Helsinki

Helsinki (pronounced with the stress on the first syllable in Finnish: {{IPA|}}), or Helsingfors in Swedish {{Audio|sv-Helsingfors.ogg|listen}}, is the capital of Finland. It is located in the southern part of Finland on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, at {{coor dm|60|10|N|24|56|E|}}. Helsinki forms a conurbation with three other cities, Espoo, Vantaa and Kauniainen, which are together called the capital area. This area has about 975,000 citizens. The Greater Helsinki area contains a lot more municipalities and has a total population of 1,232,741 million (2004).

Geography

Main article: Geography of Helsinki

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Helsinki spreads around a number of bays and peninsulas and over a number of islands. Some of the most important islands include Seurasaari, Lauttasaari and Korkeasaari – which is also the country's biggest zoo – as well as the fortress island of Suomenlinna (Sveaborg) and the military island of Santahamina.

Related Topics:
Seurasaari - Lauttasaari - Suomenlinna - Santahamina

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