Oulu

Oulu Uleåborg
City
Oulun kaupunki Uleåborg stad
Top: Rantakatu in downtown Oulu, Oulu City Hall Middle: Oulun Lyseon Lukio and the Oulu Cathedral Bottom: Shops along Kirkkokatu, Radisson Blu Hotel along Ojakatu
Coat of arms Logo
Location of Oulu in Finland
Coordinates: 65°01′N 025°28′E / 65.017°N 25.467°E / 65.017; 25.467Coordinates: 65°01′N 025°28′E / 65.017°N 25.467°E / 65.017; 25.467
Country	Finland
Region	Northern Ostrobothnia
Sub-region	Oulu sub-region
Charter	1605-04-08
Government
• City manager	Matti Pennanen
Area (2011-01-01)[1]
• City	1,513.37 km2 (584.32 sq mi)
• Land	1,410.17 km2 (544.47 sq mi)
• Water	103.2 km2 (39.8 sq mi)
• Urban	187.1 km2 (72.2 sq mi)
Area rank	67th largest in Finland
Population (2015-06-30)[2]
• City	196,828
• Rank	5th largest in Finland
• Density	139.58/km2 (361.5/sq mi)
• Urban	190,000[3]
• Urban density	915.8/km2 (2,372/sq mi)
Population by native language[4]
• Finnish	7,001,973,000,000,000,000♠97.3% (official)
• Swedish	6,999,200,000,000,000,000♠0.2%
• Others	7,000,240,000,000,000,000♠2.4%
Population by age[5]
• 0 to 14	7,001,170,000,000,000,000♠17%
• 15 to 64	7,001,705,000,000,000,000♠70.5%
• 65 or older	7,001,125,000,000,000,000♠12.5%
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)
• Summer (DST)	EEST (UTC+3)
Municipal tax rate[6]	19%
Website	www.ouka.fi

Oulu (Finnish pronunciation: [ˈoulu]; Swedish: Uleåborg [ˌʉːleɔˈbɔrj]) is a city and municipality of 196,828 inhabitants (30 June 2015)^[2] in the region of Northern Ostrobothnia, Finland. It is the most populous city in Northern Finland and the fifth most populous city in the country. There are no larger cities (outside of Russia) that are more northerly than Oulu which is also considered one of Europe's "living labs", where residents experiment with new technology (such as NFC tags and ubi-screens) at a community-wide scale.^[7]

Etymology

The city is named after the river Oulujoki, which originates in the lake Oulujärvi. There have been a number of other theories for the origin of the name Oulu. One possible source for the name Oulu is a word in the Sami language meaning 'flood water', but there are other suggestions. At minimum, the structure of the word requires that, if originally given by speakers of a Uralic language, the name must be a derivative. In all likelihood, it also predates Finnish settlement and is thus a loanword from one of the now-extinct Saami languages once spoken in the area.

The most probable theory is that the name derives from the Finnish dialectal word oulu, meaning "floodwater", which is related to e.g. Southern Sami åulo, meaning "melted snow", åulot meaning "thaw" (of unknown ultimate origin). Two other word families have also been speculated to be related. The first is seen in the Northern Savo dialectal word uula and its Sami counterpart oalli, both meaning "river channel". The second is the Uralic root reconstructed as *uwa, meaning "river bed" (reflected as vuo in modern Finnish, also in derivatives such as vuolas "heavy-flowing"). To either of these roots, some Sami variety would have to be assumed having added further derivational suffixes.^[8]

History

Drawing of central Oulu from the 19th Century

Oulu was founded on April 8, 1605, by King Charles IX of Sweden, opposite the fort built on the island of Linnansaari. This took place after favourable peace settlements with Russia, which removed the threat of attack via the main east-west waterway, the river Oulu. The surrounding areas were populated much earlier. Oulu is situated by the Gulf of Bothnia, at the mouth of river Oulujoki, which is an ancient trading site. Oulu was the capital of the Province of Oulu from 1776 to 2009.

