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The Gulf of Bothnia (; ; ) is divided into the
Bothnian Bay The Bothnian Bay or Bay of Bothnia (; ) is the northernmost part of the Gulf of Bothnia, which is in turn the northern part of the Baltic Sea. The land holding the bay is still rising after the weight of ice-age glaciers has been removed, and ...
and the
Bothnian Sea The Bothnian Sea (; ) links the Bothnian Bay (also called the Bay of Bothnia) with the Baltic Sea, Baltic proper. Kvarken is situated between the two. Together, the Bothnian Sea and Bay make up a larger geographical entity, the Gulf of Bothnia, ...
, and it is the northernmost
arm In human anatomy, the arm refers to the upper limb in common usage, although academically the term specifically means the upper arm between the glenohumeral joint (shoulder joint) and the elbow joint. The distal part of the upper limb between ...
of the
Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...
, between
Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...
's west coast ( East Bothnia) and the northern part of
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
's east coast ( West Bothnia and North Bothnia). In the south of the gulf lies
Ã…land Ã…land ( , ; ) is an Federacy, autonomous and Demilitarized zone, demilitarised region of Finland. Receiving its autonomy by a 1920 decision of the League of Nations, it is the smallest region of Finland by both area () and population (30,54 ...
, between the
Sea of Ã…land The Ã…land Sea (or the Sea of Ã…land; , ) is a waterway in the southern Gulf of Bothnia, between Ã…land and Sweden. It connects the Bothnian Sea with the Baltic Proper, Baltic Sea proper. The western part of the basin is in Swedish territorial w ...
and the
Archipelago Sea The Archipelago Sea (, ) is a part of the Baltic Sea between the Gulf of Bothnia, the Gulf of Finland and the Sea of Ã…land, within Finnish territorial waters. By some definitions it contains the List of archipelagos by number of islands, larges ...
.


Name

Bothnia is a latinization. The Swedish name was originally just , with being
Old Norse Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants ...
for "gulf" or "bay", which is also the meaning of the second element . The name was applied to the Gulf of Bothnia as in Old Norse, after , which at the time referred to the coastland west of the gulf. Later, was applied to the regions of on the western side and on the eastern side ('West Bottom' and 'East Bottom'). The Finnish name of Österbotten, (, meaning 'land'), hint as to the meaning in both languages: the meaning of includes both 'bottom' and 'north'. is the base word for north, , with an adjectival suffix added. / is
cognate In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymological ancestor in a common parent language. Because language change can have radical effects on both the s ...
with the
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...
word ''bottom'', and it might be part of a general north European distinction of lowlands, as opposed to highlands, such as the Netherlandic region,
Samogitia Samogitia, often known by its Lithuanian language, Lithuanian name ''Žemaitija'' (Samogitian language, Samogitian: ''Žemaitėjė''; see Samogitia#Etymology and alternative names, below for alternative and historical names) is one of the five ...
(
Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...
n), and
Sambia Sambia () or Samland () or Kaliningrad Peninsula (official name, , ''Kaliningradsky poluostrov'') is a peninsula in the Kaliningrad Oblast of Russia, on the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea. The peninsula is bounded by the Curonian Lagoon t ...
(
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
).
Julius Pokorny Julius Pokorny (12 June 1887 – 8 April 1970) was an Austrian-Czech linguist and scholar of the Celtic languages and of Celtic studies, particularly of the Irish language, and a supporter of Irish nationalism. He held academic posts in Austrian ...
gives the extended
Proto-Indo-European Proto-Indo-European (PIE) is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Indo-European language family. No direct record of Proto-Indo-European exists; its proposed features have been derived by linguistic reconstruction from documented Indo-Euro ...
root as with a variant, from which the Latin , as in ''fundament'', is derived. The original meaning of English ''north'', from Proto-Indo-European 'under', indicates an original sense of 'lowlands' for ''bottomlands''. On the other hand, by ''north'' the classical authors usually meant 'outermost', as the northern lands were outermost to them. In
Saami The Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers' Institute (SAAMI, pronounced "Sammy") is an association of American manufacturers of firearms, ammunition, and components. SAAMI is an accredited standards developer that publishes several A ...
, the cardinal directions were named according to the different parts of the typical tent used by this nomadic people. The door of the tent was traditionally pointed south, in the most sunny direction, and the bottom of the tent would be aligned with the north. Thus the origin of the word in its use as 'north'. According to
Elias Lönnrot Elias Lönnrot (; 9 April 1802 – 19 March 1884) was a Finnish polymath, physician, philosopher, poet, musician, linguist, journalist, philologist and collector of traditional Finnish language, Finnish Oral literature, oral poetry. He is best k ...
, north was viewed as the bottom direction because the lowest point of the sun's path is there.


