Seinäjoki, South Ostrobothnia, Finland

History | Geography | Economy | Culture | Sports | Sights | Other points of interest | Education

🇫🇮 Seinäjoki is a city located in South Ostrobothnia, Finland; 80 km east of Vaasa, 178 km north of Tampere, 193 km west of Jyväskylä and 324 km south-west of Oulu. Seinäjoki originated around the Östermyra bruk iron and gunpowder factories founded in 1798. Seinäjoki became a municipality in 1868, market town in 1931 and town in 1960. In 2005, the municipality of Peräseinäjoki was merged into Seinäjoki, and in the beginning of 2009, the neighbouring municipalities of Nurmo and Ylistaro were consolidated with Seinäjoki. Seinäjoki is one of the fastest growing regional centres in Finland.

The city hall, city library, Lakeuden Risti Church and other public buildings were designed by Alvar Aalto. Seinäjoki was historically called Östermyra in Swedish. Today this name, which never was official, is very seldom used even among the Swedish speakers. Seinäjoki Airport is located in the neighbouring municipality of Ilmajoki, 11 km (10 mi) south of the Seinäjoki city centre. Seinäjoki railway station in city centre was opened in 1883 and until 1897 it carried the name Östermyra station.

History The settlement spread in the area of the present Seinäjoki during the first half of the 16th century. During the 1550s, there is said to have been three houses in Seinäjoki: the houses of Marttila, Jouppi and Uppa. The house of Jouppila, which separated from the house of Jouppi, was established during the same century. All of the houses were located on the shore of the river.

Geography The neighboring municipalities of Seinäjoki are Kauhava in the north, Lapua in the north-east, Kuortane and Alavus in the east, Virrat and Kihniö in the south, Ilmajoki and Kurikka in the west and Isokyrö in the northwest.

The proportion of water in the Seinäjoki landscape is small. Seinäjoki River flows through the city in a south-east-northwest direction and turns at the northern border of the city centre, connecting with the Kyrönjoki River, which flows into the Gulf of Bothnia in the Vaasa area.

The most significant road connections in Seinäjoki are highways 16, 18 (between cities of Vaasa and Jyväskylä), 19 and 67.

Economy Nordic Regional Airlines has its financial office in Seinäjoki. Its predecessor, Finncomm Airlines, had its head office on the grounds of Seinäjoki Airport in nearby Ilmajoki.

In terms of market area, Seinäjoki is the sixth largest city in the country. Also Seinäjoki has a nationally and internationally significant food production and R&D industry. Headquartered in Seinäjoki food company Atria Corporation's net sales in 2009 were EUR 1316 million and it employed an average of 6,214 persons in several countries. According to a study published by the Economic Survey at the end of 2018, Seinäjoki has the best image among corporate leaders among the 36 largest Finnish cities and municipalities. The survey had asked the CEOs and CFOs of companies operating in the area about the municipality's affairs.

Seinäjoki also is well known for having a large number of SME's and a big number of shops for its size. One of the most important shopping places in Seinäjoki is the Torikeskus shopping mall in the city center.

Culture There are many kinds of cultural events in Seinäjoki nowadays. For example, Seinäjoki is known for hosting three large summer events: Tangomarkkinat, which is a tango festival typically attracting more than 100,000 visitors annually, Vauhtiajot, which is a motor racing event/music festival, and Provinssirock, which is one of the largest and oldest rock festivals in Finland. Rytmikorjaamo is a popular rock club, wherein almost every weekend some Finnish or international artists perform. In Seinäjoki there are also several other bars and clubs offering live music and other entertainment. The city theatre of Seinäjoki has a wide, quality program throughout the year, offering plays for everyone. The city orchestra of Seinäjoki performs many concerts in the area and has had many tours in Finland and abroad.

Sports Seinäjoki is home to a big number of sports clubs, such as SJK Seinäjoki, a professional football team that competes in the Finnish Veikkausliiga. SJK is one of the top football teams in Finland and it plays in the brand new OmaSp Stadion. Seinäjoki is also home to Seinäjoki Crocodiles, an American football team.

Sights • Lakeuden Risti Church ("The Cross of the Plains") • Alvar Aalto's cultural and administrative centre, comprising the City Hall, library and theatre, among others • The Mannerheim Park • The Southern Ostrobothnia District Museum • The Civil Guard and Lotta Svärd Museum, located at the Seinäjoki Civil Guard House • Törnävä church • The railway exhibition • Mallaskoski brewery

Other points of interest • Törnävä Museum Area • the Suviyö trotting-race • Törnävä summer theatre – Seinäjoki • Jouppi mountain winter sports centre • Seinäjoki City Theatre • Provinssirock • Tangomarkkinat • Vauhtiajot.

Education Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences (SeAMK) is the local higher education institution, that also pursues an international profile.

Helsinki Time 
Helsinki Time
Image: Adobe Stock jovannig #169173302

Seinäjoki has a population of over 46,639 people. Seinäjoki also forms the centre of the wider South Ostrobothnia Region which has a population of over 188,685 people.

To set up a UBI Lab for Seinäjoki see: https://www.ubilabnetwork.org Twitter: https://twitter.com/UBILabNetwork

Twin Towns, Sister Cities Seinäjoki has links with:

🇨🇳 Jiangjin District, China 🇵🇱 Koszalin, Poland 🇮🇹 Orvieto, Italy 🇩🇪 Schweinfurt, Germany 🇭🇺 Sopron, Hungary 🇨🇦 Thunder Bay, Canada 🇷🇺 Velikiye Luki, Russia 🇷🇺 Veliky Novgorod, Russia
Text Atribution: Wikipedia Text under CC-BY-SA license

Antipodal to Seinäjoki is: -157.159,-62.789

Locations Near: Seinäjoki 22.8407,62.7893

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Antipodal to: Seinäjoki -157.159,-62.789

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🇺🇸 Maui County -156.617,20.868 d: 10712.7  

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