Utsjoki
| coat of arms | map |
|---|---|
|
|
| Basic data | |
| State : |
 Finland
|
| Landscape : | Lapland |
| Administrative community : | Northern Lapland |
| Geographical location | 69 ° 52 ′ N , 27 ° 0 ′ E |
| Surface: | 5,371.81 km² |
| of which land area: | 5,144.29 km² |
| of which inland waterways: | 227.52 km² |
| Residents : | 1,232 (Dec. 31, 2018) |
| Population density : | 0.2 inhabitants / km² |
| Municipality number : | 890 |
| Language (s) : | Finnish , North Sami |
| Website : | utsjoki.fi |
Utsjoki [ ˈutsjɔki ] ( North Sami Ohcejohka ) is a municipality in the Finnish part of Lapland . It is located in the far north of the country and has 1232 inhabitants (as of December 31, 2018) on an area of 5372 km². The majority of the population of Utsjoki are Sami people .
geography
Position and extent
Utsjoki is located in the far north of Finland in the Lapland region on the border with Norway . The northernmost point of Finland and the European Union is near the village of Nuorgam . The district of Utsjoki is quite extensive: with 5372 km², Utsjoki is more than twice the size of the Saarland or Luxembourg . Much of the community area consists of uninhabited wilderness. With 1232 inhabitants this results in a population density of 0.24 inhabitants per square kilometer of land.
Neighboring communities of Utsjoki are Inari in the south and on the Norwegian side Karasjok in the west, Tana in the north and Nesseby in the northeast. The distance to Rovaniemi , the capital of Lapland, is 453 km; to Helsinki it is 1267 km.
landscape
The topography of Utsjoki is dominated by two larger rivers: The Tenojoki , together with its tributary Inarijoki, forms the border with Norway. The eponymous river Utsjoki flows north-south through the municipality before it flows into the Tenojoki. The settlement of Utsjoki is entirely concentrated in the valleys of these two rivers. The areas of the community away from the two rivers are completely pathless and unpopulated. The nature here is very barren due to the extreme northern location. Pine trees only grow sporadically in protected locations, otherwise the only tree species found in Utsjoki is the birch . The tree line is already reached at a height of 300 meters above sea level, at higher altitudes there is tundra-like vegetation.
A large part of Utsjoki's area is under nature protection. In the area of the municipality are the wilderness areas Kaldoaivi , Muotkatunturi and Paistunturi as well as the 712 km² Kevo nature park . The river Kevojoki flows here over a distance of 40 km through a canyon up to 80 m deep .
202.93 km², that is less than 4% of the community area, is covered by water. As is generally the case in Lapland, the proportion of inland waterways is well below the national average in Finland. The number of lakes is relatively high with around 600 lakes with a size of over five hectares and around 300 smaller ponds, but they are all rather small. The largest lakes are the Pulmankijärvi (12 km²) south of Nuorgam on the border with Norway and the Luomusjärvi in the Kevo Nature Park.
Villages
The community center is the church village Utsjoki at the confluence of the Utsjoki and Tenojoki. The other two important localities are Karigasniemi (Sami Gáregasnjárga ) 102 km southwest and Nuorgam ( Njuorggán ) 43 km northeast of Utsjoki. Both are on the banks of the Tenojoki. In addition, a number of smaller scattered settlements such as Kaamasmukka, Outakoski ( Vuovdaguoika ), Rovisuvanto, Dalvadas or Nuvvus belong to the community . The population is distributed among the statistical areas of the municipality as follows:
- Utsjoki-Mieraslompolo: 642 inhabitants
- Karigasniemi: 315 inhabitants
- Nuorgam: 214 inhabitants
- Outakoski: 182 inhabitants
history
Utsjoki was founded in 1876.
