Suoyarvi (russian: Суоя́рви; krl, Suojärvi; fi, Suojärvi) is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than city, cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares ...

and the

administrative center An administrative center is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune is located. In countries with French as administrative language (such as Belgium, L ...

Suoyarvsky District Suoyarvsky District (russian: Суоя́рвский райо́н; krl, Suojärven piiri) is an administrative district (raion), one of the fifteen in the Republic of Karelia, Russia.Constitution of the Republic of Karelia It is located in the ...

of the

Republic of Karelia The Republic of Karelia (russian: Респу́блика Каре́лия, Respublika Kareliya; ; krl, Karjalan tašavalta; ; fi, Karjalan tasavalta; vep, Karjalan Tazovaldkund, Ludic: ''Kard’alan tazavald''), also known as just Karelia (ru ...

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-eigh ...

, located northwest of

Petrozavodsk Petrozavodsk (russian: Петрозаводск, p=pʲɪtrəzɐˈvotsk; Karelian, Vepsian and fi, Petroskoi) is the capital city of the Republic of Karelia, Russia, which stretches along the western shore of Lake Onega for some . The populati ...

. Population:

History

It is known that during the 16th and 17th centuries a settlement existed here known as Shuyezersky ''

pogost ''Pogost'' (russian: погост, from Old East Slavic: погостъ) is a historical term with several meanings in the Russian language. It has also been borrowed into Latgalian (''pogosts''), Finnish (''pogosta'') and Latvian (''pagasts' ...

'' (a Russian form of the local Karelian name, meaning "swampy lake"). The first documented mention dates from 1589 when Suoyarvi is recorded as church community controlled by the Orthodox community of Sortavala. In 1630, Suoyarvi became an independent community. An outcome of the

Winter War The Winter War,, sv, Vinterkriget, rus, Зи́мняя война́, r=Zimnyaya voyna. The names Soviet–Finnish War 1939–1940 (russian: link=no, Сове́тско-финская война́ 1939–1940) and Soviet–Finland War 1 ...

was that most of West Karelia was occupied by the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

in 1940, when Suoyarvi was granted town status. In August 1941, the territory was re-occupied by Finnish troops, but as part of the wider post-war settlement, it reverted to the Soviets in 1944; it was the second largest territory by area (after

Petsamo Petsamo may refer to: * Petsamo Province, a province of Finland from 1921 to 1922 * Petsamo, Tampere, a district in Tampere, Finland * Pechengsky District, Russia, formerly known as Petsamo * Pechenga (urban-type settlement), Murmansk Oblast ...

) ceded by

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 Bo ...

to the

following the

Continuation War The Continuation War, also known as the Second Soviet-Finnish War, was a conflict fought by Finland and Nazi Germany against the Soviet Union from 1941 to 1944, as part of World War II.; sv, fortsättningskriget; german: Fortsetzungskrie ...

. Suoyarvi had its own dialects of the Karelian language before the area was ceded to the Soviet Union and its inhabitants were relocated to other parts of Finland. Most of the Karelian people in the former municipality spoke a variety of South Karelian (''suvikarjala''), while the villages in the Hyrsylä ( Khyursyulya) salient, which also included Ignoila ( Ignoyla) and Hautavaara ( Khautavaara), spoke a Livvi dialect instead.

Administrative and municipal status

Within the framework of administrative divisions, Suoyarvi serves as the

, to which it is directly subordinated.Law #871-RZK As a municipal division, the

of Suoyarvi is incorporated within Suoyarvsky Municipal District as Suoyarvskoye Urban Settlement.Law #813-RZK

Transportation

The town serves as a railway junction along the railway line linking

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...

with St. Petersburg and

. From Suoyarvi, a line branches off to Yushkozero and

Kostomuksha Kostomuksha (russian: Костому́кша; krl, Koštamuš; fi, Kostamus; vep, Kostamukš) is a town in the northwest of the Republic of Karelia, Russia, located from the border with Finland, on the shore of Lake Kontoki. Population: Geo ...

. In the Cold War it was the nearest town to the Maysionvara airbase.

Sister city

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. T ...

References

Notes

Sources

* * * {{Authority control Cities and towns in the Republic of Karelia Former municipalities of Finland Monotowns in Russia Suoyarvsky District