Oravais ( fi, Oravainen) is a former municipality of

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 Bot ...

. It is located in the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions out ...

Western Finland Western Finland ( fi, Länsi-Suomen lääni, sv, Västra Finlands län) was a province of Finland from 1997 to 2009. It bordered the provinces of Oulu, Eastern Finland and Southern Finland. It also bordered the Gulf of Bothnia towards Åland. ...

and is part of the Ostrobothnia

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 ...

. The municipality had a population of 2,189 (31 October 2010) and covered a land area of . The

population density Population density (in agriculture: 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 term.Matt RosenberPopu ...

was . The municipality was consolidated with Vörå-Maxmo to form the new municipality of

Vörå Vörå (; fi, Vöyri) is a municipality of Finland. In 2011, it was created from the municipalities of Vörå-Maxmo and Oravais. Vörå-Maxmo was created in 2007 from the municipalities of (old) Vörå and Maxmo. It is located in the province ...

on 1 January 2011. The municipality was officially bilingual, with the majority speaking

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 ...

(81%) and the minority

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 ...

(10%). Most of the remaining 9% live in ''Oravais Reception Centre for Refugees'', and speak several other languages.

Trade and industry

Farming forestry and fur farming employs 18.8% of the population, industry etc. 33.4%, the service sector 46.8% and unclassified sectors 1%. Traditionally, Oravais has been dominated by farming, with notable elements of industry. The structural transformation of farming has been considerable; today 118 farmers and about 40 fur farmers are still active. Among the larger employers we find companies working with construction, manufacturing of sandpaper, packing and equipment. There are many small businesses. The location at a main road has furthered restaurant enterprise. Tourism has been enhanced since the 1990s.

History

Oravais was detached from

as a semiautonomous entity with their own chapel in 1676 and became an independent parish in 1859. The Battle of Oravais was a critical event during the

Finnish War The Finnish War ( sv, Finska kriget, russian: Финляндская война, fi, Suomen sota) was fought between the Kingdom of Sweden and the Russian Empire from 21 February 1808 to 17 September 1809 as part of the Napoleonic Wars. As a re ...

1808–09 between

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

and

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic countries, Nordic c ...

, and took place on September 14, 1808. The Russian troops won the battle, which became the turning point in the war. After the defeat of Sweden in the war, Finland became a

Grand Duchy A grand duchy is a country or territory whose official head of state or ruler is a monarch bearing the title of grand duke or grand duchess. Relatively rare until the abolition of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, the term was often used in th ...

under Russia. In the village Kimo (, ) the ironworks ''Kimo bruk,'' (Kimo works) was founded in 1703 by the Stockholm businessman Petter Heijke, who already ran Orisberg works in the neighbouring municipality Storkyro.Kimo Bruk
Oravais Municipality and others 2004. Accessed August 29, 2008 Several helve hammers were built at the works; they were actuated by water power from the Kimo river. The ruins of the

forge A forge is a type of hearth used for heating metals, or the workplace (smithy) where such a hearth is located. The forge is used by the smith to heat a piece of metal to a temperature at which it becomes easier to shape by forging, or to th ...

, which was built at the works in 1791, still remain. The enterprise came to an end in the 1860s; after that

water mill A watermill or water mill is a mill that uses hydropower. It is a structure that uses a water wheel or water turbine to drive a mechanical process such as milling (grinding), rolling, or hammering. Such processes are needed in the production ...

s were set up in the building. The mill was closed in 1979. Since 1986, the old mill is the scene for an outdoor theater every summer. Historical plays, written by playwrights with local association, are often performed.Oravais Teater
Accessed August 29, 2008. oravaisteater.fi The iron ore was shipped to Oravais and worked up at ''Oravais blast furnace'' before it was transported to Kimo works. In the same place, ''Oravais factory'' was established after the ironworks era was over; for many years it was an important textile industry. The factory contributed to the character of Oravais by giving the municipality some mobility of inhabitants and a presence of casual labourers – otherwise an alien phenomenon on the Finnish countryside – and the corollary occurrence of socialist ideas. The vast majority of the inhabitants, however, were farmers until modernity progressed in the 20th century.

Famous people from Oravais

Tim Sparv Tim Sparv (born 20 February 1987) is a Finnish former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder. Sparv was born in Oravais, and started his football career in Norrvalla FF youth team before moving to Southampton's junior org ...

, football player

References

External links

Municipality of Oravais
– Official website {{Authority control Former municipalities of Finland Populated places established in 1676 Populated places disestablished in 2011 Vörå 1676 establishments in Sweden 2011 disestablishments in Finland