Ostrobothnia (administrative region)

Ostrobothnia (Swedish: Österbotten; Finnish: Pohjanmaa) is a region on the west coast of Finland. It borders Central Ostrobothnia, South Ostrobothnia and Satakunta, and faces the Gulf of Bothnia. The regional capital and largest city is Vaasa. The region comprises 14 municipalities and had 179,555 inhabitants at the end of 2025. Ostrobothnia occupies the central part of the Swedish-speaking coastal area of mainland Finland. Swedish was the registered mother tongue of 49.1% of the population in 2025, Finnish of 39.4%, and other languages of 11.5%; Swedish was therefore the largest language group but no longer an absolute majority. Thirteen of its municipalities are bilingual in Finnish and Swedish, while Laihia is Finnish-speaking. The name Coastal Ostrobothnia is sometimes used to distinguish the region from the much larger historical province of Ostrobothnia. The landscape is low-lying and strongly shaped by post-glacial rebound. The Kvarken Archipelago, which contains thousands of islands and extensive fields, forms the Finnish part of the transnational High Coast / Kvarken Archipelago UNESCO World Heritage Site. Ostrobothnia is also one of Finland's most industrial and export-oriented regions, with a major concentration of energy-technology companies in and around Vaasa.