Ylöjärvi () is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

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, ...

, located in the

Pirkanmaa Pirkanmaa (; ; ), also known as ''Tampere Region'' in government documents, is a region of Finland. It borders the regions of Satakunta, South Ostrobothnia, Central Finland, Päijät-Häme, Kanta-Häme and Southwest Finland. Most of the wate ...

region. It lies to the west of the regional capital,

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 ...

. The population of Ylöjärvi is approximately , while the

metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region consisting of a densely populated urban area, urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories which share Industry (economics), industries, commercial areas, Transport infrastructure, transport network ...

has a population of approximately . It is the most populous

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 Finland, and the third largest in the Pirkanmaa region after Tampere and

Nokia Nokia Corporation is a Finnish multinational corporation, multinational telecommunications industry, telecommunications, technology company, information technology, and consumer electronics corporation, originally established as a pulp mill in 1 ...

. Ylöjärvi is located northwest of

and north of the capital city 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 ...

. Ylöjärvi has 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 . Ylöjärvi is mainly a rural town. It does not have a clear centre; the Tampere-Vaasa highway ( E12) and the Tampere- Seinäjoki railway divide the centre of the municipality into two large distinct parts: the Church Village and Soppeenmäki. The railway, completed in 1971, has no passenger seats in the Ylöjärvi area, so buses provide all

public transport Public transport (also known as public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) are forms of transport available to the general public. It typically uses a fixed schedule, route and charges a fixed fare. There is no rigid definition of whic ...

. The population has grown in recent years. In 1990 it was about 18,000, in 2011 it was about 30,000, and now it is about . The neighbouring municipalities are

Hämeenkyrö Hämeenkyrö (; ) is a municipalities of Finland, municipality of Finland. It is part of the Pirkanmaa regions of Finland, region, and is located from Tampere. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. Th ...

Ikaalinen Ikaalinen (; ) is a city and municipality of Finland. It is part of the Pirkanmaa region, located northwest of Tampere. The town has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . The municipalities ...

, Kihniö,

, Parkano, Ruovesi, Tampere and Virrat. The municipality of

Viljakkala Viljakkala is a List of former municipalities of Finland, former municipality of Finland. It was located in the provinces of Finland, province of Western Finland and was part of the Pirkanmaa regions of Finland, region. The municipality had a p ...

was merged with Ylöjärvi in 2007. The municipality of Kuru was merged with Ylöjärvi in 2009. The

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

of Ylöjärvi was designed by Gustaf von Numers and confirmed in 1954. The results of the 2021 Finnish local elections, resulted in True Finns being the largest political party on the Ylöjärvi council.

History

The chapel parish of Ylöjärvi was founded in 1779 by separating it from Pirkkala.YLÖJÄRVI – Svala & Joutsi
(in Finnish) The first church in Ylöjärvi, located on the site of the current church, was completed in 1781, but was destroyed in a fire caused by

lightning Lightning is a natural phenomenon consisting of electrostatic discharges occurring through the atmosphere between two electrically charged regions. One or both regions are within the atmosphere, with the second region sometimes occurring on ...

in 1842. Ylöjärvi was founded as a

in 1869. Since January 1, 2004, it has been known as a town (''kaupunki''). The Finnish Museum of Refrigeration also locates at Ylöjärvi.

Demographics

The following graph shows the population development of the city since 1805. The diagram uses the area division in force at the time.

Culture

Food

In the 1980s, overly sweeted '' limppu'' and the " sauna smoked" ham were named Ylöjärvi's traditional parish dishes.Jaakko Kolmonen: ''Kotomaamme ruoka-aitta: Suomen, Karjalan ja Petsamon pitäjäruoat'', p. 80. Helsinki: Patakolmonen Ky., 1988. (in Finnish)

''Tree Mountain''

The town is the location of ''Tree Mountain'',

land art Land art, variously known as Earth art, environmental art, and Earthworks, is an art movement that emerged in the 1960s and 1970s, largely associated with Great Britain and the United StatesArt in the modern era: A guide to styles, schools, & mo ...

by Agnes Denes. This work was conceived in 1983, and construction was announced by the Finnish government at the 1992

Earth Summit The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), also known as the Rio de Janeiro Conference or the Earth Summit (Portuguese: ECO92, Cúpula da Terra), was a major United Nations conference held in Rio de Janeiro from 3 ...

. Construction was complete in 1996, and the site is legally protected for the next 400 years. Tree Mountain was dedicated in June 1996 by the President of Finland.

Notable people

* (born 1968), singer, songwriter, and musician * Marko Asell (born 1970), Greco-Roman wrestler and politician * Jenni Banerjee (born 1981), actress * Volmari Iso-Hollo (1907–1969), runner * Esa Keskinen (born 1965), ice hockey player * Tauno Kovanen (1917–1986), Greco-Roman wrestler * Kirsi Kunnas (1924–2021), writer, poet, and translator * Linda Leppänen (born 1990), ice hockey player and coach * Rosa Lindstedt (born 1988), ice hockey player and coach * Jaakko Löytty (born 1955), gospel musician * Eino Mäkinen (1926–2014), weightlifter * Matti Niemi (born 1937), rower * Saara Niemi (born 1986), ice hockey player and coach * Hannu Oksanen (born 1957), ice hockey player * Jaakko Syrjä (1926–2022), writer * Juuse Tamminen (1888–1962), writer * Jukka Tyrkkö (1912–1979), war writer * Antti Tyrväinen (1933–2013), biathlete * Maria Ylipää (born 1981), singer and actress * Konsta Helenius (born 2006), ice hockey player The rock band Eppu Normaali originates in Ylöjärvi.

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

Ylöjärvi is twinned with:

Gallery

References

External links

Town of Ylöjärvi
– Official website {{DEFAULTSORT:Ylojarvi Tampere metropolitan area Cities and towns in Finland Populated places established in 1869 1869 establishments in Finland