Geography

The
International Hydrographic Organization The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) (French: ''Organisation Hydrographique Internationale'') is an intergovernmental organization representing hydrography. the IHO comprised 102 member states. A principal aim of the IHO is to ...
defines the southern limit of the Gulf of Bothnia as follows:
From Simpnäsklubb (59°54'N) in Sweden, to Flötjan, Lagskær ic Fæstörne ic
Kökar Kökar () is an island municipality in the south-eastern part of the Åland archipelago, an autonomous region of Finland. It is accessible by ferry from Långnäs on Åland's main island and from Galtby on the Finnish mainland. Kökar has a ...
sörn, and Vænö-Kalkskær icto the SW point of Hangöudde ( Hangö Head, 59°49'N) in Finland, thus including
Ã…land Ã…land ( , ; ) is an Federacy, autonomous and Demilitarized zone, demilitarised region of Finland. Receiving its autonomy by a 1920 decision of the League of Nations, it is the smallest region of Finland by both area () and population (30,54 ...
and adjacent shoals and channels in the Gulf of Bothnia.
The gulf is long, wide and has an average depth of . The maximum depth is . The surface area is . The northernmost point is situated in
Töre Töre ( Kalix Language: ''te'or'') is a locality situated in Kalix Municipality, Norrbotten County, Sweden with 1,099 inhabitants as of 2010. Its harbour is the northernmost of the Bothnian Bay (and thus, of the Baltic Sea) that is accessible ...
in the
Bothnian Bay The Bothnian Bay or Bay of Bothnia (; ) is the northernmost part of the Gulf of Bothnia, which is in turn the northern part of the Baltic Sea. The land holding the bay is still rising after the weight of ice-age glaciers has been removed, and ...
. its coordinates are 65° 54'07" N 22° 39'00 E. The depth and surface area of the Gulf of Bothnia are constantly decreasing, as the land is rising after it had been pressed down by about Geologica: Earth’s Dynamic Forces by Dr Robert R. Coenraads and John I. Koivula by the continental ice during last ice age. The rise is 80 cm every hundred years. It is estimated that the land has a further to rise before equilibrium is reached. This recovery rate will progressively slow as isostatic equilibrium is approached. Into the gulf flow a number of rivers from both sides; consequently, a
salinity Salinity () is the saltiness or amount of salt (chemistry), salt dissolved in a body of water, called saline water (see also soil salinity). It is usually measured in g/L or g/kg (grams of salt per liter/kilogram of water; the latter is dimensio ...
gradient exists from north to south. In the south the water is the normal
brackish water Brackish water, sometimes termed brack water, is water occurring in a natural environment that has more salinity than freshwater, but not as much as seawater. It may result from mixing seawater (salt water) and fresh water together, as in estuary ...
of the
Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...
, but in the north, in the
Bothnian Bay The Bothnian Bay or Bay of Bothnia (; ) is the northernmost part of the Gulf of Bothnia, which is in turn the northern part of the Baltic Sea. The land holding the bay is still rising after the weight of ice-age glaciers has been removed, and ...
, the salinity is so low, from 0.4% near
Kvarken Kvarken ( (as opposed to South Kvarken); ) is the narrow region of the Gulf of Bothnia separating the Bothnian Bay (the inner part of the gulf) from the Bothnian Sea. The distance from the Sweden, Swedish mainland to the Mainland Finland, Finnish ...
to 0.2% in the northernmost part, that many
freshwater Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. The term excludes seawater and brackish water, but it does include non-salty mi ...
fish such as the pike, whitefish and perch thrive in it. The gulf is a combination of the
Bothnian Bay The Bothnian Bay or Bay of Bothnia (; ) is the northernmost part of the Gulf of Bothnia, which is in turn the northern part of the Baltic Sea. The land holding the bay is still rising after the weight of ice-age glaciers has been removed, and ...
in the north and the
Bothnian Sea The Bothnian Sea (; ) links the Bothnian Bay (also called the Bay of Bothnia) with the Baltic Sea, Baltic proper. Kvarken is situated between the two. Together, the Bothnian Sea and Bay make up a larger geographical entity, the Gulf of Bothnia, ...
in the south, separated by the
Kvarken Kvarken ( (as opposed to South Kvarken); ) is the narrow region of the Gulf of Bothnia separating the Bothnian Bay (the inner part of the gulf) from the Bothnian Sea. The distance from the Sweden, Swedish mainland to the Mainland Finland, Finnish ...
region with a water depth of around and a rate of land rising of almost a year. Within 2000 years the bay is expected to separate from the rest of the gulf and become a freshwater lake. Being nearly fresh, the gulf is frozen over five months every year. The icing of the
Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...
begins and ends in the northern Gulf of Bothnia. Traffic restrictions for
icebreaker An icebreaker is a special-purpose ship or boat designed to move and navigate through ice-covered waters, and provide safe waterways for other boats and ships. Although the term usually refers to ice-breaking ships, it may also refer to smaller ...
assistance are typically in force for all the gulf from late January to late April and for the northernmost ports from the middle of December to the middle of May.


