Riihimäki (; ) is a town and

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' ...

in the south of Finland, about north of

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

and southeast of

Tampere Tampere is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Pirkanmaa. It is located in the Finnish Lakeland. The population of Tampere is approximately , while the metropolitan area has a population of approximately . It is the most populous mu ...

. An important railway junction is located in Riihimäki, since railway tracks from Riihimäki lead to Helsinki, Tampere and

Lahti Lahti (; ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Päijät-Häme. It is located in the Finnish Lakeland. The population of Lahti is approximately , while the Lahti sub-region, sub-region has a population of approximately . It is the mo ...

. Several businesses also operate in Riihimäki. Notably, Würth Oy has its Finnish headquarters and logistics center in Riihimäki.

Valio Valio Ltd () is a Finnish manufacturer of dairy products and one of the largest companies in Finland. Valio's products include cheese, powdered ingredients, butter, yogurt and milk. It is Finland's largest milk processor, producing 85% of the c ...

has a major dairy in the Herajoki part of Riihimäki. The famous

Sako Sako Limited (natively ) is a Finnish firearm and ammunition manufacturer located in Riihimäki, Tavastia Proper in southern Finland. It also has owned the Tikka brand of bolt-action rifles since 1983, and is now owned by the Italian firear ...

rifles are also produced in Riihimäki. The town 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 ...

Southern Finland Southern Finland (, ) was a province of Finland from 1997 to 2009. It bordered the provinces of Western Finland and Eastern Finland. It also bordered the Gulf of Finland and Russia. History On September 1, 1997 the Uusimaa Province, the Ky ...

and is part of the

Tavastia Proper Tavastia () or Tavastland may refer to: Regions * Häme (Swedish: ''Tavastland'', Latin: ''Tavastia'') * Tavastia (historical province) Tavastia (; ; ; also called ''Yam'' (Ямь) or ''Yem'' (Емь) in Russian sources) is a historical prov ...

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 ...

. Its neighboring municipalities are

Janakkala Janakkala () is a municipality of Finland. Its administrative centre is in Turenki. Janakkala is located along Highway 3 ( E12) in the province of Southern Finland and is part of the Tavastia Proper region. To the south, Janakkala shares a bo ...

in the north,

Hausjärvi Hausjärvi is a municipalities of Finland, municipality of Finland. Its seat is in Oitti. It is located in the provinces of Finland, province of Southern Finland and is part of the Tavastia Proper regions of Finland, region. The municipality has ...

in the east,

Hyvinkää Hyvinkää (; , ) is a town in Finland, located in the southern interior of the country. Hyvinkää is situated in the northern part of the Uusimaa region. The population of Hyvinkää is approximately . It is the most populous municipality in ...

in the south and

Loppi Loppi (; , also ) is a municipalities of Finland, municipality in Finland. It is located in the provinces of Finland, province of Southern Finland and is part of the Kanta-Häme regions of Finland, region, located about 50 kilometers (about 30 mil ...

in the west. The town 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. Riihimäki is home to the

Riihimäki Prison Riihimäki Prison ( Finnish: ''Riihimäen vankila'') is the main correctional facility in southern Finland, located in Riihimäki. It is a closed prison, with capacity for 223 inmates. Along with Turku Turku ( ; ; , ) is a city in Finlan ...

, which is, alongside Turku Prison, one of the prisons in the country with the highest security rating (A+), and is home to the country's most dangerous prisoners.

History

Riihimäki was established around the

Riihimäki railway station Riihimäki railway station (, ) is a railway station located in the town of Riihimäki, Finland. The Finnish Heritage Agency has classified Riihimäki railway station along with the nearby former residential area of railway workers called Rauta ...

by the

Helsinki–Riihimäki railway Helsinki–Riihimäki railway is a railway running between the Helsinki Central railway station and the Riihimäki railway station in Finland, and it is part of the Finnish Main Line. It was opened in 1862 as a part of the Finland's first railway ...

and is one of the original stations on Finland's first railway between

and

Hämeenlinna Hämeenlinna (; ; ; or ''Croneburgum'') is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Kanta-Häme. It is located in the southern interior of the country and on the shores of Vanajavesi, Lake Vanajavesi. The population of Hämeenlinna is appr ...

