45 Fascinating Facts About Finland

Finland, a Nordic country located in Northern Europe, is known for its stunning natural landscapes, including vast forests, thousands of lakes, and a picturesque archipelago. It shares borders with Sweden to the west, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, while the Gulf of Finland lies to the south. Finland is recognized for its high standard of living, excellent education system, and progressive social policies. The country is also famous for its unique cultural heritage, which blends Scandinavian influences with its indigenous Sami culture. Finland’s capital, Helsinki, is a vibrant city known for its modern architecture, rich history, and a thriving design scene. Despite its northern location, Finland is a country of contrasts, experiencing long, dark winters and bright, almost endless summer days. The Finnish people are known for their resilience, innovation, and deep connection to nature, making Finland one of the most admired nations in the world.

1. The country’s official name is the Republic of Finland, Suomen tasavalta in the Finnish language, and Republiken Finland in Swedish.
2. Finland is bordered by Norway in the north, Russia in the east, the Gulf of Finland to the south, and Sweden to the northwest.
3. Finland is typically a Christian country where 68.7% of the total population are Jesus Christ-followers, 28.5% are unaffiliated, 1.1% are orthodox Christians, and 0.8 percent are of other religions like Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, and others.
4. The country is very strict when it comes to traffic rules. If a person is driving beyond the speed limit, the person will be fined as per his total income. The fine is 175% of his/her weekly income.
5. As per the human development index, the country is the happiest in the whole world.

   

6. The country also does have a national rock which is granite.
7. The country grabs the 3rd spot in terms of the least corrupt countries. The country achieved a score of 85 out of 100 in the corruption perception index.
8. Some instances of heavy fine because of over speeding are:
   (i) In 2002, anssi vanjoki, who was a former Nokia director, was fined 116,000 euros($103,000) after being caught driving his motorcycle at speeds of 75 Km/hr in a 50 km/hr zone.
   (ii) In 2015, a businessman named Reima Kuisla was fined 54,000 Euros($62,000) for driving at 72 kmh in a 50 kmph zone.
9. There is a resort in the Rovaniemi region of the country where there are glass igloos to see the spectacular show of northern lights all night long.
10. Finland’s national animal is the brown bear; the national bird is the whooper swan; the national flower is the lily of the valley; the national tree is the silver birch, the national fish is the perch, and the national insect is the seven-spot ladybird.

    

11. There is a popular saying in the country, known as the freedom to roam is Everyman’s right (Jokamiehen Oikeus). The saying denotes that you can walk in nature anywhere you want.
12. There is a special day celebrated in the country known as restaurant day. It was invented by Helsinki and was first held in the month of May 2011. On this day, anyone is allowed to set up their own restaurants or cafes for one day. It has become a Finnish tradition and is now gaining popularity. This day is celebrated in every quarter of the year: February, May, August, and November.
13. According to WHO, Finland has the purest air in entire Europe and the third cleanest in the world.
14. Some unique games are played in the country, which is played nowhere else. Some of them are (i) Wife carrying world championship (ii) Reindeer Racing (iii) Cell phone throwing (iv)Hobby horse championship (v)Air guitar world championship (vi) Winter swimming (vii) Naked Anthill sitting.
15. You can see one of nature’s best light shows in the country, known as the northern lights. The northern lights are visible in parts of the country for about 200 days. The best time to see the northern lights is between the month of September to April.

    

16. Sports is considered to be the national pastime in the country. While Pesäpallo is the national sport of Finland which is a fast-moving bat and ball sport.
17. The country is called the “land of a thousand lakes” and has the most lakes than any country on the planet. The country has 187,888 lakes, out of which 57,000 lakes have an area of 10,000 meters square and the others are about 500 meters squared.
18. The flag represents Finland’s heritage link with other countries that are Scandinavian. The blue color represents the many lakes that are found all over Finland. The white color in the flag represents the snow that covers the entire country during the winter season.
19. Finland’s people are very fond of coffee as an average fin consumes about 12 kilograms of coffee per year.
20. Finland has the highest percentage of forest in the entire Europe. Over 72% of the total land of the country is covered in Forests.

