Finland – Your Host Country

Finland is one of the Nordic countries, the others being Sweden, Norway Denmark and Iceland. Situated in the far northeast of Europe, it is a quiet, peaceful and socially stable country. Finland has been a member of the European Union since 1995.

History

Finland was part of the Kingdom of Sweden from 1154 to 1809, when it was annexed to Russia as an autonomous Grand Duchy. Finland declared independence in 1917.

Population

Finland has a population of 5.2 million. Covering an area of 338,000 square kilometres, the average population density is 17 people per square kilometre. 65% of Finns live in towns or urban areas, 35% in rural areas.

Languages

Finland has two official languages: Finnish and Swedish. Finnish, a Finno-Ugric language, is spoken by 93% and Swedish by 6% of the population. Sami (Lappish) is the mother tongue of about 1,700 people. Most Finns have a good command of English.

Landscape

Finland is the sixth largest country in Europe. As much as 65% of its area is covered with forest. Finland is also known as the land of a thousand lakes – although at the last count there were as many as 188,000.

Climate – Four Distinct Seasons

The climate in Finland is marked by cold winters and fairly warm summers. In the far north of the country the sun does not set for about 73 days, producing the white nights of summer. In winter, the sun remains below the horizon for 51 days in the far north. In June, the summer has just blossomed in Finland. The temperature usually rises to 20° - 25°C, and the days are at their longest, offering about 20 hours of sunlight.