In 1822, a major fire destroyed much of the city. The architect Carl Ludvig Engel, chiefly known for the neoclassical (empire style) buildings around Helsinki Senate Square, was enlisted to provide the plan for the rebuilding of the city. With minor changes, this plan remains the basis for the layout of Oulu's town center. The Oulu Cathedral was built in 1832 to his designs, with the spire being finished in 1844. During the Crimean War, Oulu's harbour was raided by the British fleet, destroying ships and burning tar houses, leading to international criticism.

Once known for wood tar and salmon, Oulu has evolved into a major high-tech centre, particularly in IT and wellness technology. Other prominent industries include wood refining, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, paper, and steel.

The municipality of Ylikiiminki was merged with the city of Oulu on January 1, 2009. Oulu and the municipalities of Haukipudas, Kiiminki, Oulunsalo, and Yli-Ii were merged on January 1, 2013.^[9]

Geography

A satellite image showing the Oulu region in 2007

Subdivisions

Oulu is divided into 106 city districts. The largest of these are Haukipudas, Oulunsalo, Kaakkuri, Ritaharju, Tuira, and Kello.

Climate

Oulu has a subarctic climate with cold, snowy winters and short, warm summers. Average annual temperature is 2.7 °C (36.9 °F). The average annual precipitation is 508 mm (20.00 in) falling 105 days per year, mostly in late summer and fall.

Demographics

In 2008, there were 316 Swedish speaking inhabitants, which was 0.2% of the total population, making the city unilingual. In 2007, there were 2,417 foreign citizens living in the city, of whom 618 were from elsewhere in the EU. 51.1% of the population is female.

Population

Culture

Air Guitar World Championships 2012, an annual event held in Oulu since 1996

The best known cultural exports of the city of Oulu are Air Guitar World Championships, Mieskuoro Huutajat (also known as Screaming Men), and the now defunct metal band Sentenced.

Many artists, writers, and musicians live in the city. A variety of concerts—rock, classical, and jazz—as well as other cultural events take place each year. Examples include the Oulu Music Video Festival, the Air Guitar World Championships, and the Musixine Music Film Competition, all in August. In July, the annual rock festival Qstock takes place. The Oulu Music Festival is held in winter and the Oulunsalo Music Festival in summer. The Irish Festival of Oulu takes place each October and the International Children's Film Festival each November.

Museums in Oulu include the Northern Ostrobothnia museum, the Oulu Museum of Art (OMA), the Tietomaa science center, and the Turkansaari open-air museum.

Notable statues and sculptures in Oulu include a sculpture of Frans Michael Franzén and The Bobby at the Market Place statue.

Kalmah is a melodic death metal-band from Oulu that formed in 1998.

Sights

• Tietomaa, a science center with over 150 exhibits
• Ainola Park, formerly a university botanical garden before the university was moved to Linnanmaa
• The Rapids Center, the area in the estuary of the Oulu river consisting of small islands connected with bridges and fountains in the middle of the river, and including a housing area of building blocks planned by Alvar Aalto
• The Market Square with the City Library, the City Theatre and old salt and tar storehouses
• Hupisaaret, a large park area located in the estuary of the Oulu river
• The F. M. Franzen memorial
• The Koitelinkoski rapids
• The Northern Ostrobothnia museum
• The Pateniemi Sawmill Museum
• The Vehicle Museum
• The University of Oulu Botanical Gardens (situated in Linnanmaa)
• The Arctic Gallery
• Technopolis, the technology village
• Turkansaari (historical open-air museum)

Churches

• Cathedral
• Haukipudas Church
• Holy Family of Nazareth Church
• Holy Trinity Cathedral of Oulu
• Kiiminki Church
• Oulujoki Church
• Oulunsalo Church
• St. Luke's Chapel
• Tuira Church
• Ylikiiminki Church

Other points of interest

• Oulu Music Video Festival
• Air Guitar World Championships
• Jalometalli Metal Music Festival
• The Irish Festival of Oulu
• Madetoja Hall, housing the Oulu Music Centre (website) the residence of the Oulu Symphony Orchestra
• Oulu Hall (a large indoor sports facility consisting of a low dome, which looks somewhat like a landed flying saucer)
• Terwa Marathon & Run event in late May (since 1989)
• The Terva-skiing event in early March (since 1889)
• The Winter Swimming World Championship

Education

University of Oulu main building.

