Vaasa (; , ), formerly (1855-1917) known as Nikolaistad (; ),Vaasa oli ennen Nikolainkaupunki ja Aurinkolahti Mustalahti – paikannimiä ei kuitenkaan pidä muuttaa heppoisin perustein
– '' Kaleva'' (in Finnish) is a

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

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, ...

and the regional capital of Ostrobothnia. It is located on the west coast of the country, on the Gulf of Bothnia. The population of Vaasa is approximately , while the sub-region has a population of approximately . It is the most populous

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

in Finland, and the tenth most populous

urban area An urban area is a human settlement with a high population density and an infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas originate through urbanization, and researchers categorize them as cities, towns, conurbations or suburbs. In urbani ...

in the country. Vaasa was granted its charter in 1606, during the reign of Charles IX of Sweden, and is named after the Royal House of Vasa. During the

Finnish Civil War The Finnish Civil War was a civil war in Finland in 1918 fought for the leadership and control of the country between Whites (Finland), White Finland and the Finnish Socialist Workers' Republic (Red Finland) during the country's transition fr ...

in 1918, Vaasa was briefly the capital of the White Finland and hosted the

Senate of Finland The Senate of Finland (; ) combined the functions of Cabinet (government), cabinet and supreme court in the Grand Duchy of Finland from 1816 to 1917 and in independent Finland from 1917 to 1918. The body that would become the Senate was establis ...

. The city is home to several institutions of higher education: the

University of Vaasa The University of Vaasa (, ) is a multidisciplinary, business-oriented university in Vaasa, Finland. The campus of the university is situated by the Gulf of Bothnia adjacent to downtown Vaasa. The university has evolved from a school of econom ...

, the Vaasa University of Applied Sciences, the Novia University of Applied Sciences, and some faculties of the Åbo Akademi University, the

University of Helsinki The University of Helsinki (, ; UH) is a public university in Helsinki, Finland. The university was founded in Turku in 1640 as the Royal Academy of Åbo under the Swedish Empire, and moved to Helsinki in 1828 under the sponsorship of Alexander ...

, and the Hanken School of Economics. Vaasa is a

bilingual Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. When the languages are just two, it is usually called bilingualism. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolin ...

municipality with Finnish and Swedish as its official languages. The population consists of Finnish speakers, Swedish speakers, and speakers of other languages. The municipalities surrounding Vaasa, such as

Korsholm Korsholm (; ) is a municipality in Finland, located on the west coast of the country. Korsholm is situated in Ostrobothnia (administrative region), Ostrobothnia, along the Gulf of Bothnia. The population of Korsholm is approximately , while the Va ...

and Malax, have a clear majority of Swedish speakers. As a result, the Swedish language maintains a strong position in the city, making it the most significant

cultural Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...

center for Swedish-Finns.

History

Name

Over the years, Vaasa has changed its name several times. At first it was called or after the village where it was founded in 1606, but just a few years later the name was changed to ''Vasa'' to honor the royal Swedish lineage. The name ''Mustasaari'' (Finnish) or ''

'' (Swedish) remains in use as the designation for the surrounding rural municipality, which has encircled the city since 1973. During the period of Russian rule, the city was renamed ''Nikolaistad'' (Swedish) or ''Nikolainkaupunki'' (Finnish) in 1855, in tribute to the recently deceased Tsar Nicholas I of Russia. The renaming was prompted by a petition submitted to Tsar Alexander II in April of that year by a group of local merchants under pressure from authorities. The new name was unpopular among the residents who continued to refer to the city as ''Vasa''. In 1862, an attempt to restore the original name through another petition to the emperor proved unsuccessful. Following the

Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...

in 1917, the City Council decided on 19 March 1917 to revert back to the earlier name ''Vaasa''. The name was confirmed by the Senate on 18 October 1917.

Foundation

The history of

and also of Vaasa begins in the 14th century, when seafarers from the coastal region in central

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 ...

disembarked at the present Old Vaasa, and the wasteland owners from Southwest Finland came to guard their land. In the middle of the century, Saint Mary's Church was built, and in the 1370s the building of the fortress at

, Crysseborgh, was undertaken, and served as an administrative centre of the Vasa County. King Charles IX of Sweden founded the town of Mustasaari (Mussor) on 2 October 1606,HS: Kaarle IX perusti Vaasan 1606
(in Finnish) around the oldest harbour and trade point around the Korsholm church approximately to the southeast from the present city. In 1611, the town was chartered and renamed after the Royal House of Vasa. Thanks to the sea connections, ship building and trade, especially tar trade, Vaasa flourished in the 17th century and most of the inhabitants earned their living from it. In 1683, the three-subject or Trivial school moved from Nykarleby to Vaasa, and four years later a new schoolhouse was built in Vaasa. The first

library A library is a collection of Book, books, and possibly other Document, materials and Media (communication), media, that is accessible for use by its members and members of allied institutions. Libraries provide physical (hard copies) or electron ...

in Finland was founded in Vaasa in 1794. In 1793, Vaasa had 2,178 inhabitants, and in the year of the catastrophic town fire of 1852 the number had risen to 3,200.

Finnish War

During the

Finnish War The Finnish War (; ; ) was fought between the Gustavian era, Kingdom of Sweden and the Russian Empire from 21 February 1808 to 17 September 1809 as part of the Napoleonic Wars. As a result of the war, the eastern third of Sweden was established a ...

