Finnmark

Finnmark (Sami Finnm?rku) is a county in the extreme north of Norway, bordering Troms, Finland (Lapland), and Russia (Murmansk Oblast). Finnmark is also part of the Lapland region, which spans four countries, as well as the Barents Region.

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Finnmark is the northern- and easternmost county of Norway. (Svalbard is not considered a county.) The northern and western parts are indented by fjords. The nature varies from bare coast to river areas with gullies and tree vegetation. Finnmarksvidda is a plateau with an elevation of approximately 300m. This plateau in the interior of the county has a continental climate with the coldest winter temperatures in Norway: the coldest temperature ever recorded was -51.4?C in Karasjok, while the average January temperature at the same location is -17.1?C. Due to the proximity to the ice-free ocean (western part of the Barents Sea), winters are not so cold in coastal areas; Honningsv?g in Nordkapp (North Cape) municipality has an average January temperature of -4.5?C, despite being further north. July average in Karasjok is 13.1?C, and in Honningsv?g 10.3?C (base period 1961-1990, 24h averages; data is provided by Norwegian Meteorological Institute).

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Knivskjellodden at Nordkapp (on Mager?ya island) is the northernmost point of Europe; Kinnarodden at Nordkyn is the northermost point on the European mainland. Vard? is the easternmost point in Norway and western Europe, and is actually east of Istanbul.

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In area, Finnmark is Norway's largest county. However, with a population of only 75,000, it is also the least populated. Hammerfest is the centre of Finnmark's tourist trade. Kirkenes has seen many Russian immigrants, being just a few kilometers from the Russian border.

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Sami: Sami may refer to:...

County: Originally, in continental Europe, a county was the land under the jurisdiction of a count. Counts are called "earls" in post-Celtic Great Britain and Ireland - the term is from Old Norse jarl and was introduced by the Vikings - but there is no correlation between "county" and "earldom." Rather, t...

Norway: The Kingdom of Norway is a Nordic country on the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, bordering Sweden, Finland and Russia, with territorial waters bordering Danish and British waters. It has a very elongated form and has an extensive coastline along the North Atlantic Ocean, where Norway'...