    

21. In the year 2007, the country became the highest per capita consumption of milk. An average fin person drank 361.19 kg (34.33 gallons) of milk in the year.
22. In some universities, there is a tradition that whenever a person gets a Ph.D. degree or diploma, he/she shall get a hat and a sword.
23. Because of the northern location, some parts of the country see sunlight 24/7 regularly from May to August. While from the month of November to January, the country does not see the sun and stays in the dark for over 50 days.
24. The country has a very unique education system. Finnish schools don’t assign homework as it is believed that mastery is acquired in the classroom only. Schools are not compulsory till the age of seven.
25. The country is one of the best destinations for ice skiing—the season for ice skiing lasts over six months, from late October to May.

    

26. The country has achieved top ranks consecutively from the last 12 years to have the freest press on the planet.
27. In 1906 Finland became the first country in Europe to give women’s right to vote.
28. The lowest temperature ever recorded in the country was in 1999, measuring -51.5°C. While the hottest temperature of all time was recorded on July 29th, 2010, and was 37.2°C in Joensuu.
29. The famous mobile game “angry birds” was invented by a Finnish company in 2009 known as Rovio Entertainment.
30. The wife carrying the world championship prize is “beer,” weighing the winner’s wife.

    

31. The country celebrates July 27th as a celebration day known as National sleepy head day. On this day, whichever family member wakes in the last is thrown into a lake, the sea or water is thrown on them.
32. The Halti mountain peak is the highest mountain peak in the country, with an elevation of 4343 Ft (1324 meters).
33. According to the economic complex index(ECI), the country is the 10th most complex economy in the world.
34. Finland’s major exports are refined petroleum ($6.95B), cars ($2.92B), large flat-rolled stainless steel ($3.48B), kaolin coated paper ($4.37B), and sulfate chemical wood pulp ($2.93B). The country exports most of its goods to Germany ($9.99B), the United States ($9.17B), Sweden ($9.1B), the Netherlands ($5.88B), and China ($4.94B).
35. The top five imports into Finland are crude petroleum ($6.94B), refined petroleum ($4.49B), cars ($3.21B), electricity ($2.16B), and nickel mattes ($1.83B). The countries that import the most are Sweden ($13.4B), Germany ($12.7B), China ($7.16B), Norway ($6.36B), and the Netherlands ($5.87B).
36. Saimaa is the largest lake in Finland and the fourth largest natural freshwater lake in Europe. The lake is approximately stretched on 4,400 sq km(1,700 sq miles) of land and has a depth of up to 269 ft (82 meters).

    

37. The country has the most bodies of water on the planet. Over 10 percent of the land of the country is covered with water. The freshwater areas cover 33,000 km2 of area and have 647 rivers flowing from the land.
38. Around 22,46,000 hectares of land is arable in Finland.
39. There are six billionaires in Finland. The top three of them are Antti Herlin, who has a net worth of 4.1 billion; Mika Anttonen, who has a net worth of 2.1 billion and Antti Aarnio-Wihuri, who has a net worth of 1.5 billion.
40. Turku is the oldest city in the country, which was founded in the 13th century.
41. It is estimated that there are about two million saunas in the country for a country of 5.5 million people.

    

42. Some very important inventions took place in the country. Some of them are wireless heart rate monitor, internet browser, Savonius Wind Turbine, Fiskars scissors, safety reflectors, sauna bath, Ice stakes, Sms (text message), and even the Linux operating system.
43. Nokia is a renowned mobile phone brand which was also a Finnish company. The world’s first GSM call (1991) and satellite call (1994) was done on a Nokia phone. When the company was at its full success peak, it made 4% of the country’s total GDP, 21% of total exports, and comprises 70% of the Helsinki stock exchange market capital.
44. The largest waterfall in Finland, Pihtsusköngäs, is often known as the “Niagara of Finland” or the “King of Finnish waterfalls”.It reaches a maximum height of 17 metres (56 ft).
45. The passport of Finland is considered to be the 4th strongest passport on the planet. The country’s citizens are allowed to visit about 187 countries without a visa or are allowed to have a visa on arrival.