Äänekosken maalaiskunta (abbreviated as ''Äänekosken mlk'', ) is a former municipality of

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

in the

Central Finland Central Finland (; ) is a Regions of Finland, region ( / ) in Finland. It borders the regions of Päijät-Häme, Pirkanmaa, South Ostrobothnia, Central Ostrobothnia, North Ostrobothnia, Northern Savonia, North Savo, and Southern Savonia, South S ...

region. It was consolidated with the ''kauppala'' of

Äänekoski Äänekoski () is a town in Finland, located in the Central Finland regions of Finland, region, about north of Jyväskylä, the region's capital city. Äänekoski has a population of , as of , and covers an area of of which , or 22%, is water. ...

in 1969. It bordered Äänekoski, Suolahti,

Laukaa Laukaa (; ) is a municipalities of Finland, municipality of Finland. It is located next to Jyväskylä and is part of the Central Finland regions of Finland, region. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water ...

Uurainen Uurainen (, also ) is a municipality of Finland. It is part of the Central Finland region. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which , or roughly 6.5%, is water. The population density is . Neighbouring municipali ...

, Saarijärvi, Konginkangas and Sumiainen.

Geography

Lakes

The Keitele and

Pyhäjärvi Pyhäjärvi (1993–1995 ''Pyhäsalmi'') is a town and municipality in the south of Northern Ostrobothnia region, Finland. Pyhäjärvi also borders the Northern Savonia and Central Finland regions. The town belongs to the subregion of Nivala–H ...

are partially within the borders of the former municipality.

History

The toponym ''Äänekoski'' was first mentioned in 1455 as ''Ænækoski laxefiskeri'' (Swedish for "salmon fishery on the Äänekoski rapids"). According to Terho Itkonen, the name of the rapids is of Sámi origin, having been derived from a word meaning "big, large" (compare

Northern Sámi Northern Sámi or North Sámi ( ; ; ; ; ; disapproved exonym Lappish or Lapp) is the most widely spoken of all Sámi languages. The area where Northern Sámi is spoken covers the northern parts of Norway, Sweden and Finland. Geographic distr ...

''eanas'', "most"). Folk etymology connects the name to the word ''ääni'', "sound": as the first Savonian settlers came to the area, they heard the loud sound of the rapids and called it ''Eänekkoski'' in their Savonian dialect. Before 1628, the area was a part of the

Rautalampi Rautalampi () is a municipalities of Finland, municipality of Finland. It is located in the Northern Savonia regions of Finland, region. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is ...

parish, after which it was a part of the

parish. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the village of Koivisto was a minor local center as many important roads went through it, including a road connecting

Vaasa Vaasa (; , ), formerly (1855-1917) known as Nikolaistad (; ),Kuopio Kuopio ( , ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of North Savo. It is located in the Finnish Lakeland. The population of Kuopio is approximately , while the Kuopio sub-region, sub-region has a population of approximately . It is the mos ...

. The oldest post office in Central Finland was located in Koivisto. In the 1820s, Hirvaskangas was the only place in Northern Tavastia (roughly corresponding to Central Finland) where markets were held. The Äänekoski parish was formed in 1907 from parts of the Laukaa parish. The municipality Äänekosken maalaiskunta was formed in 1911 from parts of Laukaa and Saarijärvi. At that time the municipality was known simply as ''Äänekoski''. In 1932, the actual settlement of

, along with Suolahti, were split off as their own municipalities. The old municipality of Äänekoski was renamed ''Äänekosken maalaiskunta'', "rural municipality of Äänekoski", while its administrative center was moved to the village of Honkola. Äänekoski and Äänekosken mlk had a shared parish, while Suolahti was given a separate parish in 1946. The municipality was consolidated with Äänekoski in 1969.

Roads

The national road 4 goes through the former municipality. The smaller national road 69 starts in Hirvaskangas, goes through Konnevesi and

and ends in the village of Levä in

Suonenjoki Suonenjoki (; literally means "vein's river") is a town and municipality of Finland. It is located in the Northern Savonia region, southwest of Kuopio. The town has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population d ...

Sights

''Venäläiskivi'' is a memorial for a battle in Koivisto during the

Finnish War The Finnish War (; ; ) was fought between the Gustavian era, Kingdom of Sweden and the Russian Empire from 21 February 1808 to 17 September 1809 as part of the Napoleonic Wars. As a result of the war, the eastern third of Sweden was established a ...

of 1808–1809. The memorial is a boulder with a metal plaque, and it is protected by the Finnish Heritage Agency. According to oral tradition, dead Russian soldiers are buried under the boulder. In Kapeenkylä near the

Kapeenkoski Kapeenniemi a recreational area for the whole family and Kapeenkoski (meaning: ''Narrow rapids'') a popular fishing rapids in Central Finland in an inspiring nature resort. The area is protected as the nature and wildlife are exceptionally rich ...

rapids, there is a kettle hole called ''Ristinhauta'' that has been used as a sacrificial site by pagans. Once Christianity spread to the area, it became a site of Christian worship used by travelers in the 16th century. Priests from

Sysmä Sysmä () is a municipalities of Finland, municipality of Finland. It is situated in the Päijät-Häme regions of Finland, region. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . Ne ...

held sermons by it.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aanekosken maalaiskunta Former municipalities of Finland Äänekoski