Karelia (historical province of Finland)

Karelia (

Karelia may also refer to the region as a whole, including the portion of Karelia within Russia. The term "Finnish Karelia" refers specifically to the historical Finnish province, while East Karelia or "Russian Karelia" refers to the portion of Karelia within Russia. Finland ceded a portion of Finnish Karelia to the Soviet Union after the Winter War of 1939–40. More than 400,000 evacuees from the ceded territories re-settled in various parts of Finland. Finnish Karelians include the present-day inhabitants of South Karelia and North Karelia, as well as the still-surviving evacuees from the ceded territories.

Finnish

First indications of human settlement in Karelia are from the Mesolithic period. The oldest find from the area is the over 9000 years old Antrea Net which is a fishing net of willow bast. The number of finds from the area is lower towards the end of the Stone Age. Archeological finds from Karelia are relatively rare between the years 400–800. From the Merovingian period onwards finds from Karelia display a distinct features of West Finnish influences which has been interpreted to result at least partly from a colonisation.^[1] The mixing of western Finnish settlers with the local population led to the creation of the Karelian ethnic group.^[2]

Archeological evidence indicates that Karelian inhabitation was highest along the western shore of Lake Ladoga and the Karelian Isthmus, with multiple cemeteries and other archeological discoveries dating from AD 600 to AD 800. In South Karelia, the number of archeological discoveries from this time period is lower, though permanent inhabitation was nonetheless present. Lappee, South Karelia has been continuously inhabited for approximately 2,000 years. In North Karelia, only one archeological discovery from this time period has been found, dating to the eighth century. The considerably higher number of archeological discoveries in these regions from AD 800 to AD 1050 indicates that the Karelian population grew and expanded rapidly during this time.^[3]

At least 50 sites of Iron Age settlements and 40 hillforts are known from Karelia.^[4] According to archeological record and historical data most of the hillforts in Karelia were erected between 1100 and 1323.^[5] Particular Karelian culture including axes, brooches and ornamental culture flourished approximately between the years 1000–1400.^[6]

The River Kymi formed a boundary between the eastern and western cultural spheres by the beginning of the Bronze Age at the latest^[7] and is also said to be the boundary between the Tavastians and the Karelians during the Middle Ages.^[8] The 15th and 16th centuries saw the River Kymi become a more official border between the Tavastians and the Karelians, with Naulasaari (located in Mäntyharju) serving as the meeting point of the borders between the Häme Finns, Savonians, and Karelians.

During the 12th and 13th century, Karelians fought against Swedes and other Finnic tribes situated in western Finland, such as Tavastians and

In 1617, Sweden seized Kexholm County (eastern Karelian Isthmus, Ladoga Karelia, and North Karelia) from Russia. In 1634 Savonia and old Swedish Karelia were incorporated in the Viborg and Nyslott County. After the Treaty of Nystad in 1721 eastern parts of the Viborg and Nyslott County and the Kexholm County were ceded to Russia. The rest of these counties were incorporated into the Kymmenegård and Nyslott County. The southeastern part of this county was also ceded to Russia in the Treaty of Åbo of 1743. After the conquest in 1809 of the rest of Finland, Russia's 18th century gains, called "Old Finland", were in 1812 joined to the Grand Duchy of Finland as a gesture of good will (see Viipuri Province).

A large part of Finnish Karelia was ceded by Finland to the

Western Karelia, as a historical Province of Sweden, was religiously and politically distinct from the eastern parts that were under the Russian Orthodox Church.

Regions within Finnish Karelia

Some notable regions within the Region of Finnish Karelia are:

Viipuri Province (1812–1944)

Kymenlaakso (1917–)

South Karelia (1917–)

North Karelia (1917–)

Culture

The inhabitants of Karelian provinces historically belonging to Finland are known as Karelians. Confusingly, the same name is used also of a closely related but distinct ethnic group living mostly in East Karelia, earlier also in some of the territories Finland ceded to the Soviet Union in 1944.

The traditional culture of "Ladoga-Karelia", or Finnish Karelia according to the pre-

• Martti Ahtisaari
• Anna Easteden
• Simo Häyhä, sniper during the Winter War.
• Ansa Ikonen
• Aarne Juutilainen
• Eino Luukkanen
• Veijo Meri
• Masa Niemi
• Aaro Pajari
• Lauri Törni, born in Viipuri, Törni was a soldier and winner of the Mannerheim Cross during the Continuation War, who later served with the German and American armies.
• Riitta Uosukainen
• Tatu Vanhanen
• Johannes Virolainen

See also List of Karelians

Names

Other than Finns, the historical province of Karelia also had Russian speakers living on the territory. The Russian name for the province is Карелия.

Heraldry

The arms is crowned by a ducal coronet, though by Finnish tradition this more resembles a Swedish count's coronet. The symbolism of the coat of arms is supposed to represent how the region was fought over by Sweden and Russia for centuries. Blazon: "Gules, in center chief a crown or above two duelling arms, the dexter armored holding a sword and the sinister chain-mail armored with a scimitar, all argent except for hafts and gauntlet joint or".

References