Southwest Finland

The seal of Finland Proper from 1326

The name of Finland Proper has a historical function. In historic times, in the area of the present Southern Finland lived three tribes, which were the Finns proper, the Tavastians and the Karelians. The southwestern part of the country, the province where the Finns proper lived, was simply called Finland (Finnish: Suomi). In the 17th century the name began to be used to refer to the whole land and a specified name for the lesser Finland was required. The first notes Fennigia specialiter dicta and Fennigia presse dicta were recorded in Latin in the 1650s, and the Swedish Finland för sig sielft and Egenteliga Finland later in the 18th century. The modern form Egentliga Finland was in official use at the end of the century, and the Finnish term Varsinais-Suomi became established only around the 1850s.[2]

Southwest Finland's nature differs from other regions. The most notable biotopes are the Archipelago Sea and groves. 80% of Finland's insect species can be found in Southwest Finland.[3] There are around 20,000 islands near the coast.[4]

The southernmost point of Southwest Finland and the southernmost inhabited island is Utö.[5] Its highest point is 164 meters in Kiikala.[6]

Aurajoki is one of the most notable rivers in Finland.

Southwest Finland sub-regions, towns and municipalities

The region of Southwest Finland is made up of 27 municipalities, of which 11 have city status (marked in bold).

As of 2020, Southwest Finland had a population of 481,403, making it the third most populated Finnish region after Uusimaa and Pirkanmaa. 86.45% speak Finnish, 5.68% Swedish and 7.86% speak other languages, the most common being Russian, Estonian, Arabic, Kurdish and Albanian.

It has the most summer cottages out of any Finnish region, with 49,000 as of 2012.[7]

Significant foreign resident groups [8]
31 December 2020
1	Soviet Union	6,153
2	Estonia	4,092
3	Iraq	3,775
4	Yugoslavia	2,934
5	Iran	1,964
6	Somalia	1,807
7	Vietnam	1,023
8	Romania	960
9	Poland	948
10	Thailand	914
11	Afghanistan	834
12	China	816
13	Russia	757
14	Syria	669
15	Turkey	624
16	Germany	555
17	Ukraine	550
18	Sweden	511
19	United Kingdom	477
20	Latvia	458

Results of the 2023 Finnish parliamentary election in Southwest Finland:

• National Coalition Party 23.0%
• Finns Party 20.0%
• Social Democratic Party 18.1%
• Left Alliance 11.6%
• Centre Party 8.4%
• Green League 7.0%
• Swedish People's Party 4.9%
• Christian Democrats 2.8%
• Movement Now 2.3%
• Other parties 1.9%

The region uses the coat of arms of the historical province of Finland Proper.

• Finns proper
• Southwest Finnish dialects

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Finland Proper.

Finland Proper travel guide from Wikivoyage

• Regional Council of Southwest Finland – official website
• South Finland EU Office