population
Population development and structure
In the mid-1990s the population was still almost 1,600. But because the structurally weak Lapland was hit harder by the Finnish economic crisis than the south of the country, a wave of emigration to the growth centers of the south began. In Utsjoki, too, the population initially decreased rapidly, but has now consolidated at a low level. As is generally the case in Lapland, there is a tendency towards aging: between 1990 and 2001 the proportion of retirees rose from 17% to 22%, while in the same period the proportion of under-15s fell from 22% to 14%. What is striking is the majority of men, who make up 56% of the population.
| year | 1980 | 1985 | 1990 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 1,479 | 1,548 | 1,514 | 1,568 | 1,555 | 1,521 | 1,457 | 1,412 | 1,394 | 1,401 | 1,402 | 1,385 | 1,367 | 1,363 | 1,361 | 1,241 |
Seeds
Utsjoki belongs to the settlement area of the indigenous Sami people . 70% of the population are ethnic Sami. This makes Utsjoki the only municipality in Finland in which the Sami make up the majority of the population. However, only 46% speak Sami as their mother tongue. The community belongs to the legally established Sami "home area" (kotiseutualue), in which the Sami have special minority rights. The variant of Sami used in Utsjoki, the North Sami language , has an official status in the community alongside Finnish and may be used when dealing with the authorities. The Sami Council , a transnational non - governmental organization of Sami from Finland, Sweden , Norway and Russia , has its seat in Utsjoki.
politics
administration
As in general in rural areas of Finland, the Center Party is the strongest political force in Utsjoki . In the 2008 local elections received almost half of the vote. In the municipal council, the highest decision-making body in local affairs, it has eight out of 15 members. The other two major parties in the country, on the other hand, play a subordinate role in Utsjoki: the National Collection Party has only two representatives on the local council , the Social Democratic Party one. The second strongest force in the municipal council is the local Sami electoral list Ohcejoga Sámit (Sami from Utsjoki) with four seats.
| Political party | 2008 election results | Seats |
|---|---|---|
| Center Party | 47.7% | 8th |
| Ohcejoga Sámit | 25.5% | 4th |
| National rally party | 16.1% | 2 |
| Social Democratic Party | 5.7% | 1 |
coat of arms
The Utsjoki coat of arms was designed by Gustaf von Numers . It shows a polar light in the black field , above a four-pointed star, both in silver. The northern lights and the star symbolize winter in Lapland.
Town twinning
Utsjoki has had a town partnership with the neighboring Norwegian municipality of Tana since 1970 .
Economy and Infrastructure
economy
The Tenojoki is considered to be one of the richest salmon rivers in Europe and therefore attracts many fishing tourists to the area. Day tourism by Norwegians who shop in the cheaper neighboring country Finland is also of great importance. In addition to tourism, the reindeer herding of the Sami, which are often still semi-nomadic, is one of the main branches of business.
traffic
Because of the extremely low population density, large parts of Utsjoki are pathless, but since the 1970s all settlements have been accessible by road. The largest traffic artery is State Road 4 , the most important north-south connection in Finland, which , coming via Inari from southern Finland, leads in a north-south direction through Utsjoki to the Norwegian border at the church village of Utsjoki. The main road 92 branches off the state road 4 in Kaamanen in the municipality Inari and leads to the village Karigasniemi in Utsjoki. Regional road 970 follows the right bank of the Tenojoki and runs from Nuorgam via Utsjoki to Karigasniemi. It continues as dirt road 9704 into the village of Angeli in the municipality of Inari. From Nuorgam, the smaller road 19999 leads to Lake Pulmankijärvi. In Utsjoki there are three border crossing points to Norway: In Utsjoki, the Saamen-silta bridge , built in 1993, leads over the Tenojoki to the opposite Norwegian bank, where European route 75 continues. Karigasniemi is also connected to the Norwegian Karasjok by a bridge over the Tenojoki . In Nuorgam there is a border crossing to Polmak in Norway.
