Pargas (former municipality)

Pargas (Finland Swedish: [ˈpɑrːɡɑs]; Finnish: Parainen, pronounced [ˈpɑrɑi̯nen]) is a former town and municipality in south-western Finland. On 1 January 2009, it was consolidated with Houtskär, Iniö, Korpo and Nagu to form the new municipality of Väståboland (since renamed to Pargas).

Pargas
Pargas – Parainen
Former town
Pargas stad
Paraisten kaupunki
Coat of arms of Pargas
Coat of arms
Location of Pargas in Finland
Location of Pargas in Finland
Coordinates: 60°18′N 022°18′E
CountryFinland
RegionSouthwest Finland
Sub-regionÅboland
Charter1948
Town privileges1977
Consolidated2009
Government
 • City managerFolke Öhman
Area
[1]
 • Total476.73 km2 (184.07 sq mi)
 • Land273.18 km2 (105.48 sq mi)
 • Water203.55 km2 (78.59 sq mi)
Population
 (2008-12-31)[2]
 • Total12,266
 • Density26/km2 (67/sq mi)
Population by native language
 • Finnish45% (official)
 • Swedish54% (official)
Time zoneUTC+2 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+3 (EEST)

It is known as the "capital" of the archipelago of Turku and had been called a town since 1977. It is located in the province of Western Finland and is part of the Southwest Finland region. The town had a population of 12,266 (as of 31 December 2008)[2] and covered a land area of 273.18 square kilometres (105.48 sq mi).[1] The population density was 44.9 inhabitants per square kilometre (116/sq mi).

The municipality was bilingual, with the majority (54%) being Swedish and the minority (45%) Finnish speakers.

The city has many little suburbs around it, including Kirjala and Lielax.

View from Airisto harbour, Stormälö

International relations
Main article: List of twin towns and sister cities in Finland

Twin towns — Sister cities

The sister cities of Pargas are

References
  1. "Area by municipality as of 1 January 2008" (PDF) (in Finnish and Swedish). Land Survey of Finland. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  2. "Population by municipality as of 31 December 2008". Population Information System (in Finnish and Swedish). Population Register Center of Finland. Archived from the original on 2011-07-20. Retrieved 20 January 2011.
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