Kontiolahti ( sv, Kontiolax; literally meaning "bear bay") is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

. It is located in the

North Karelia North Karelia ( fi, Pohjois-Karjala; sv, Norra Karelen) is a region in eastern Finland. It borders the regions of Kainuu, North Savo, South Savo and South Karelia, as well as Russia's Republic of Karelia. It is the easternmost region of Fin ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...

, about north of

Joensuu Joensuu (; krl, Jovensuu; ) is a city and municipality in North Karelia, Finland, located on the northern shore of Lake Pyhäselkä (northern part of Lake Saimaa) at the mouth of the Pielinen River (''Pielisjoki''). It was founded in 1848. The ...

. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...

is . Neighbouring municipalities are

Juuka Juuka (; sv, Juga) is a municipality of Finland. It is located in the North Karelia region. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . The municipality is unilingually Finnish. ...

Lieksa Lieksa () is a town and municipality of Finland. It is located in the North Karelia region. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . The municipality is unilingually Finnish. ...

Liperi Liperi ( sv, Libelits) is a municipality of Finland. It is located in the North Karelia region. Liperi is a community of () with the growth rate of 83 newcomers in 11 months in 2007. The population density is . The municipality covers an area of ...

and Polvijärvi. The municipality is unilingually

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

Coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...

of the municipality of Kontiolahti is a

canting arms Canting arms are heraldic bearings that represent the bearer's name (or, less often, some attribute or function) in a visual pun or rebus. French heralds used the term (), as they would sound out the name of the armiger. Many armorial all ...

; the

log driving Log driving is a means of moving logs (sawn tree trunks) from a forest to sawmills and pulp mills downstream using the current of a river. It was the main transportation method of the early logging industry in Europe and North America. Histor ...

pike pole A pike pole is a long metal-topped wooden, aluminium or fiberglass pole used for reaching, hooking and/or pulling on another object. They are variously used in boating, construction, logging, rescue and recovery, power line maintenance, and fire ...

, which the bear carries in the picture, refers to the importance of

forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. ...

in the region’s economy. The coat of arms was designed by Aarno Liuksiala and approved by the Kontiolahti Municipal Council at its meeting on December 8, 1952. The coat of arms was approved for use by the

Ministry of the Interior An interior ministry (sometimes called a ministry of internal affairs or ministry of home affairs) is a government department that is responsible for internal affairs. Lists of current ministries of internal affairs Named "ministry" * Ministr ...

on February 27, 1953. Kontiolahti hosted the Biathlon World Championships in

1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of humanity on Earth, astrophysicist ...

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shoot ...

and 2015."

History

Kontiolahti originally belonged to the parish of

. It became an independent municipality in 1873. The

flood A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrol ...

nuisance of Lake Höytiäinen and the desire for water abandonment inspired residents to try to build a

canal Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flo ...

to lower the water level, but the

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use ...

broke uncontrollably in 1859, and the landscape changed dramatically. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, the Ruskeala's migrants were stationed in Kontiolahti.

Geography

Kontiolahti has 183 lakes, and water bodies cover 22.3 percent (230 km²) of the municipality's surface area. The largest of them are Lake Höytiäinen, Lake Kangasvesi and Lake Herajärvi. There are 11 Natura sites in all or part of Kontiolahti: Teerisaari-Sisuslahti, Soikkeli Forest, Pöllönvaara-Kruununkangas, Paihola Forest, Kolvananuuro and surrounding areas,

Koli National Park Koli National Park ( fi, Kolin kansallispuisto) is a national park in the municipalities of Joensuu, Lieksa and Kontiolahti in the North Karelia region of Finland. It covers of forested hills on the western shore of Lake Pielinen. The park wa ...

, Jouhteninen, Huurunlampi-Sammakkolampi-Huurunrinne and Huuhkajanvaara.

Villages

* Harivaara * Herajärvi * Iiksenniitty * Jakokoski * Kontiolahti (''Kirkonkylä'') * Kontioniemi * Kulho * Kunnasniemi * Kupluskylä * Kylmäoja * Lehmo * Mönni * Onttola * Paihola * Puntarikoski * Puso * Pyytivaara * Rantakylä * Romppala *

Selkie In Celtic and Norse mythology, selkies (also spelled ', ', ') or selkie folk ( sco, selkie fowk) meaning 'seal folk' are mythological beings capable of therianthropy, changing from seal to human form by shedding their skin. They are found ...

* Varparanta * VenejokiKylät Pohjois-Karjalassa - Kylät.fi
(in Finnish)

Transport

Joensuu Region's Public Transport (''Joensuun seudun joukkoliikenne; JOJO'') is responsible for local and

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes comp ...

traffic Traffic comprises pedestrians, vehicles, ridden or herded animals, trains, and other conveyances that use public ways (roads) for travel and transportation. Traffic laws govern and regulate traffic, while rules of the road include traffi ...

in the Kontiolahti area. Kontiolahti also has a

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a prep ...

, which, however, no longer has passenger traffic.

Highway 6 Route 6, or Highway 6, may refer to routes in the following countries: International * Asian Highway 6 * European route E6 * European route E006 Albania * National Road SH6 Argentina * Buenos Aires Provincial Route 6 Australia New ...

passes through the municipality.

Culture

Libraries

Municipal

library A library is a collection of materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a physical location or a vir ...

services are provided by the Kontiolahti Library, the Lehmo Library, and ''Runo-Antti'', the bookmobile of Kontiolahti and Eno.

Food

In the 1980s, Kontiolahti's parish dishes were named "

shoemaker Shoemaking is the process of making footwear. Originally, shoes were made one at a time by hand, often by groups of shoemakers, or cobblers (also known as '' cordwainers''). In the 18th century, dozens or even hundreds of masters, journeymen ...

roast Roasting is a cooking method that uses dry heat where hot air covers the food, cooking it evenly on all sides with temperatures of at least from an open flame, oven, or other heat source. Roasting can enhance the flavor through caramelizatio ...

" (''suutarinpaisti'') and stockfish soup.

Notable people

Jukka Nevalainen Jukka Antero "Julius" Nevalainen (born 21 April 1978, in Kitee, Finland) is the former drummer in the Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish. Personal life He spent his early years in the city of Kitee. His music teacher at school told him t ...

(born 1978), former drummer of Nightwish *

Markku Pölönen Markku Tapani Pölönen (born 16 September 1957 in Eno) is a Finnish film director, screenwriter, and editor; and the owner of film production company Suomen Filmiteollisuus. Pölönen's best known work is the 2004 film '' Dog Nail Clipper'' &mda ...

(born 1957), film director, screenwriter, editor and owner of film production company Suomen Filmiteollisuus * Antti Puhakka (1816–1893), national romantic poet

References

External links

*
Municipality of Kontiolahti
– Official website, ''finnish'', ''english'', ''germany'' and ''russian''
Sirnihta Holiday Villa's
{{Authority control Populated places established in 1873 Ski areas and resorts in Finland