Oulainen ( sv, Oulainen, also ) is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

and a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

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 ...

. It is located in the

Northern 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. ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...

, south of the city of Oulu. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...

is . Oulainen is founded in 1865, and it received township rights in 1977. The municipality is unilingually

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

. The municipality has previously also been known as "" in

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

documents, but is today referred to as "Oulainen" also in Swedish.

Geography

Neighbouring municipalities are

Alavieska Alavieska () is a municipality of Finland. It is located in the province of Oulu and is part of the Northern Ostrobothnia region. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . The m ...

Haapavesi Haapavesi is a town and a municipality of Finland. It is located in the North Ostrobothnia region. The name means "Aspen Water". The town has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . Neighbour mun ...

, Merijärvi,

Pyhäjoki Pyhäjoki (; literally the "Holy River") is a municipality of Finland. It is located in the defunct province of Oulu, which was split in two regions; Pyhäjoki is part of the Northern Ostrobothnia region. It is located southwest of the city of O ...

Raahe Raahe (; sv, Brahestad; ) is a town and municipality of Finland. Founded by Swedish statesman and Governor General of Finland Count Per Brahe the Younger in 1649, it is one of 10 historic wooden towns (or town centers) remaining in Finland. Exam ...

and

Ylivieska Ylivieska () is a town and municipality of Northern Ostrobothnia region, Finland. It has a population of (), and it serves as the administrative centre for Kalajokilaakso and Pyhäjokilaakso, an area with a population of about 90,000 inhabitants ...

. In addition to the town center, the municipality includes the villages of Kilpua, Lehtopää, Matkaniva, Petäjäskoski, Piipsjärvi and Honkaranta.

History

Oulainen was first mentioned in 1572 as ''Oulahais'' and as a part of the

parish. A farm named ''Oulahainen'' was established earlier. The name comes from a dialectal word ''oulu'' meaning "flooding waters" (see also Oulu) and seems to suggest a Tavastian origin. Alpo Räisänen suggests that the name could be of Savonian or Karelian origin. Oulainen became a chapel community in 1682, a parish in 1870, a ''kauppala'' in 1967 and a town in 1977.

Events

Notable annual events include the National Veteran Machines Fair ()Waltakunnalliset Weteraanikonepäivät
/ref> and Oulainen Music Weeks (). Oulainen Music Weeks were organized for the twentieth time in 2006. The Oulainen Youth Choir () has received international acclaim.

Notable people

* Eeli Erkkilä, Minister and Member of Parliament, Moped champion * Elsi Hetemäki-Olander, Member of Parliament * Katja Hänninen, Member of Parliament * Merja Kiviranta, triathlonist * Rosa-Maria Ryyti, model and Miss Finland 2015 beauty pageant titleholder

References

External links

Town of Oulainen
– Official website
Oulainen Music Weeks
Cities and towns in Finland Populated places established in 1865 {{OuluProvince-geo-stub