Finland! presentation by Susanne Rogetzer

Geography:

Total area: - 338,000 square kilometres, of which 10% is water and 69% forest; -187,888 lakes, 5,100 rapids and 179,584 islands; -Europe's largest archipelago, including the semi- autonomous province of Åland

Distances 1,160 km north to south, 540 km west to east Finland's land border with Russia (1,269 km) is the eastern border of the European Union.

Climate: The climate of Finland is marked by cold winters and fairly warm summers. In summer the temperature quite often rises to +20 Celsius or. In winter, temperatures of - 20 Celsius are not uncommon in many areas.

People:

Population: 5.3 million 71% live in towns or urban areas, 29% in rural areas Principal cities About 1.25 million people live in the Helsinki metropolitan area Finland has a Sami (Lapp) population of 8,700.

Languages: Finland has two official languages: Finnish and Swedish. Sami (Lappish) is the mother tongue of about 1,700 people. Religion: 82.4% Lutheran and about 1.1% Orthodox

History and governance: Some important events in the history of Finland: 1155 The first crusade to Finland by the Swedes. Finland becomes part of the Swedish realm Finland is handed over to Russia by Sweden and becomes a autonomous Grand Duchy under the Russian emperor Finland's declaration of independence on December The present constitution is adopted and Finland becomes a republic The Soviet Union attacks Finland, which leads to the winter war Fighting between Finnish and Soviet Forces resumes in the Continuation War. Some territory is ceded to the Soviet Union but Finland is never occupied and preserves its independence and sovereignty Finland joins the United Nations 1995 Finland becomes a member of the European Union

Parliament: Parliament consists of one chamber with 200 members. The members are elected for a four-year term by direct popular vote under a system of proportional representation.

The Government: The President of the Republic is Tarja Halonen. The coalition government headed by Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen, Centre Party, consists of 20 ministers. The Centre Party and the National Coalition Party have eight ministerial posts each. The Green League and the Swedish People's Party both have two ministers.

Exports: There are three almost equally important exports sectors in the Finnish economy: electro-technical industry products; metal products, machinery and transport and wood and paper products. The fourth biggest export sector is the chemical industry.

Imports: Finnish industry is particularly dependent on imports of raw materials, machinery and components that it needs for manufacturing products for both domestic and export markets. Consumer goods, including textiles, clothing and cars, made up just over 26% of total imports.

Sights: View from the „Koli“-crest to the „Pielinen-lake“

Helsinki Cathedral The Lutheran Cathedral was built in to replace an earlier church from design by Carl Engel Lohrmann added four small towers and two side buildings There are statues of the Apostles made of zinc on the roof, and they are the biggest unique set of zinc sculptures in the world. The church was called St. Nicholas church until the independence of Finland in Since 1959, it became a Cathedral, and is called Helsinki Cathedral or the Lutheran Cathedral.

Suomenlinna Suomenlinna is a major monument of military architecture. The construction of the sea fortress on the islands just off Helsinki in the middle of the 18th century was the most extensive building project during Swedish rule. In 1991 it was included in UNESCO’s World Heritage List. Suomenlinna is one of Finland’s most popular tourist attractions. At the same time it is a suburb of Helsinki, with 850 people living in the renovated ramparts and barracks.

Finland's National Parks National Parks are jewels of the Finnish nature reserves; large areas with diverse natural features. There are impressive natural sights, and also nationally and internationally valuable ecosystems. Hikers can find marked trails, some of which are easy, others more demanding. In the largest parks, you can stay overnight and go wilderness trekking. Many parks have a visitor centre, which is an excellent place to start an excursion. There are 35 National Parks in Finland. They are managed by Metsähallitus. Hiidenportti National Park Koli National ParkSeitseminen National Park

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