Manamansalo is the largest island in the

Oulujärvi Oulujärvi (; sv, Ule träsk; also known as Lake Oulu) is a large lake in the Kainuu region of Finland. With an area of it is the fifth largest lake in the country. The lake is drained by the Oulu River, which flows northwestward from the lake ...

, the fifth largest lake in

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

. Administratively it belongs to the

Vaala Vaala is a municipality in Finland. It is located in the North Ostrobothnia region. Established in 1954 (predecessor municipality ''Säräisniemi'', established in 1867), the municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which ...

municipality in

North Ostrobothnia North Ostrobothnia ( fi, Pohjois-Pohjanmaa; sv, Norra Österbotten) is a region of Finland. It borders the Finnish regions of Lapland, Kainuu, North Savo, Central Finland and Central Ostrobothnia, as well as the Russian Republic of Karelia. T ...

, or Kainuu until 2016. It is the seventh largest inland island in Finland, or the fifth largest if

Soisalo Soisalo () is an area in central Finland, south of Kuopio. It is commonly regarded as the largest island of Finland. Whilst it is an area of land surrounded by water (the lakes Kallavesi, Unnukka, Suvasvesi and Kermajärvi Kermajärvi (literal ...

and Sääminginsalo are not counted as islands.

Geography

Manamansalo is located between the Ärjänselkä and Niskanselkä areas ( fjards) of Oulujärvi. The main village on the island is also known as Manamansalo. Other villages include Puronranta and Unelanperä. The road 8820 (Manamansalontie) goes through the island. The northeastern part has a bridge connected to the mainland, but crossing the Alassalmi strait in the southwest has to be done via the

Alassalmi Ferry The Alassalmi Ferry is a cable ferry linking Manamansalo island and mainland, across the Alassalmi strait on lake Oulujärvi, in Finland. The ferry links the south-western coast of Manamansalo island with the west of lake Oulujärvi, on the munic ...

History

Manamansalo was settled by Finns in the 16th century. It was first mentioned in 1555 as a part of the

Liminka Liminka ( sv, Limingo) is a municipality in the Northern Ostrobothnia region in Finland. Liminka is located about south of Oulu. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . The n ...

parish.

The first church in all of Kainuu was built on Manamansalo in 1559. It became the center of the Oulujärvi parish, separated from Liminka on that year. The church was destroyed by Russians in 1581, after which the Oulujärvi parish was reintegrated into Liminka. A new church was built in

Paltaniemi Paltaniemi is a village on the shores of Lake Oulujärvi, about north of the Kajaani's town center in Kainuu, Finland. It has a population of 291 inhabitants (in December 2020). The Kajaani Airport is located in the eastern side of the village. ...

in 1599, after which the reestablished parish was known as

Paltamo Paltamo ( sv, Paltamo, also ) is a municipality of Finland. It is part of the Kainuu region. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . There are two built-up areas in the municip ...

. Manamansalo remained part of Paltamo until Säräisniemi was separated from it in 1864. The Säräisniemi municipality was renamed Vaala in 1954 after its seat was moved from the village of Säräisniemi to the village of Vaala. An open-air church was built on the island in 1959 in commemoration of the 400th anniversary of the original church. It is located on the same site as the 16th century church. The bell of the 16th century church was found in the

Solovetsky Monastery The Solovetsky Monastery ( rus, Солове́цкий монасты́рь, p=səlɐˈvʲɛtskʲɪj mənɐˈstɨrʲ) is a fortified monastery located on the Solovetsky Islands in the White Sea in northern Russia. It was one of the largest Chris ...

of Russia in the 1970s, having been brought there in 1596.

References

{{Reflist Oulujärvi Vaala Geography of North Ostrobothnia Geography of Kainuu Lake islands of Finland