The University of Oulu and Oulu University of Applied Sciences have their main campuses located in Oulu.

Oulu is home to the most northerly architecture school in the world. The school is best known for its strong regionalistic ideas for developing architecture. This movement is named "the Oulu school" ("Oulun koulu") of architecture.

Oulu Vocational College has over 13 000 students. It houses several different study subjects in different units which are spread over Oulu and neighbouring municipalities. Oulu Vocational College School of Business Studies is one of the few vocational schools which has game programming in its curriculum.

Oulu International School is one of nine schools in Finland offering basic education in English.

Transport

The Oulu Bus Station

Oulu is served by Oulu Airport, the second largest airport in Finland by passenger volume. It is located 15 kilometres (9 mi) south-west of the city centre.

The Port of Oulu is one of the busiest harbours on the Bothnian Bay. It includes four separate harbour areas: Vihreäsaari oil and bulk docks, Nuottasaari docks and Oritkari docks.

The shortest travel time from Oulu railway station to Helsinki Central railway station is 5 h 44 mins, operated by VR. Other destinations include Kolari, Rovaniemi, Seinäjoki and Tampere.

The most important road in Oulu is Highway 4 (E8/E75) that runs from Helsinki to Utsjoki via Lahti, Jyväskylä, Oulu, Kemi and Rovaniemi. Other highways running to and from Oulu are Highway 20 to Kuusamo and Highway 22 to Kajaani.^[12]

Oulu is notable for its transportation network dedicated to non-vehicular traffic including pedestrians and bicycles (termed "light" traffic in Finland). In 2010, the city contained more than 600 kilometres (370 mi) of pathways and more than 100 underpasses and bridges devoted exclusively to light traffic. The network is used year-round. The ratio of light traffic pathways to residents is the highest in Finland and the cycling mode share is 20 percent.^[13][14]

Employment

Stora Enso has an important paper manufacturing plant in Oulu.

Nokia premises in Peltola.

Technopolis Linnanmaa is home to nearly 200 corporations.

As of December 31, 2008, the active working population was employed as follows:^[15]

In 2011, the most important employers were:^[15]

Sports

Kärpät wins the Finnish championship in 2005 after beating Jokerit.

Oulun Luistinseura beat Jyväskylän Seudun Palloseura in the 2014 final.

Ice hockey is the most popular spectator sport in Oulu. The local club Kärpät have won the SM-liiga championship title seven times (1981, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2014 and 2015). They have also been the runner-up in the IIHF European Champions Cup twice, in 2005 and 2006.

In football AC Oulu is playing in Ykkönen, the second tier of Finnish league system. Up to date only OPS have claimed Finnish football championship by winning Mestaruussarja twice in 1979 and 1980. Other notable football clubs include OLS, OTP and Tervarit.

Oulu has one well known bandy club. OLS which plays in Bandyliiga and has become Finnish champions 14 times, last in 2014. The other one, OPS, with their 7 championships, and a beonze medal as late as in 2009, announced closing down the bandy team after the 2009-10 season. In 2001 the city was the main venue for the Bandy World Championship.

Oulu is also home to several other sports clubs such as Oulu Northern Lights (American football), Oulun NMKY (Basketball), Oulun Lippo (Pesäpallo), Oulun Pyrintö (Track and field), OYUS (Rugby union), Oulu Irish Elks (Gaelic Football) and Etta (Volleyball).

Terwa Marathon & Run is an annual event run in late May (since 1989).