Geology

Geologically the Gulf of Bothnia is an ancient depression of
tectonic Tectonics ( via Latin ) are the processes that result in the structure and properties of the Earth's crust and its evolution through time. The field of ''planetary tectonics'' extends the concept to other planets and moons. These processes ...
origin. The depression is partly filled with sedimentary rock deposited in the
Precambrian The Precambrian ( ; or pre-Cambrian, sometimes abbreviated pC, or Cryptozoic) is the earliest part of Earth's history, set before the current Phanerozoic Eon. The Precambrian is so named because it preceded the Cambrian, the first period of t ...
and
Paleozoic The Paleozoic ( , , ; or Palaeozoic) Era is the first of three Era (geology), geological eras of the Phanerozoic Eon. Beginning 538.8 million years ago (Ma), it succeeds the Neoproterozoic (the last era of the Proterozoic Eon) and ends 251.9 Ma a ...
. Nearby plains adjoining the gulf are part of the
Sub-Cambrian peneplain The sub-Cambrian peneplain is an ancient, extremely flat, erosion surface (peneplain) that has been exhumed and exposed by erosion from under Cambrian strata over large swathes of Fennoscandia. Eastward, where this peneplain dips below Cambrian an ...
. While being repeatedly covered by glaciers during the last 2.5 million years glacial erosion has had a limited effect in changing the topography. It is estimated that within about 2,000 years, ongoing
post-glacial rebound Post-glacial rebound (also called isostatic rebound or crustal rebound) is the rise of land masses after the removal of the huge weight of ice sheets during the last glacial period, which had caused isostatic depression. Post-glacial rebound an ...
will raise the seafloor in the
Norra Kvarken Kvarken ( (as opposed to South Kvarken); ) is the narrow region of the Gulf of Bothnia separating the Bothnian Bay (the inner part of the gulf) from the Bothnian Sea. The distance from the Swedish mainland to the Finnish mainland is around , wh ...
area above water, splitting the Gulf of Bothnia into a southern gulf and northern lake.


History

The gulf was not known by ancient and medieval geographers and as late as in 1427 not indicated by the Danish cartographer
Claudius Clavus Claudius Clavus (Suartho) also known as ''Nicholas Niger'', (), (born 14 September 1388), was a Danish geographer sometimes considered to be the first Nordic cartographer. It is believed that he was born in the village of Salling on the Dani ...
, not even in the map of
Hartmann Schedel Hartmann Schedel (13 February 1440 – 28 November 1514) was a German historian, physician, humanist, and one of the first cartographers to use the printing press. He was born and died in Nuremberg. Matheolus Perusinus served as his tutor. ...
, printed in 1493. The first map in which the gulf has been delineated, although without name, is that of
Nicolaus Germanus Nicolaus Germanus () was a German cartographer who modernized Ptolemy's ''Geography'' by applying new projections, adding additional maps, and contributing other innovations that were influential in the development of Renaissance cartography. N ...
from the year 1482.


