Pernå

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Pernå kommun - Pernajan kunta
Coat of Arms Location
Province	Southern Finland
Region	Eastern Uusimaa
Sub-region	Loviisa
Area - Of which land - Rank	426.86 km² 419.53 km² ranked 226th
Population - Density - Change - Rank	3,925 (2005) 9.4 inh./km² + 0.8% ranked 244th
Urbanisation	33.4%
Unemployment	9.4%
Official languages	Swedish, Finnish
Municipal manager	Ralf Sjödahl
Home page	http://www.pernaja.fi

Pernå in Swedish or Pernaja (pronounced [ˈpernaja] in Finnish is a municipality of Finland.

It is located in the province of Southern Finland and is part of the Eastern Uusimaa region. The municipality has a population of 3,925 (2005-12-31) and covers an area of 425.39 km² of which 7.04 km² is water. The population density is 9.3 inhabitants per km².

The municipality is bilingual, with majority being Swedish and minority Finnish speakers.

Pernå is the oldest municipality in the Eastern Uusimaa region. Current municipalities Lapinjärvi Liljendal and Loviisa were originally part of it. Mikael Agricola, the founder of written Finnish born in Pernå in the early 16th century. He is also considered to be the Reformator of Finland in the transfer from Catholicism into Lutheranism. Situated conveniently by the coast, and engulfing also a small river, the lands of Pernå were attractiv at a time when waterways rather than proper roads provided the means of transport. Pernå houses numerous manors dating back to the times when Finland was a part of Sweden. The origin of the name "Pernå" is still being discussed. Some think it links with the Finnish-Ugrian word "Pern" meaning lime- or lindentree. "Å" is Swedish for a small river, i.e. the name then being Lindenriver if translated.

[edit] External links

• (Swedish)/(Finnish) Official website

	Municipalities of Eastern Uusimaa
	Askola | Lapinjärvi | Liljendal | Loviisa | Myrskylä | Pernå | Porvoo | Pukkila | Ruotsinpyhtää | Sipoo
	Eastern Uusimaa | Southern Finland | Finland

Coordinates: 60°26′55″N, 26°01′55″E