Kuopio

Kuopio(/kuˈoʊpioʊ/KUO-pi-ou,Finnish:[ˈkuo̯pio]) is acityinFinlandand the regional capital ofNorth Savo. It is located in theFinnish Lakeland. The population of Kuopio is approximately 126,000, while thesub-regionhas a population of approximately 147,000. It is the 8th most populousmunicipalityin Finland, and the seventh most populousurban areain the country.
Kuopio has a total area of 4,326.35 square kilometres (1,670.41 sq mi), of which 719.85 km(277.94 sq mi) is waterand half is forest. Although the city'spopulationis spread over 39/km(100/sq mi), the city'surban areasare comparatively densely populated (urban area: 1,618 /km²),making Kuopio the second most densely populated city in Finland. At the end of 2018, its urban area had a population of approximately 90,000.Together withJoensuu, Kuopio is one of the major urban, economic and cultural centres ofEastern Finland.
Kuopio is nationally known as one of the most importantstudy citiesand centres of attraction and growth.The city's history has been marked by severalmunicipality mergerssince 1969, as a result of which Kuopio now encompasses much of the countryside; Kuopio's population surpassed 100,000 when the town ofNilsiäjoined the city in early 2013. WhenMaaninkajoined Kuopio at the beginning of 2015, Kuopio became the largestmilk-producing municipality in Finland and the second largestbeef-producing municipality in Finland. In addition, at the end of the 2010s, Kuopio was characterised by numerous large projects, the largest in the country after theHelsinki metropolitan area.Kuopio has also become a major tourist city with the large tourist centre inTahkovuori.Kuopio Airport, located in the municipality of Siilinjärvi, is Finland's fifth busiest airport with over 235,000 passengers in 2017.
According to the Kuntarating 2017 survey, Kuopio has the most satisfied residents among the 20 largest cities,and according to the 2018 survey, Kuopio is the best city forproperty investors.In theKuntien imago 2018survey, Kuopio ranks second among Finland's large cities afterSeinäjokiinSouth Ostrobothnia.InT-media'sstudy on the attractiveness and influence of the ten largest cities in 2021, 2022 and 2023, Kuopio is the second most attractive city in Finland, withTamperein first place.
Kuopio was theEuropean Region of Gastronomyin 2020.It is also known as the home ofKalakukko, a traditionalSavonianfood,which is why Kuopio is also known as the "Promised Land of Kalakukko".
Several explanations are behind the nameKuopio. The first is that in the 16th century, a certain influential person named Kauhanen inTavinsalmichanged his name to Skopa and the people's pronunciation wasCoopiaand finallyCuopio. The second explanation is that it comes from the verbkuopia, meaning "paw", as when ahorsepaws the ground with itshoof. A third explanation is that it came from a certainKarelianman's nameProkopij, fromRuokolahtiin the Middle Ages.This explanation is the most likely, and is supported by theResearch Institute for the Languages of Finland.
Thecoat of armsof Kuopio was designed in 1823 based on a drawing by the town councilor Karl Hårdhor possibly his artist son, Adolf Hårdh.The coat of arms was approved for use in 1823 by the Kuopio Magistrate in accordance with the order ofAlexander I of Russia.The coat of arms building, which representsKuopio Cathedral, has often been mistakenly considered to beKuopio City Hall, completed in 1886.
The current design of the coat of arms is the work of architect Seppo Ruotsalainen.The coat of arms in its current form was approved at a meeting of Kuopio City Council on 25 November 1957, and theMinistry of the Interiorconfirmed the coat of arms and its explanation on 12 June 1958.
In the 1550s, under the influence ofMikael Agricola, a church and a parish were founded in Kuopionniemi. GovernorPer Brahe the Youngerfounded the city of Kuopio in 1653, but the official date is recognized as 17 November 1775, when KingGustav III of Swedenordered the formal establishment of the city.
Theperiod of Grand Duchy(1809–1917) brought notable transportation development within Eastern Finland. TheSaimaa Canal(1856) opened up a summer route towards the Baltic Sea, and theSavonia railway(1889) improved transport in winter.