, which opened in 1862. It became the first railway junction in Finland when the Riihimäki – Saint Petersburg track's first section from Riihimäki to

was opened in 1869. In 1907-1952 a narrow-gauge railway also operated between Riihimäki and

. Today, the quickest way to travel between Riihimäki and Loppi is by car along the national road 54, which runs between Tammela and

Hollola Hollola () is a municipality of Finland, located in the western part of the Päijänne Tavastia region. The municipality is unilingually Finnish and has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . ...

. In 1910, a cavalry regiment was also established in the city. In 1944, the Signal Regiment was moved to the Riihimäki garrison. In 1922, Riihimäki separated from

and became an independent market-town. Riihimäki got its city rights in 1960. It was home to the reputed Riihimäki Glass company that remained in business from 1910 through 1990. The Finnish Glass Museum with its permanent display created by famous designer

Tapio Wirkkala Tapio Veli Ilmari Wirkkala (2 June 1915 – 19 May 1985) was a Finnish designer and sculptor, a major figure of post-war design. Life and work Wirkkala was born in Hanko in 1915. He attended the Töölö co-educational school in Helsinki. His f ...

was opened in 1981.

Sports

* Peltosaaren Nikkarit & Kiekko-Nikkarit (

Ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

) * Riihimäen Taitoluistelijat (

Figure skating Figure skating is a sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform on figure skates on ice. It was the first winter sport to be included in the Olympic Games, with its introduction occurring at the Figure skating at the 1908 Summer Olympi ...

) * Riihimäen Jäätaiturit (

Synchronized skating Synchronized skating, often called synchro, is an ice skating sport where between 8 and 20 skaters perform together as a team. They move as a flowing unit at high speed over the ice, while performing elements and footwork. This complex sport orig ...

) * Kolmoskori (

Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

) *

Riihimäen Ilves Riihimäen Ilves (abbreviated RIlves) is a football (soccer), football club from Riihimäki, Finland which was. The club was formed in 1970. The men's football first team currently plays in the Kolmonen (Third Division) and their home ground is ...

, formerly RIPS (

Soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

) *

SC Top SC, Sc or sc may refer to: Arts and media * ''Sim City'', a city-building simulator game * Snapchat, a multimedia messaging app * Soccer club, another name for a football club in association football * Social club, a type of club. * ''Soulcalibu ...

(

Floorball Floorball (also known by other names) is a sport played with five players and a goalkeeper in each team. It is played indoors with sticks and a hollow plastic ball with holes. Matches are played in three periods. The sport of bandy also playe ...

) * Cocks (

Handball Handball (also known as team handball, European handball, Olympic handball or indoor handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of thr ...

) * Riihi-Pesis, formerly RPL (

Finnish baseball 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 ...

) * Riihimäen Kisko (

Athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competitio ...

) * Riihimäen Uimaseura (

Swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, such as saltwater or freshwater environments, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Swimmers achieve locomotion by coordinating limb and body movements to achieve hydrody ...

)

Notable individuals

Athletes

Aki Seitsonen Aki Seitsonen (born February 5, 1986) is a Finnish former professional ice hockey player. He was selected by the Calgary Flames in the 4th round (108th overall) of the 2004 NHL Entry Draft. Seitsonen played in the SM-liiga with both HPK and L ...

, ice hockey player * Arri Munnukka, football player *

Daniel O'Shaughnessy Daniel Michael O'Shaughnessy (born 14 September 1994) is a Finnish professional Association football, footballer who plays for Veikkausliiga club HJK Helsinki, HJK and the Finland national football team, Finland national team as a defender (asso ...

, football player * Janne Lahti,

SM-Liiga The Liiga, colloquially called the Finnish Elite League in English or FM-ligan in Swedish, is the top professional ice hockey league in Finland. The league comprises 16 teams from all around Finland with relegation and promotion between the Mest ...

ice hockey player *

Jukka Jalonen Jukka Pertti Juhani Jalonen (born 2 November 1962 in Riihimäki, Finland) is a Finland, Finnish professional ice hockey coach (sport), coach and former player. In 2011 IIHF World Championship, 2011, 2019 IIHF World Championship, 2019 and 2022 II ...

