Korvatunturi is a

fell A fell (from Old Norse ''fell'', ''fjall'', "mountain"Falk and Torp (2006:161).) is a high and barren landscape feature, such as a mountain or moor-covered hill. The term is most often employed in Fennoscandia, Iceland, the Isle of Man, pa ...

in Lapland, on the border between

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 Bot ...

and

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

. Its Finnish part is within

Urho Kekkonen National Park Urho Kekkonen National Park ( fi, Urho Kekkosen kansallispuisto, se, Urho Kekkonen álbmotmeahcci) is a national park in Lapland, Finland, situated in area of municipalities of Savukoski, Sodankylä and Inari. Established in 1983 and coverin ...

in the municipality of

Savukoski Savukoski ( sme, Suovvaguoika, smn, Suovâkuoškâ, sms, Suõvvkuõškk) is a municipality of Finland. It is located in the province of Lapland, Finland. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The p ...

. In

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 ...

the name ''Korvatunturi'' means "Ear Fell", referring to the mountain's distinctive profile. ''Korvatunturi'' is covered by a thick pine forest, and surrounded by frozen lakes, and sits on a landscape over which hundreds of thousands of reindeer roam. Korvatunturi stands above sea level; it has three peaks, with the middle peak crossing Finland and Russia's borders. Since Korvatunturi straddles the border of the country, all visitors are required to obtain written permission from the

Finnish Border Guard The Finnish Border Guard (; ) is the agency responsible for enforcing the security of Finland's borders. It is a military organisation, subordinate to the Ministry of the Interior in administrative issues and to the President of Finland in issue ...

. There are also no roads that directly lead to the fell, but there are hike

trail A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or small road usually passing through a natural area. In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, a path or footpath is the preferred term for a pedestrian or hiking trail. ...

s that provide access, such as the one found in the Savukoski area.

Cultural significance

left, thumb , Korvatunturi in winter Korvatunturi is best known as the home of the

legendary Legendary may refer to: * Legend, a folklore genre * Legendary (hagiography) ** Anjou Legendarium * J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium Film and television * ''Legendary'' (film), a 2010 American sports drama film * ''Legendary'', a 2013 film fea ...

character Character or Characters may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''Character'' (novel), a 1936 Dutch novel by Ferdinand Bordewijk * ''Characters'' (Theophrastus), a classical Greek set of character sketches attributed to The ...

Father Christmas Father Christmas is the traditional English name for the personification of Christmas. Although now known as a Christmas gift-bringer, and typically considered to be synonymous with Santa Claus, he was originally part of a much older and unrela ...

(or ''

Joulupukki Joulupukki is a Finnish Christmas figure. The name ''joulupukki'' literally means "Christmas goat" or " Yule Goat" in Finnish; the word ''pukki'' comes from the Germanic root ''bock'', which is a cognate of the English "buck", and means "billy- ...

'' in Finnish, ''Julgubben'' in Finland Swedish). According to Finnish folklore, this land is said to be the location of Father Christmas’ secret workshop, where toys, trinkets and gifts are said to be made and eventually wrapped by

elves An elf () is a type of humanoid supernatural being in Germanic mythology and folklore. Elves appear especially in North Germanic mythology. They are subsequently mentioned in Snorri Sturluson's Icelandic Prose Edda. He distinguishes ...

. Known for their good-natured demeanour and their role as guardians of homes, these elves are also said to be responsible for analysing weather patterns for the yearly gift-giving trip around the world. People have also claimed that the ear-shaped structure of the fell supposedly allows Father Christmas to hear the wishes of every child on Earth. For letter mail to Father Christmas Korvatunturi has postal code ''99999 Korvatunturi'', even though all post sent to this address will actually be carried to

Santa Claus Village Santa Claus Village ( fi, Joulupukin Pajakylä) is an amusement park in Rovaniemi in the Lapland region of Finland. It was opened in 1985. Location and transportation Santa Claus Village is located about northeast of Rovaniemi and about fr ...

Rovaniemi Rovaniemi ( , ; sme, Roavvenjárga ; smn, Ruávinjargâ; sms, Ruäʹvnjargg) is a city and municipality of Finland. It is the administrative capital and commercial centre of Finland's northernmost province, Lapland, and its southern part Pe ...

. In popular media, this legend has been adapted into the film '' Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale''.

References

External links

Visit Savukoski: Korvatunturi
{{Christmas Mountains of Finland Santa Claus Savukoski Mountains of Russia International mountains of Europe Finland–Russia border Landforms of Lapland (Finland) Christmas traditions Landforms of the Republic of Karelia