Finland

**Finland**, wey dem officially dey call de **Republic of Finland**, be Nordic country wey dey Northern Europe. E share border plus Sweden for de northwest, Norway for de north, den Russia for de east, while de Gulf of Bothnia dey west den de Gulf of Finland dey south, opposite Estonia. Finland get population of 5.6 million people. De capital city den de biggest city be Helsinki. Majority of de people be ethnic Finns. De official languages be Finnish den Swedish; 84.9% of de people dey speak Finnish as dema mother tongue, while 5.1% dey speak Swedish. Finland ein climate range from humid continental for de south to boreal for de north, den over 180,000 lakes dey ein land insyd.

People first settle for Finland around 9000 BC after de last Ice Age. During de Stone Age, different cultures develop, wey dem differentiate dem by de kind ceramics dem make. For de Bronze Age den Iron Age, Finland get plenty contact plus cultures from Fennoscandia den de Baltic region. From de late 13th century, Sweden take control of Finland after de Northern Crusades. But for 1809, during de Finnish War, Russia capture Finland from Sweden den make am an autonomous grand duchy under de Russian Empire. Dis period see de growth of Finnish art den de start of de independence movement. For 1906, Finland be de first place for Europe wey grant universal suffrage, den de first for de world wey allow all adults to run for public office. After de Russian Revolution for 1917, Finland declare independence. De next year, civil war break out, but de Whites win, den by 1919, Finland confirm ein status as republic. 

During World War II, Finland fight de Soviet Union insyd de Winter War den Continuation War, den Nazi Germany for de Lapland War. Dem lose some territories to de Soviet Union but manage keep dema independence den democracy.

Finland remain mainly an agricultural country till de 1950s, buh after World War II, e industrialize fast den develop a strong economy plus a welfare state based on de Nordic model. Dis make de country experience prosperity den high per capita income. During de Cold War, Finland maintain neutrality. Buh since den, dem join de European Union for 1995, de Eurozone for 1999, den after Russia invade Ukraine, Finland join NATO for 2023. Finland be part of chaw international organizations like de Nordic Council, de Schengen Area, den de Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). De country dey rank high for education, economic competitiveness, civil liberties, quality of life, den human development.

## Geography

### Regions

Na dem consolidate de county of Eastern Uusimaa (Itä-Uusimaa) plus Uusimaa for 1 January 2011.

#### Administrative divisions

### Largest cities
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## References


## Sources

* 

## Read further

* *Insight Guide: Finland* ().
* Jutikkala, Eino; Pirinen, Kauko. *A History of Finland* ().
* Klinge, Matti. *Let Us Be Finns: Essays on History* ().
* Lavery, Jason. *The History of Finland*, Greenwood Press, 2006 (.
* Lewis, Richard D. *Finland: Cultural Lone Wolf* ().
* *Lonely Planet: Finland* ().
* Partanen, Anu: *The Nordic Theory of Everything*, 2017 ().
* Singleton, Fred. *A Short History of Finland* ().
* Swallow, Deborah. *Culture Shock! Finland: A Guide to Customs and Etiquette* ()
## External links

* Finland at the *Encyclopædia Britannica*
* Finland. *The World Factbook*. Central Intelligence Agency.
* Finland profile from the BBC News

### Government
* This is Finland, the official English-language online portal (administered by the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs)
* Statistics Finland

### Maps
* 

### Travel
* Official travel site of Finland