, national ice hockey coach and ice hockey player * Jukka Vanninen, football player *

Jussi Veikkanen Jussi Veikkanen (born 29 March 1981) is a Finnish former road racing cyclist, who rode as a professional between 2005 and 2015 for the and teams. He won the Finnish National Road Race Championships seven times between 2003 and 2014. Career Bo ...

, professional road racing cyclist * Kari Tiainen, motorcycle enduro world champion *

Kasper Kenig Kasper may refer to: * Kasper (surname), a list of people with the surname * Kasper (given name), a list of people with the given name * Käsper (surname), an Estonian surname * Kasper (singer), Korean rapper * Kasperle or Kasper, a traditional pup ...

, ice hockey player *

Lauri Toivonen Lauri may refer to: * Lauri (given name), including a list of people with the name * Lauri (surname), including a list of people with the name * Lauri Ylönen, Finnish singer and lead vocalist of The Rasmus * Lauri, Järva County, village in Türi ...

, basketball player * Max Kenig, ice hockey player * Olli Korkeavuori, ice hockey player * Patrick O'Shaughnessy, football player *

Pekka Vasala Pekka Antero Vasala (born 17 April 1948) is a retired Finnish middle-distance Athletics (sport), athlete who won an Olympic Games, Olympic gold medal in the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich. Vasala had a brilliant three-month period in 1972 when h ...

, middle and long-distance runner; Olympic champion (1972) in the 1,500 metres * Sami Lähteenmäki,

ice hockey player * Tero Arkiomaa, ice hockey player * Tuomas Viertola, basketball player

Politicians

* Aino-Kaisa Pekonen, Member of Parliament *

Arto Lapiolahti Arto may refer to: People In the arts * Arto Halonen (born 1964), Finnish documentary filmmaker * Arto Järvelä (born 1964), Finnish fiddler and composer * Arto Lindsay (born 1953), American musician Arthur Lindsay * Arto Noras (born 1942), Finnis ...

, Member of Parliament * Efraim Kronqvist, politician and Riihimäki Red Guard leader in 1918 *

Helge Sirén Helge or Helgi is a Scandinavian, German, and Dutch mostly male name. The name is derived from Proto-Norse ''Hailaga'' with its original meaning being ''dedicated to the gods''. For its Slavic version, see Oleg. Its feminine equivalent is Olga. ...

, Member of Parliament * Iiro Viinanen, politician *

Päivi Räsänen Päivi Maria Räsänen, née Kuvaja (born 19 December 1959), is a Finnish politician. The chairwoman of the Christian Democrats from 2004 to 2015, she was the Minister of the Interior of Finland between 2011 and 2015. A physician by education, ...

, politician

The arts

* Liisa Akimof, musician * Pekka Autiovuori, actor * Torsten Brander, music contributor *

Tommi Hakala Tommi Hakala (born 9 August 1970) is a Finnish operatic baritone and winner of the 2003 BBC Singer of the World Competition in Cardiff. He was born in Riihimäki, Finland. Sources *BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of ...

, singer *

Renny Harlin Renny Harlin (born Renny Lauri Mauritz Harjola; 15 March 1959) is a Finnish film director, Film producer, producer, and screenwriter who has worked in Cinema of the United States, Hollywood, Europe, and Cinema of China, China. His best-known film ...

, film director and film producer *

Aku Hirviniemi Aku-Heikki Ilmari Hirviniemi (born 5 December 1983, in Riihimäki) is a Finnish actor. He is well-known for his role as Urho Hietanen in the 2017 war film ''The Unknown Soldier (2017 film), The Unknown Soldier''. Theatre and television Hirvini ...

, actor * Anita Hirvonen, pop singer *

Maija Isola Maija Sofia Isola (15 March 1927 – 3 March 2001) was a Finland, Finnish designer of printed textiles, and the creator of over 500 patterns, including ''Unikko'' ("Poppy"). The bold, colourful prints she created as the head designer of Marimekk ...

, designer * Erkki Junkkarinen, singer * Janne Kataja, actor *

Jukka Koskinen Jukka Koskinen is a Finnish musician who is the bassist for the metal bands Wintersun, Nightwish and Crownshift. He was also the bassist for Norther from 2000 until their disbandment in 2012, for Amberian Dawn from 2010 until 2013, for Cain' ...

