Masku () is a

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

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, ...

. It is located in the

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

Western Finland Western Finland (, ) 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. Tampere was the largest city of the province. Histor ...

and is part of the

Southwest Finland Southwest Finland (, ; ) is a Regions of Finland, region ('','' ) of Finland. It borders the regions of Satakunta, Pirkanmaa, Tavastia Proper, Tavastia Proper (Kanta-Häme), Uusimaa, and Åland. The regional capital and most populous city is Tu ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

. The municipality, which is located about just north of

Turku Turku ( ; ; , ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Southwest Finland. It is located on the southwestern coast of the country at the mouth of the Aura River (Finland), River Aura. The population of Turku is approximately , while t ...

, has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing 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 geog ...

is . The municipality is unilingually Finnish. The municipality has also been known as "Masko" in Swedish. The Swedish name no longer has official status, and is considered outdated according to the

Institute for the Languages of Finland The Institute for the Languages of Finland, better known as Kotus, is a governmental linguistic research institute of Finland geared to studies of Finnish, Swedish (cf. Finland Swedish), the Sami languages, Romani language, as well as Finnish ...

. On January 1, 2009 the municipalities of

Askainen Askainen (; ) is a former municipality of Finland. Together with Lemu, it was consolidated with Masku on January 1, 2009. It is located in southwestern part of the country in the Varsinais-Suomi region. The municipality had a population of 9 ...

and Lemu were consolidated with Masku.

History

Masku is one of the oldest parishes in Finland, having been established in the 13th century. It included

Merimasku Merimasku () is a List of former municipalities of Finland, former municipality of Finland. It was, together with Rymättylä and Velkua, consolidated with the town of Naantali on January 1, 2009. It is located in the provinces of Finland, provin ...

until 1577, when it was transferred to

Naantali Naantali (; ) is a municipalities of Finland, town in Southwest Finland, and, as a resort town during the summer, an important centre of tourism in the country. The municipality has a population of (), and is located west of Turku. The town h ...

. The people of Masku also once held hunting grounds in the Turku archipelago, as evidenced by the toponym ''Maskinnamo'' (originally ''*Maskun Innanmaa'') in

Korpo Korpo (; ) is an island located in the Turku archipelago. It is a former municipality of Finland. On 1 January 2009, it was consolidated with Houtskär, Iniö, Nagu and Pargas to form the new town of Väståboland. As of 1 January 2012, Vä ...

. There is also a village called ''Maskulainen'' in both

Rymättylä Rymättylä (; ) is a former municipality of Finland. It was, together with Merimasku and Velkua, consolidated with the town of Naantali on January 1, 2009. It is located in the province of Western Finland and is part of the Southwest Finland r ...

and Lemu, suggesting that the first settlers of those villages came from Masku. Lemu and

were consolidated with Masku in 2009. Masku adopted Askainen's coat of arms after the merger.

Notable people

The most famous resident of Masku is Finnish tennis player

Jarkko Nieminen Jarkko Kalervo Nieminen (born 23 July 1981) is a Finnish former professional tennis player. His highest ranking of world No. 13, achieved in July 2006, is a Finnish record. He has won two ATP singles titles and five doubles titles in his caree ...

. Well known football players from Masku include

Kasper Hämäläinen Kasper Woldemar Hämäläinen (born 8 August 1986) is a Finnish Association football, football executive and former professional Football player, player who played as an attacking midfielder. He is currently the sporting director of Ykkösliiga ...

Riku Riski Riku Olavi Riski (born 16 August 1989) is a Finnish professional footballer who plays for Finnish club TPS. He has previously played for HJK in Finland, Widzew Łódź in Poland, Hønefoss BK, Rosenborg BK and Odds BK in Norway, and has also had ...

and Roope Riski.

Baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often Hereditary title, hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than ...

C. G. E. Mannerheim, field marshal and 6th

President of Finland The president of the Republic of Finland (; ) is the head of state of Finland. The incumbent president is Alexander Stubb, since 1 March 2024. He was elected president for the first time in 2024 Finnish presidential election, 2024. The presi ...

was born in Louhisaari Manor of Askainen in 1867.

Gallery

File:Kankainen manor 1 AB.jpg, Kankainen Manor File:Louhisaari.JPG, Louhisaari Manor File:Maskun rautatieasema 1 AB.jpg, Masku railway station, closed in 1993 File:Aitsaari.jpg, Oukkulanlahti

References

External links

Municipality of Masku
– Official website Populated coastal places in Finland Municipalities of Southwest Finland {{WesternFinland-geo-stub

History

Notable people

Gallery

See also

References

External links