AfterWorld War II, the city's population grew significantly, due in part to the settlement ofKarelian evacueesand the high birth rate. The rapid growth of the population forced the expansion of schools; at the end of the 1940s, support was also provided forschool transportsand the provision of freeschool meals(the poor people had received it in Kuopio since 1902).In the 1960s, the first construction of the actual suburb,Puijonlaakso, began. Since then, the new areas have each grown in turn: in the 1960s, Puijonlaakso and Tiihotar (as part of Saarijärvi); In the 1970s Saarijärvi, Kelloniemi and Levänen; In the 1980s, Jynkkä and Neulamäki.
The municipality ofMaaninkajoined the city of Kuopio in 2015, the town ofNilsiäin 2013, andKarttulain 2011, as didVehmersalmiin 2005,Riistavesiin 1973, andKuopion maalaiskuntain 1969.
The city is surrounded by LakeKallavesi,and several parts of it are built on islands. With an area of 472.76 square kilometres (182.53 sq mi) Lake Kallavesi is thetenth largest lakein Finland. In the wake of theYoldia Sea, which followed theWeichselian glaciationand preceded theBaltic Sea, there are ancient beaches up to 140 m above the current sea level, of which the current Lake Kallavesi is 82 m above sea level.Kuopio's ample waterfronts and islands are also used in theSaaristokaupunki(lit.Archipelago city) -project, the biggest residential area currently being built in Finland.Saaristokaupunki will accommodate a total of 14,000 inhabitants in 2015. All houses will be situated no more than 500 metres (1,600 ft) from the nearest lakeshore.
Kuopio Market Squareis the undisputed center of the cityand the city center follows a densely built grid pattern with several parks and narrow gutter streets.The environment of the city is quite distinctive; the surface shapes of the waterfront-lined center are so variable that a flat property is a desired rarity.The settlement has spread outside the center of Kuopio according to a dense and sparse finger model that is affordable forpublic transport,and the new districts have been built in a municipal drive at once; for example, the Saaristokaupunki was banned for building for the previous 25 years,and this Kuopio zoning tradition has a long history.Due to the above-mentioned factors, thepopulation densityof the Kuopio city center is the highest in Finland.
With the surrounding lakes, theshorelinein Kuopio is 4,760 kilometers.The terrain is also characterized by rich forests, and the clear center of the Kuopio's lund forest is mainly located in the area between Kuopio,NilsiäandSiilinjärvi.Of the Finnish municipalities, Kuopio has the second largest number ofsummer cottagesandholiday homes. In 2013, the number of summer cottages was 8,684. The number of summer homes in Kuopio has increased in recent years due to municipal associations.Due to the abundance of water bodies, Kuopio also has a remarkably favorable climate compared to the latitude. The annual sum of the effective temperature is about as high in Kuopio as in places further south than it, for example,TampereandLahti.
There are more than 50 districts and villages in Kuopio.
Kuopio falls in thecontinental climatezone (Köppen climate classification Dfb), bordering onsubarctic climatezone (Köppen"Dfc"). Winters are long and cold, with average highs staying below freezing from November until March, and summers are short and relatively mild.  Most precipitation occurs in the late summer and early fall. The summers are relatively warm for its latitude, especially the lows. This is due to influence from the lake, making it much warmer on summer nights than in areas away from water. In winter, maritime moderation is eliminated as the lake freezes over. Average temperatures for all seasons have warmed in recent decades.
The city of Kuopio has 125,668 inhabitants, making it the 8th most populous municipality in Finland. Theregion of Kuopiois the 7th largest in Finland, after the regions ofHelsinki,Tampere,Turku,Oulu,JyväskyläandLahti. Kuopio is home to 2% of Finland's population. 5.8% of the population has a foreign background, which is below the national average.
Kuopio is the fourth largest monolingualFinnish-speakingmunicipality in Finland after Tampere, Oulu and Jyväskylä. The majority of the population - 116,858 people or94.2% - speak Finnish as their first language. In Kuopio, 134 people, or0.1% of the population, speakSwedish.5.7% of the population of Kuopio have amother tongueother than Finnish or Swedish.AsEnglishand Swedish are compulsory school subjects, functional bilingualism or trilingualism acquired through language studies is not uncommon.
At least 100 different languages are spoken in Kuopio. The most common foreign languages areRussian(1.4%),Arabic(0.6%),English(0.4%) andUkrainian(0.3%).