Economy

The land surrounding the Gulf of Bothnia is heavily forested. Trees are logged, then transported to the coast for milling. The gulf is also important for oil transport to the coastal cities and ore transport to steel mills, for instance in Raahe. In terms of tonnage in international traffic, the largest ports on the Finnish side are Rauma, Kokkola and Tornio. The main ports of the Swedish side are in Luleå, Skellefteå, Umeå, Sundsvall, Gävle and Hargshamn. In Luleå, iron ore pellets are exported and coal is imported. Gävle is Sweden's third-largest container port. It also ships forest products and oil. The only regular
cruiseferry A cruiseferry is a ship that combines the features of a cruise ship and a Ro-Pax ferry. Many passengers travel with the ships for the cruise experience, staying only a few hours at the destination port or not leaving the ship at all, while ot ...
route across the Gulf of Bothnia is the Wasaline service between Umeå and Vaasa. In port operations in the Gulf of Bothnia, icebreaker assistance can be required for an ice season that averages as long as six months; whereas in the Gulf of Finland, the icebreaking season averages only three months. There is some fishery, mainly
Baltic herring Atlantic herring (''Clupea harengus'') is a herring in the family Clupeidae. It is one of the most abundant fish species in the world. Atlantic herrings can be found on both sides of the northern Atlantic Ocean, congregating in large schools. ...
, for domestic needs. A persistent problem has been pollution, because the sea is enclosed by a large
drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land in which all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, ...
and is poorly connected to fresher waters from the Atlantic. Mercury and PCB levels have been relatively high, although the Finnish Food Safety Authority considers the herring edible. Although the levels exceed the limits, the fatty acids have health benefits that offset this risk.


Rivers

*
Kalajoki Kalajoki (; literally translated the "fish river") is a coastal town and municipality of Finland. It is located in the immediate vicinity of the Gulf of Bothnia in the province of Oulu and is part of the Northern Ostrobothnia region. The town ...
*
Kemijoki The Kemijoki or Kemi River (, ), with its length, is the longest river in Finland. It runs south through the towns of Kemijärvi and Rovaniemi before reaching the Gulf of Bothnia at Kemi. Facta 2001, part 8, ''finnish'' At Rovaniemi the Ouna ...
*
Kiiminkijoki Kiiminkijoki () is a river of Finland in the region of Northern Ostrobothnia. It flows for into the Gulf of Bothnia. Among the most impressive rapids on the river are Kalliuskoski in Puolanka, Kurimonkoski in Utajärvi, and Koitelinkoski in Kii ...
*
Kokemäenjoki The Kokemäenjoki (" Kokemäki River", ) is a river in southwestern Finland. Geography The river originates at Lake Liekovesi in the Pirkanmaa region, and flows to the Gulf of Bothnia at Pori in the Satakunta region. Primary tributaries of the ...
*
Oulujoki Oulujoki () is a river in North Ostrobothnia, Finland. Its name in Finnish literally means "Oulu River", originally in old Northern Ostrobothnian dialect literally "Flood River". Its origin is Oulujärvi, and its watershed area covers a signif ...
*
Dalälven The Dal River () is a river in central Sweden that flows from the north of Dalarna and runs into the sea in northern Uppland; it is commonly considered to be the southern border of Norrland, however only the last part correlates with Limes Norrla ...
*
Ljusnan Ljusnan (from Old Norse: ''Lusn'' — light) is a river in Sweden, which is 440 kilometers long. The river starts in northwestern Härjedalen and then continues throughout the province into Hälsingland all the way to the Bothnian Sea. The bigge ...
*
Ljungan Ljungan ( Jamtlandic: ''Jångna'' or ''Aoa'', from Old Norse ''*Oghn'' "the dreadful") is a 322 kilometer long river in Sweden. It originates near Trondheim and the Norwegian border. The river runs through the Swedish counties of Jämtland and ...
*
Indalsälven Indalsälven is one of Sweden's longest rivers with a total length of 430 kilometers. Among its tributaries are Kallströmmen, Långan, Hårkan and Ammerån. A total of 26 hydropower plants are placed along its course, making it the third mo ...
*
Ångerman __NOTOC__ The Ångerman or Angerman () is one of Sweden's longest rivers with a total length of . It also has the third largest flow rate, after the Göta and Lule. Name The name was formerly written Ångermann or Angermann. The name is derived fr ...
*
Ume River The Ume River (Swedish: ''Ume älv'' or ''Umeälven'') is one of the main rivers in northern Sweden. It is around long, and flows in a south-eastern direction from its source, the lake ''Överuman'' by the Norway, Norwegian border within the Scand ...
*
Skellefte River The Skellefte River ( or ; ; ) is a river in northern Sweden; one of the major Norrland rivers. Geographically, it starts in the Norrbotten County, also known as the Swedish Lappland province where it drains the lakes Hornavan, Uddjaur and St ...
*
Pite River The Pite River (''Bidumedno'' in Pite Sami. ''Piteälven'', ''Pite älv'' or ''Piteå älv'' in Swedish.) is a river in northern Sweden, flowing through the Norrbotten County. It is one of the four major rivers in Norrland that have been left most ...
*
Lule River Lule River (, , ''Luleälven'') is a major river in Sweden, rising in northern Sweden and flowing southeast for before reaching the Gulf of Bothnia at Luleå. It is the second largest river by watershed area and length in Norrbotten County (afte ...
*
Kalix River The Kalix River (in Kalix dialect: ''kölisälva'', Swedish language, Swedish: proper ''Kalix älv'' or in everyday language ''Kalixälven'', Northern Sami: ''Gáláseatnu'', In Meänkieli the lower part of the river is called ''Kaihnuunväylä'', ...
* Torne