, musician * Niina Lahtinen, actor *

Sinikka Laine Sinikka Laine-Törmänen (born 17 October 1945) is a Finnish author primarily of young adult fiction. Her first novel ''Ohari'' was published in 1982. Laine has won many literary awards and her novel ''Tyttö tuulesta, poika pimeästä'' (1986) ...

, writer * Emilia Linnavuori, visual artist *

Nest A nest is a structure built for certain animals to hold Egg (biology), eggs or young. Although nests are most closely associated with birds, members of all classes of vertebrates and some invertebrates construct nests. They may be composed of ...

, music group * Lauren Okadigbo, actress * Samuli Paronen, writer *

Veikko Sinisalo Veikko Sinisalo (30 September 1926 – 16 December 2003) was a Finnish actor. He appeared in 24 films and television shows between 1954 and 2002. He starred in ''Sven Tuuva the Hero'', which was entered into the 9th Berlin International Film Fest ...

, actor *

Skepticism Skepticism ( US) or scepticism ( UK) is a questioning attitude or doubt toward knowledge claims that are seen as mere belief or dogma. For example, if a person is skeptical about claims made by their government about an ongoing war then the p ...

, music group * Seppo Tamminen, artist * Jann Wilde, musician and songwriter *

Lauri Bagge Lauri may refer to: * Lauri (given name), including a list of people with the name * Lauri (surname), including a list of people with the name * Lauri Ylönen, Finnish singer and lead vocalist of The Rasmus * Lauri, Järva County, village in Türi ...

, musician and composer

Other

* Arvi Paloheimo, industrialist * Olli Paloheimo, forester, minister and Jäger *

Ragnar Granit Ragnar Arthur Granit (30 October 1900 – 12 March 1991) was a Finnish-Swedish scientist who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1967 along with Haldan Keffer Hartline and George Wald "for their discoveries concerning th ...

, physician who won the 1967

Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine () is awarded yearly by the Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute, Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute for outstanding discoveries in physiology or medicine. The Nobel Prize is not a single ...

Veikko Löyttyniemi Veikko is a male Finnish given name. Notable people with the name include: * Veikko Aaltonen (born 1955), Finnish director, editor, sound editor, and production manager * Veikko Asikainen (1918–2002), Finnish footballer * Veikko Ennala (1922– ...

, journalist

Twin towns – sister cities

Riihimäki is twinned with: *

Szolnok Szolnok (; also known by #Name and etymology, alternative names) is the county seat of Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok county in central Hungary. A city with county rights, it is located on the banks of the Tisza river, in the heart of the Great Hungarian ...

, Hungary *

Lillestrøm Lillestrøm is a municipality in Akershus county. It is located in the traditional district of Romerike. With a population of 85,757 inhabitants, it is the fourth most populated municipality in Viken. It was founded on 1 January 2020 as a merger ...

, Norway *

Húsavík Húsavík () is a town in Norðurþing municipality on the northeast coast of Iceland on the shores of Skjálfandi bay with 2,485 inhabitants. The most famous landmark of the town is the wooden church Húsavíkurkirkja, built in 1907. Húsav� ...

, Iceland * Gus-Khrustalny, Russia *

Karlskoga Karlskoga () is a urban areas of Sweden, locality and the seat of Karlskoga Municipality, Sweden. It is located within Örebro County, 45 km (28 mi) west of Örebro, and 10 km (6 mi) north of Degerfors. With a 2020 population o ...

, Sweden *

Aalborg Aalborg or Ålborg ( , , ) is Denmark's List of cities and towns in Denmark, fourth largest urban settlement (behind Copenhagen, Aarhus, and Odense) with a population of 119,862 (1 July 2022) in the town proper and an Urban area, urban populati ...

, Denmark *

Bad Segeberg Bad Segeberg (; ) is a German town of 16,000 inhabitants, located in the state of Schleswig-Holstein, capital of the district (Kreis) Segeberg. It is situated approximately northeast of Hamburg, and west of Lübeck. It is famous for its annual ...

, Germany

References

;Notes

External links

Town of Riihimäki
– Official website
Hyrinet – Hyvinkää–Riihimäki area portal

Finnish Glass Museum - Riihimäki
{{DEFAULTSORT:Riihimaki Cities and towns in Finland Municipalities of Kanta-Häme Populated places established in 1922 1922 establishments in Finland