As of 2023, 7,139 people with a migrant background lived in Kuopio, representing 5.8% of the population.There are 6,973 residents who were born abroad, which makes up 5.6% of the population. The number of foreign citizens in Kuopio is 4,785.Most foreign-born citizens come from the formerSoviet Union,Russia,Sweden,Thailand, andSyria.
The relative proportion of immigrants in Kuopio's population is below the national average. It is lower than in the major Finnish cities ofHelsinki,Espoo,Tampere,VantaaorTurku. Nevertheless, Kuopio's new residents are increasingly of foreign origin. This will increase the proportion of foreign residents in the coming years.
In 2023, theEvangelical Lutheran Churchwas the largest religious group with 65.6% of the population of Kuopio. Other religious groups accounted for 3.8% of the population. 30.6% of the population had no religious affiliation.
The largest church denomination in Finland, Lutheran Church has adiocese in Kuopio, which is shepherded by bishopJari Jolkkonen.One of the most significant Lutheran churches in the city is theKuopio Cathedral, completed in 1816.
Until 2018, Kuopio was home to primate of theFinnish Orthodox Church, the called Archbishop of Karelia and all Finland. Since 2018, the primate is seated in Helsinki and Kuopio became the seat of theDiocese of Kuopio and Karelia. The lateArchbishop Paulhad been successful in producing literature of popular Orthodox theology. The city is also the location ofRIISA- Orthodox Church Museum of Finland.
Kuopio also has an Islamic mosque.Muslims from various parts of the world and certain Finnish Muslims live in Kuopio.
The town is also home to the firstBurmeseBuddhist monasteryin Finland, named the Buddha Dhamma Ramsi Monastery.
Kuopio's economic structure is very diverse. In 2008, there were about 4,200 enterprises in Kuopio,of which approximately 180 were export companies.These provided about 45,000 jobs.In 2016, this grew to a total of about 5,050 companies, of which more than 190 also trade abroad. There are a total of 50,877 jobs. The business service of the City of Kuopio plays a significant role in the development of Kuopio's business life. The business service promotes the development of companies operating in Kuopio and improves the operating environments of companies. The most important thing in developing operating environments is to improve the supply of estate and business premises. TheKuopio University Hospital(KUH) is Kuopio's second largest employer after the City of Kuopio; in 2011, KUH employed a total of 4,113 people.
Tourismis of great importance to Kuopio's business life;the Rauhalahticamping siteis one indication of Kuopio's expertise, as it is the only five-star camping site in Finland.The city has also a comprehensive hotel offer for tourism, one of the most notable isHotel Savonia, part of theBest Westernhotel chain, in thePuijonlaakso district. Arranging accommodation and program services gives many jobs. Kuopio's Entrepreneurs (Kuopion Yrittäjät), the local association of Savonia Entrepreneurs (Savon Yrittäjät), operates in Kuopio.
The most significant recent business projects are the centralization ofHoneywell's Finnish operations in Kuopio, the completion of Ark Therapeutics' gene medicine plant, the marine industry concentration built by Bella Boats at the Marine Park inHaapaniemi's Siikaniemi and the construction ofJunttan's EUR 15 million assembly plant at Kylmämäki at the end of 2008. The site of Junttan's current factory in Särkilahti will have space for a large shopping center. The 9.7-hectare plot purchased by Savocon and TKD Finland for EUR 11 million has a building right for 58,500 square meters. The two companies plan to invest a total of about 40 million euros in the project.A significant industrial player is also Savon Sello company in Sorsasalo, which is currently owned by Powerflute Oyj. One of the biggest projects and investments of recent years is the preparation of the construction of Finnpulp's largest and most modernsoftwoodpulp millin Kuopio.The most significant retail investments are thePrismahypermarketcompleted in December 2007 and the Päiväranta'sK-Citymarketcompleted in August 2008. A hardware store Kodin Terra was opened in Pitkälahti, as well as the Ikano Group'sMatkus Shopping Centerin theHiltulanlahtiarea in November 2012and anIKEAdepartment storein May 2013.