Cities and towns

*
Gävle Gävle ( ; ) is a Urban areas in Sweden, city in Sweden, the seat of Gävle Municipality and the capital of Gävleborg County. It had 79,004 inhabitants in 2020, which makes it the List of cities in Sweden, 13th-most-populated city in Sweden. I ...
*
Härnösand Härnösand () is a Urban areas in Sweden, locality and the seat of Härnösand Municipality in Västernorrland County, Sweden with 25,012 inhabitants in 2023. It is called "the gate to the High Coast" because of the world heritage landscape just ...
*
Jakobstad Jakobstad (; , ) is a town in Finland, located on the west coast of the country. Jakobstad is situated in Ostrobothnia (administrative region), Ostrobothnia, along the Gulf of Bothnia. The population of Jakobstad is approximately , while the Jako ...
*
Kalajoki Kalajoki (; literally translated the "fish river") is a coastal town and municipality of Finland. It is located in the immediate vicinity of the Gulf of Bothnia in the province of Oulu and is part of the Northern Ostrobothnia region. The town ...
*
Kokkola Kokkola (; , ) is a town in Finland and the regional capital of Central Ostrobothnia. It is located on the west coast of the country, on the Gulf of Bothnia. The population of Kokkola is approximately , while the Kokkola sub-region, sub-region h ...
*
Kristinestad Kristinestad (; ; ; ) is a town in Finland, located on the west coast of the country. Kristinestad is situated in Ostrobothnia, along the Gulf of Bothnia. The population of Kristinestad is approximately , while the sub-region has a population o ...
*
Luleå Luleå ( , , locally ; ; ) is a Cities in Sweden, city on the coast of northern Sweden, and the County Administrative Boards of Sweden, capital of Norrbotten County, the northernmost county in Sweden. Luleå has 48,728 inhabitants in its urban ...
*
Oulu Oulu ( , ; ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of North Ostrobothnia. It is located on the northwestern coast of the country at the mouth of the Oulujoki, River Oulu. The population of Oulu is approximately , while the Oulu sub-regio ...
*
Pori Pori (; ; ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Satakunta. It is located on the west coast of the country, on the Gulf of Bothnia. The population of Pori is approximately , while the Pori sub-region, sub-region has a population of a ...
*
Rauma Rauma may refer to: Places * Rauma, Finland, a town and municipality in the Satakunta region of western Finland * Rauma Municipality, a municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway * Rauma (river), a river in the Romsdalen valley in Møre og Ro ...
*
Sundsvall Sundsvall () is a city and the seat of Sundsvall Municipality in Västernorrland County, Sweden. It has a population of 58,807 as of 2020; more than 95,000 live in the municipal area. It is Sweden's 21st largest city by population. Old town i ...
*
Umeå Umeå ( , , , locally ; ; ; ; ) is a city in northeast Sweden. It is the seat of Umeå Municipality and the capital of Västerbotten County. Situated on the Ume River, Umeå is the largest Urban areas in Sweden, locality in Norrland and the t ...
*
Vaasa Vaasa (; , ), formerly (1855-1917) known as Nikolaistad (; ), Baltic Sea
Bothnia The Gulf of Bothnia (; ; ) is divided into the Bothnian Bay and the Bothnian Sea, and it is the northernmost arm of the Baltic Sea, between Finland's west coast ( East Bothnia) and the northern part of Sweden's east coast ( West Bothnia and ...
Bays of Finland Gulfs of Sweden Geography of Europe Geography of Scandinavia Finland–Sweden border Landforms of Norrbotten County Landforms of Västerbotten County Landforms of Västernorrland County Landforms of Gävleborg County Mesoproterozoic rifts and grabens