23 June 2009.
- ^ a b c "Partners and Networks". Hel.fi (international section). City of Helsinki. Retrieved 6 August 2013.
External links