Utsjoki was connected to the road network very late. Previously, the settlements could only be reached by boat over the Tenojoki, with the boats sometimes having to be transported past rapids. In winter, the frozen Tenjoki could also be driven over by car. The first road connection from Kaamanen to Karigasniemi was established during the Second World War, the road from Kaamanen to Utsjoki was opened in 1957. Originally, the section from Kaamanen to Karigasniemi formed the final piece of State Road 4, only after the Saamen-silta Bridge was completed in 1993, State Road 4 was diverted to Utsjoki and the Kaamanen-Karigasniemi route was converted into Main Road 92. As the last settlement, Nuorgam was not connected to the road network until 1971. In 1983 the link between Karigasniemi and Utsjoki was finally established.
From Ivalo there are bus connections via Utsjoki to Nuorgam and Karigasniemi. To Norway there are buses from Karigasniemi to Karasjok and from Nuorgam to Tana . Utsjoki is not connected to the railway network, the nearest train stations are Kolari 386 km southwest and Rovaniemi 453 km south. The nearest airports are in Lakselv , Vadsø and Kirkenes in Norway and on the Finnish side in Ivalo .
Culture and sights
The valley of the Utsjoki river is officially one of the Finnish " national landscapes ". In addition to its scenic beauty, the river valley owes this to a culturally and historically valuable ensemble that has been preserved on the banks of the Mantojärvi Lake, through which the Utsjoki River flows, six kilometers south of the community center. Utsjoki Church stands on a small hill above the lake. The granite building was built between 1850 and 1853 according to plans by Ernst Lohrmann . The previous wooden building was demolished after the new church was completed; only the timbered sacristy from 1776 remains . Opposite the church on the banks of the Mantojärvi there are 14 historic church rooms. The wooden buildings date from the early 19th century and were used until the 1930s to accommodate church visitors who had traveled from far and wide. Also close to the church is the representative rectory , which was designed by Carl Ludwig Engel in the classicism style in 1843 . Attached are some farm buildings painted falun red, the oldest of which date from the 18th century.
In addition to the cultural landscape of Mantojärvi, old buildings have also been preserved in some other places in Utsjoki. These include old fishing huts from the 19th century on the river island of Lohisaari in Tenojoki, the former Sami winter village of Talvadas on the banks of the Tenojoki and the ensembles of Mieraslompolo on the Utsjoki River and Välimaa on the Tenojoki.
On the banks of the Tenojoki between Utsjoki and Nuorgam there is an old gravel road from Nivajoki to Alajalve. It was originally used to transport boats past the impassable Alaköngäs rapids of Tenojoki. In 1928 the six kilometer long route was integrated into the public road network, although it had no connection to the rest of the road network. After the completion of the road connection to Nuorgam, the old road running parallel to it was converted into a museum road. A second museum street can be found on the bank of the Utsjoki River. It is a six-kilometer section of the historic post route to Utsjoki.
Sons and daughters of the church
- Rauni Magga Lukkari (* 1943), writer
- Jovnna-Ánde Vest (* 1948), writer
- Inger-Mari Aikio-Arianaick (* 1961), author
- Anne Nuorgam (* 1964), Finnish-Sami politician
Sources and further information
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Maanmittauslaitos (Finnish land surveying office): Suomen pinta-alat kunnittain January 1, 2010 . (PDF file; 194 kB)
- ↑ Statistical Office Finland: Table 11ra - Key figures on population by region, 1990-2018
- ↑ As of 2004, municipality Utsjoki: Tenonjoen kehittämissuunnitelma ja rantaosayleiskaavat (development and bank area use plan for Tenojoki) ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , P. 14.
- ↑ Municipality of Utsjoki: Tenonjoen kehittämissuunnitelma ja rantaosayleiskaavat (development and bank area use plan for the Tenojoki) ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , P. 15.
- ↑ Tilastokeskus (Finnish Statistics Office) ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Tilastokeskus (Finnish Statistics Office) ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ As of 2000, Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs and Health ( Memento of the original from January 17, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ As of 2006, Tilastokeskus (Finnish Statistics Office) ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Finnish Ministry of Justice: Result of the 2008 local elections
