Hämeenlinna
—  City  —
View of Lake Vanajavesi, next to Hämeenlinna. You can see the castle on the right.
Coat of arms
Location of Hämeenlinna in Finland
Coordinates: 61°00′N 024°28′E / 61, 24.467Coordinates: 61°00′N 024°28′E / 61, 24.467
Country	Finland
Province	Southern Finland
Region	Tavastia Proper
Sub-region	Hämeenlinna sub-region
Charter	1639
Government
- City manager	Tapani Hellstén
Area (2008-01-01)[1]
- Total	184.72 km2 (71.3 sq mi)
- Land	166.5 km2 (64.3 sq mi)
- Water	18.22 km2 (7 sq mi)
Population (2008-11-30)[2]
- Total	49,070
- Density	294.71/km2 (763.3/sq mi)
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)
- Summer (DST)	EEST (UTC+3)
Population by native language[3]	Finnish: 97.6%, official Swedish: 0.3% Others: 2.2%
Population by age[4]	0 to 14: 15.8% 15 to 64: 65.9% 65 or older: 18.4%
Municipal tax rate[5]	18%
Website: www.hameenlinna.fi

Hämeenlinna (Swedish: Tavastehus) is a city and municipality of about 49,000 inhabitants^[2] in the heart of the historical province of Häme in the south of Finland. Today, it belongs to the region of Tavastia Proper, and is the residence city for the Governor of the province of Southern Finland. Nearby cities include the capital Helsinki (105 km), Tampere (73 km) and Lahti (72 km).

The medieval Häme Castle (Hämeen linna) is located in the city.

The municipalities of Hauho, Kalvola, Lammi, Renko and Tuulos were consolidated with Hämeenlinna on 2009-01-01.

Contents 1 History 2 Notable persons 3 Economy 3.1 Largest employers (by number of employees) [6] 4 Twin towns 5 Sport 6 References 7 External links

History

There has been a settlement called Vanaja in where the city now stands since the Viking Age. The castle was built in the late 13th century to secure the Swedish power in central Finland. A village was born near to the Häme Castle to provide services and goods to inhabitants.

The village was granted city rights in 1639 and soon after that the King of Sweden moved it one kilometre south on the hill where it now stands.

The city is known for its schools and academies where many famous Finns have studied. Schools, government and the military have characterized Hämeenlinna's life all through history.

Finland's first railway line opened between Hämeenlinna and Helsinki in 1862. The current Hämeenlinna railway station (Rautatieasema in Finnish) was built in 1921.

Notable persons

The composer Jean Sibelius was born and raised in Hämeenlinna. He graduated from Hämeenlinna Lyseo in 1885.

Poet Eino Leino graduated from high school in Hämeenlinna. (Hämeenlinnan lyseon lukio is Hämeenlinna Lyseo Upper secondary school, roughly the equivalent of a US highschool).

The folk/Viking metal band Turisas is from Hämeenlinna.

Antony Hämäläinen (Vocalist for the Greek/Swedish Melodic Death Metal band Nightrage) was born in Hämeenlinna.

NHL Minnesota Wild forward Antti Miettinen was born in Hämeenlinna in 1980 and returns there in the off-season.

Kimi Räikkönen (Formula 1 driver) and Jenni Dahlman were married in 2004 in Hämeenlinna.

Economy

Largest employers (by number of employees) ^[6]

• City of Hämeenlinna: 2,490
• State of Finland: 2,480
• Kanta-Häme Hospital District: 1,460
• Ruukki (Rautaruukki Oyj): 1,030
• Huhtamäki Oyj: 700
• Hämeen AMK: 510
• Aina Group Oyj: 500
• Kansanterveystyön ky: 490
• Patria Vehicles Oy: 430
• Konecranes Standard Lifting Oy: 330
• Koulutuskeskus Tavastia: 270
• Lindström Oy: 175

Twin towns

See also: Town twinning

• Bærum, Norway^[7]
• Celle, Germany
• Qeqertarsuatsiaat, Greenland
• Hafnarfjörður, Iceland
• Tver, Russia
• Püspökladány, Hungary
• Toruń, Poland
• Uppsala, Sweden
• Weimar, Germany

Sport

• Ice hockey team HPK
• Football team FC Hämeenlinna

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Hämeenlinna

• Hämeenlinna – Official site
• Häme Castle

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