Finland

     From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

The Republic of Finland (Finnish: Suomi, Swedish: Finland) is a Nordic country, bounded by the Baltic Sea to the southwest, the Gulf of Finland to the southeast and the Gulf of Bothnia to the west, and has land frontiers with Sweden, Norway and Russia and a maritime border with Estonia). The Aland Islands, off the southwest coast, are under Finnish sovereignty while enjoying extensive Home Rule.

History

Main article: History of Finland Conclusive archaeological evidence exists that the area now comprising Finland was settled during the Stone Age, as the inland ice of the last ice age receded. The earliest inhabitants are thought to have been hunters and gatherers, living primarily off what the forests and sea could offer.

Old Scandinavian sagas and some historians like Danish Saxo Grammaticus and Arabian Al Idrisi tell that there have been Finnish kings before Sweden conquered Finland.

Finland's nearly 700-year association with the Kingdom of Sweden began in 1154 with the introduction of Christianity by Sweden's King Erik. Swedish became the dominant language of administration and education, although Finnish recovered its predominance after a 19th century resurgence of Finnish nationalism (fennomania) following the publication of Finland's national epic, the Kalevala.

In 1808, Finland was conquered by the armies of Russian Emperor Alexander I and thereafter remained an autonomous Grand Duchy in personal union with the Russian Empire until the end of 1917. On December 6, 1917, shortly after the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia, Finland declared its independence.

The social frontier between the ruling and the working class has been broader in Finland than in most comparable countries. Into the 19th century there was a most obvious language barrier; then during the 19th century Finland developed a proud University-educated meritocracy that felt as being the true representation of "the people" since they spoke the people's language and since a great deal of their ancestors really had been poor peasants.

In 1918, the country experienced a brief but bitter Civil War that coloured domestic politics for many years. The Civil War was chiefly fought between the educated class, supported by Germany and the big class of independent small farmers, against propertyless rural and industrial workers who despite universal suffrage in 1906 had found themselves without political influence.

During World War II, Finland fought the Soviet Union twice: in the Winter War of 1939-1940 (with some support from Sweden) and again in the Continuation War of 1941-1944 (with considerable support from Germany). This was followed by the Lapland War of 1944-1945, when Finland forced the Germans out of northern Finland.

Treaties signed in 1947 and 1948 with the Soviet Union included obligations and restraints on Finland vis-a-vis the Soviet Union as well as further territorial concessions by Finland (compared to the Moscow Peace Treaty of 1940).

After the Second World War, Finland was in the grey zone between western countries and Soviet Union. The so-called "YYA Treaty" (Finno-Soviet Pact of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance) gave Soviet Union some right of determination in Finnish domestic politics. Many politicians used their Soviet Union relations to solve party controversies, which meant that the Soviet Union got more power. The others, on the other hand, did single-minded work to oppose the communists.

When the Soviet Union fell in 1991 Finland was surprised, but they used it immediately to their advantage. Finland was free to follow her own course and joined the European Union in 1995. Even today Russia's influence can be seen; Finland supports federal country development more than the other Nordic countries.

Politics

Main article: Politics of Finland Finland has a primarily parliamentary system, although the president also has some notable powers. Most executive power lies in the cabinet (Council of State) headed by the prime minister chosen by the parliament. The Council of State is made up of the prime minister and the ministers for the various departments of the central government as well as an ex-officio member, the Chancellor of Justice.

Constitutionally, the 200-member, unicameral parliament, the Eduskunta (Finnish) or Riksdag (Swedish), is the supreme legislative authority in Finland. It may alter the constitution, bring about the resignation of the Council of State, and override presidential vetoes. Its acts are not subject to judicial review. Legislation may be initiated by the Council of State, or one of the Eduskunta members, who are elected on the basis of proportional representation for a four-year term.

The judicial system is divided between courts with regular civil and criminal jurisdiction and special courts with responsibility for litigation between the public and the administrative organs of the state. Finnish law is codified and its court system consists of local courts, regional appellate courts, and a Supreme Court.

The parliament has, since equal and common suffrage was introduced in 1906, been dominated by Agrarians, Social Democrats and Communists; although all of the political spectrum is more influenced by anti-Socialist currents than in similar countries having less contacts with the Soviet Union.

The constitution and its place in the judicial system are unique, as there is no constitutional court and the supreme courts don't have an explicit right not to enforce laws on the basis that they are unconstitutional. The constitutionality of laws in Finland is verified by a simple vote in the parliament. The only other European countries that lack a constitutional court are the Netherlands and the United Kingdom (the latter doesn't have a constitution at all).