Kuopio is known as the cultural center of Eastern Finland. One of Kuopio's most important cultural venues are theKuopio Museum, theKuopio Art Museumand theKuopio City Theatrein the city center. A wide range of musical (from kindergarten to doctorate-level studies) and dance education is available and the cultural life is active. Notable events includeANTI – Contemporary Art Festival, Kuopio Dance Festival,Kuopio Rockcock, Kuopio Wine Festival, Kuopio Marathon and Finland Ice Marathon in winter. A notable place, however, to enjoy the local flavor of Kuopio life and food is Sampo, a fish restaurant loved by locals and tourists as well.
Kuopio is known for its association with a national delicacy, Finnish fish pastry (Kalakukko), and the dialect ofSavo, as well as the hill ofPuijoand thePuijo tower.Besides being a very popular outdoor recreation area, Puijo serves also as a stage for a yearly World Cupski jumpingcompetition.
In inhabitants of Kuopio have a special reputation: they are known as jovial and verbally joking.Within the Savo culture, theonusis placed on the listener to interpret the story. People of the Kuopio region and Eastern Finland have always had many health problems and the mortality has been higher than on an average in Finland. Because of this, Eastern Finland has been a hotspot for Public Health studies. TheNorth Karelia Projectby theUniversity of Kuopioin coordination with theNational Public Health Instituteand theWorld Health Organization, beginning in the 1970s was one of its first steps towards world class research.Niuvanniemia historicalpsychiatric hospitalis also located in the western part of the city in theNiuva district.
During the 2000s, Kuopio has placed very well in a number of image, popularity and city-attractiveness surveys. In 2007 it was placed third, behindTampereandOulu.
Kuopio bid for the2012 Winter Youth Olympics, a youth sports festival in the tradition of the Olympics.  It became a finalist in November 2008, but ultimately lost toInnsbruck, Austria.  Kuopio's image as a small city with a large University and many active young people was considered a model of what theInternational Olympic Committeeseeks for the Games.
The city has a nationally unique feature in its street network, where every other street is reserved for pedestrian and cycle traffic,so-called "rännikatu" (derived from the Swedishgränd, alley). These streets provide pedestrians a calm environment away from vehicular traffic.This setup dates back to Kuopio's first town plan by Pehr Kjellman in 1776. Originally, rännikadut were created as a fire barrier to prevent a possible fire escalating in a mainly wood-constructed city.
Two Finnish highways cross Kuopio:Finnish national road 5(Vt 5; part ofE63in the northern side of city), which extends south toHelsinkiand north toSodankylä, andFinnish national road 9(Vt 9; part of E63 in the western side of city), which extends west toTurkuand east to theNiirala checkpointon theFinnish-Russian border. TheBlue Highwaypasses through Kuopio. It is an international tourist route fromMo i Rana,NorwaytoPudozh,RussiaviaSwedenandFinland.
Long-distance transport connections from Kuopio includePendolinoandInterCitytrains fromKuopio railway stationto several destinations around Finland, operated byVR, as well as multiple daily departures fromKuopio AirportonFinnairtoHelsinki. The passenger harbour of theport of Kuopio, located on the shore of Lake Kallavesi, is the busiest port for passenger traffic in theVuoksidrainage basinand theFinnish Lakeland.
Kuopio has always been a city of education. Some of the first schools offering education inFinnish(such as the School for the Blind in 1871, and the Trade School in 1887) were established in Kuopio. Currently the most important institutions are theUniversity of Eastern Finland, theSavonia University of Applied Sciences, Vocational College of Northern Savonia and the Kuopio department of theSibelius Academy. One of the oldest schools in the city isKuopio Lyceum High School, which was officially established in 1872, but was originally built in 1826 and designed byCarl Ludvig Engel.
Kuopio is known as a strong center of health (e.g. it has the biggest yearly enrollment rate of medical students in Finland), pharmacy, environment, food & nutrition (all legalized Clinical and Public Health Nutritionists in Finland graduate from the University of Eastern Finland), safety (education in Emergency Services is centered in Kuopio) and welfare professions, as the major organisations University of Kuopio (now part of theUniversity of Eastern Finlandsince January 2010.), Savonia University of Applied Sciences andTechnopolis Kuopioare particularly oriented to those areas.
Kuopio istwinnedwith 15 cities around the world. It also has one twin county,Lääne-Viru County,Estonia.
Kuopio istwinnedwith:
Media related toKuopioat Wikimedia CommonsKuopiotravel guide from Wikivoyage