Notable people from Oulu

• Impaled Nazarene, nuclear metal band
• Leevi Madetoja, composer
• Frans Michael Franzén, poet
• V.A. Koskenniemi, poet
• Three former Presidents of the country, Kaarlo Juho Ståhlberg, Kyösti Kallio and Martti Ahtisaari, also a Nobel Peace Prize laureate
• Sara Wacklin, teacher and writer
• Aaro Hellaakoski, poet
• Lars Gallenius, 17th century painter
• Mikael Toppelius, church painter
• Leena Peltonen-Palotie, geneticist
• Kauko Röyhkä, author and rock musician
• Mika Ronkainen, filmmaker
• Vladislav Delay, electronic musician
• Peter von Bagh, film historian and director
• Keke Rosberg, 1982 Formula 1 world champion
• Matti Hautamäki, ski jumper
• Ice Hockey players, Kari Jalonen, Mikael Granlund, Markus Granlund, Joni Pitkänen and Reijo Ruotsalainen
• Football players, Aki Lahtinen, Antti Niemi and Mika Nurmela

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

Oulu is twinned with:^[16]

Partnership & Twinning Cities

In addition Oulu has eight 'Partnership & Twinning cities':^[20]

International municipal projects

The educational department takes part in Lifelong Learning Programme 2007–2013 in Finland.

See also

• Toppila Power Station

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Oulu (category)

• City of Oulu – Official website
• Visitoulu.fi – VisitOulu.fi – Official tourism website of Oulu
• Oulu travel guide from Wikivoyage

Municipalities of Northern Ostrobothnia Municipalities Alavieska Haapajärvi Haapavesi Hailuoto Ii Kalajoki Kempele Kuusamo Kärsämäki Liminka Lumijoki Merijärvi Muhos Nivala Oulainen Oulu Pudasjärvi Pyhäjoki Pyhäjärvi Pyhäntä Raahe Reisjärvi Sievi Siikajoki Siikalatva Taivalkoski Tyrnävä Utajärvi Vaala Ylivieska Former municipalities Haukipudas Kestilä Kiiminki Kuivaniemi Oulujoki Oulunsalo Paavola Pattijoki Piippola Pulkkila Rantsila Rautio Revonlahti Ruukki Saloinen Temmes Vihanti Yli-Ii Ylikiiminki Northern Ostrobothnia Finland

50 most populous urban areas in the Nordic countries  Denmark  Finland  Iceland  Norway  Sweden  Åland  Faroe Islands  Greenland 1. Stockholm 1,372,565 2. Copenhagen 1,263,698 3. Helsinki 1,214,210 4. Oslo 958,378 5. Gothenburg 549,839 6. Tampere 325,025 7. Malmö 280,415 8. Aarhus 261,570 9. Turku 260,367 10. Bergen 250,420 11. Stavanger 210,874 12. Reykjavík 207,174 13. Oulu 193,817 14. Trondheim 175,068 15. Odense 173,814 16. Uppsala 140,454 17. Aalborg 132,578 18. Jyväskylä 120,306 19. Lahti 117,424 20. Drammen 113,534 21. Västerås 110,877 22. Fredrikstad/Sarpsborg 108,636 23. Örebro 107,038 24. Linköping 104,232 25. Helsingborg 97,122 26. Porsgrunn/Skien 91,737 27. Jönköping 89,396 28. Norrköping 87,247 29. Kuopio 86,034 30. Pori 84,509 31. Lund 82,800 32. Umeå 79,594 33. Esbjerg 72,060 34. Gävle 71,033 35. Vaasa 66,911 36. Borås 66,273 37. Joensuu 65,686 38. Eskilstuna 64,679 39. Södertälje 64,619 40. Karlstad 61,685 41. Randers 61,664 42. Täby 61,272 43. Växjö 60,887 44. Kristiansand 60,583 45. Kolding 58,757 46. Halmstad 58,577 47. Horsens 56,536 48. Lappeenranta 55,429 49. Vejle 53,975 50. Kotka 52,600