Provinces

Main articles: Provinces of Finland, Historical provinces of Finland Finland consists of 6 provinces (laeaeni, laeaenit or laen). The province authority is part of the central government's executive branch; a system that hasn't changed drastically since its creation in 1634. The six provinces are:

• Southern Finland
• Western Finland
• Eastern Finland
• Oulu
• Lapland
• Aland

Another kind of provinces are the echoing the pattern of colonialization of Finland. Dialects, folklore, customs and people's feeling of affiliation are associated with these historical provinces, although the re-settlement of 400,000 Karelians during World War II and urbanization in the latter half of the 20th century have made differences less pronounced.

Local government is further organized in 450 municipalities of Finland. Since 1977, no legal or administrative distinction is made between towns, cities and other municipalities. The municipalities cooperate in 20 regions of Finland.

Geography

Main article: Geography of Finland

The climate is a northern temperate climate, characterised by cold, occasionally severe winters and relatively warm summers. A quarter of Finland's territory lies above the Arctic Circle, and as a consequence the sun does not set for 73 days during summer, and does not rise for up to 51 days during winter.

See also: List of towns in Finland, Population of Finland

Economy

Main article: Economy of Finland Finland has a highly industrialised, largely free-market economy, with per capita output roughly that of the UK, France, Germany, and Italy. Finnish standard of living is high, partly because it has rough and cold weather. Its key economic sector is manufacturing - principally the wood, metals, engineering, telecommunications, and electronics industries. Trade is important, with exports equaling almost one-third of GDP. Except for timber and several minerals, Finland depends on imports of raw materials, energy, and some components for manufactured goods.

Because of the climate, agricultural development is limited to maintaining self-sufficiency in basic products. Forestry, an important export earner, provides a secondary occupation for the rural population. Rapidly increasing integration with Western Europe - Finland was one of the 11 countries joining the euro monetary system (EMU) on January 1, 1999 - will dominate the economic picture over the next several years. Growth was anemic in 2002, but slowed down in 2003 because of global depression.

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Finland Ethnic Finns and Finland Swedes are considered two ethnicities comprising a common nation.

There are two official languages in Finland: Finnish, spoken by 93% of the population, and Swedish, mother tongue for 6% of the population. Other minority languages include Russian and Estonian. To the north, in Lapland, are found the Sami, numbering less than 7,000, who like the Finns speak a Finno-Ugric language (Sami). There are over 20 languages which have over thousand users.

Most Finns (89%) are members of the Lutheran Church of Finland, with a minority of 1% belonging to the Finnish Orthodox Church (see Eastern Orthodoxy). The remainder consist of relatively small groups of other Protestant denominations, Roman Catholics, Muslims and Jews beside the 9% who are unaffiliated.

After the Winter War (confirmed by the outcome of the Continuation War) 12% of Finland's population had to be re-settled. War reparations, unemployment and uncertainty regarding Finland's chances to remain sovereign and independent of the Soviet Union contributed to considerable emigration, abating first in the 1970s. Until then, half-a-million Finns had emigrated, chiefly to Sweden, although half of the emigrants ultimately re-migrated again.

Now, since the late 1990s, Finland receives refugees and immigrants in a rate comparable with the Scandinavian countries, although the accumulated number remains far lower in Finland. A considerable share of the immigrants has come from the former Soviet Union claiming ethnic (Finnic) kinship.

Culture

Main article: Culture of Finland

• Kalevala
• Kantele
• Sauna
• Santa Claus
• Maemmi
• Cuisine of Finland
• Music of Finland

Holidays

Main article: Holidays in Finland

Miscellaneous topics

• Communications in Finland
• Transportation in Finland
• Tourism in Finland
• Music of Finland
• Military of Finland
• Foreign relations of Finland
• Finlandization
• List of towns in Finland
• List of Finns
• List of Finland-related topics

• Government Agencies in Finland
• Education in Finland
  • List of universities in Finland
• Military of Finland
  • List of Finnish wars
• Non-governmental organizations in Finland

• List of Finnish companies
• List of Finnish newspapers

International rankings

• Worldwide press freedom index Rank 1 out of 139 countries (4 way tie)
• OECD literacy 2002 Rank 1 out of all countries
• Information Technology 2003 Rank 1 out of all countries
• Global Competitiveness 2003 Rank 1 out of all countries
• The least corrupted countries 2002 Rank 1 out of all countries
• The least infant death rate in the world 2002 Rank 1 out of all countries
• Environmental Sustainability Index 2002 Rank 1 out of all countries
• Education index 2000 Rank 1 out of all countries
• The best water quality in the world 2003 Rank 1 out of all countries
• Children's (and women's) well-being index 2003 Rank 5 out of all countries
• Seats in parliament held by women 2002 Rank 3 out of all countries

External links

• Virtual Finland - Main portal to Finland
• Government.fi - Official governmental site
• Eduskunta.fi - Official parliamentary site
• Presidentti - Official presidential site
• Diplomatarium Fennicum - Publishing of medieval documents. The National Archives of Finland