, fought between

and

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 ...

in 1808–1809, Vaasa suffered more than any other city. In June 1808, Vaasa was occupied by the Russian forces, and some of the local officials pledged allegiance to the occupying force. On 25 June 1808 the Swedish colonel Johan Bergenstråhle was sent with 1,500 troops and four cannons to free Vaasa from the 1,700 Russian troops who were led by generalmajor Nikolay Demidov. The Battle of Vaasa started with the Swedish force disembarking north of Vaasa in Österhankmo and advancing all the way to the city where they attacked with 1,100 troops, as some had to be left behind to secure the flank. There was heavy fighting in the streets and in the end the Swedish forces were repelled and forced to retreat back the way they came. Generalmajor Demidov suspected that the inhabitants of Vaasa had taken to arms and helped the Swedish forces, even though the provincial governor had confiscated all weapons that spring, and he took revenge by letting his men plunder the city for several days. During those days 17 civilians were killed, property was looted and destroyed, many were assaulted and several people were taken to the village of Salmi in Kuortane where they had to endure the physical punishment called running the gauntlet. The massacre in Vaasa was exceptional during the Finnish war as the Russian forces had avoided that kind of cruelty that far. It was probably a result of the frustration the Russians felt because of intensive guerilla activity against them in the region. On 30 June the Russian forces withdrew from Vaasa, and all officials that had pledged allegiance to Russia were discharged, and some were assaulted by locals. On 13 September the Russian forces returned and on the next day the decisive Battle of Oravais, which was won by Russia, was fought some further north. By winter 1808, the Russian forces had overrun all of Finland, and in the Treaty of Fredrikshamn (17 September 1809) Sweden lost the whole eastern part of its realm. Vaasa would now become a part of the newly formed

Grand Duchy of Finland The Grand Duchy of Finland was the predecessor state of modern Finland. It existed from 1809 to 1917 as an Autonomous region, autonomous state within the Russian Empire. Originating in the 16th century as a titular grand duchy held by the Monarc ...

within the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

Town fire

The mainly wooden and densely built town was almost utterly destroyed in 1852. A fire started in a barn belonging to district court judge J. F. Aurén on the morning of 3 August. At noon the whole town was ablaze and the fire lasted for many hours. By evening, most of the town had burned to the ground. Out of 379 buildings only 24 privately owned buildings had survived, among them the Falander– Wasastjerna patrician house (built in 1780–1781) which now houses the Old Vaasa Museum. The

Court of Appeal An appellate court, commonly called a court of appeal(s), appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to Hearing (law), hear a Legal case, case upon appeal from a trial court or other ...

(built in 1775, nowadays the Church of Korsholm), some Russian guard-houses along with a gunpowder storage and the buildings of the Vaasa provincial hospital (nowadays a psychiatric hospital) also survived the blaze. The ruins of the greystone church, the belfry, the town hall and the trivial school can still be found in their original places. Much of the archived material concerning Vaasa and its inhabitants was destroyed in the fire. According to popular belief, the fire got started when a careless visitor from Vörå fell asleep in Aurén's barn and dropped his pipe in the dry hay.

New town

The new town of Nikolaistad (), named after the late Tsar Nicholas I, rose in 1862 about to the northwest from the old town. The town's coastal location offered good conditions for seafaring. The town plan was planned by Carl Axel Setterberg in the Empire style. In the master plan the disastrous consequences of the fire were considered. Main streets in the new town were five broad avenues which divided the town into sections. Each block was divided by alleys. The town was promptly renamed Vasa (Vaasa) after the Tsar Nicholas II was overthrown in 1917.

Capital of Finland

During the

, Vaasa was the capital of Finland from 29 January to 3 May 1918.Vaasa, Finland – Britannica
/ref> As a consequence of the occupation of central places and arresting of politicians in

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

the Senate decided to move the senators to Vaasa, where the White Guards that supported the Senate had a strong position and the contacts to the West were good. The

began its work in Vaasa on 1 February 1918, and it had four members. The Senate held its sessions in the Town Hall. To express its gratitude to the town the Senate gave Vaasa the right to add the Cross of Freedom, independent Finland's oldest mark of honour designed by Akseli Gallen-Kallela, to its

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

, to the town's coat of arms. The coat of arms is unusual not only in this respect, but also because of its non-standard shape and a crown are included. Because of its role in the civil war, Vaasa became known as "The White City". A Statue of Freedom, depicting a victorious White soldier, was erected in the town square.

Post-war

The language conditions in the city shifted in the 1930s, and the majority became Finnish-speaking. Post-war, Vaasa was industrialized, led by the electronics manufacturer Strömberg, later merged into ABB. In 2013, the municipality of Vähäkyrö was merged into Vaasa. It is currently an

exclave An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. An enclave can be an independent territory or part of a larger one. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is s ...

area of the city, since it is surrounded by other municipalities.

Climate

Near the Polar Circle, Vaasa falls in

continental subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a continental climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

: ''Dfc'') with severe dry winters and almost warm summers. The prevailing direction of the winds, North Atlantic Current and the proximity of the Gulf of Bothnia give the climate a certainly livability in spite of the latitude, similar to the south of

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

, where continentality, proximity to the poles and moderation intersect. The

Föhn wind A Foehn, or Föhn (, , , ), is a type of dry, relatively warm katabatic wind, downslope wind in the leeward, lee of a mountain range. It is a rain shadow wind that results from the subsequent adiabatic warming of air that has dropped most of ...

, for example, passes over the Scandinavian Mountains and leaves a milder and drier weather in the lee of the mountains where Vaasa is found, affecting especially in the winter which explains sunny days even in the season of short solar duration. The location of some sea distance gives a seasonal delay of spring and summer at the same time that autumn and winter are affected late. The average annual temperature is 4.7 °C (normal from 1991 to 2020). The low Ostrobothnia usually receives little snow but the contact of cold air with warmer and humid air can generate heavy snowfall. Early summer (as well as spring) tends to be drier and the wettest month does not coincide with the warmer month. End of April is usually the growing season with 250–300 mm approximately. The maritime breeze explains the difference in temperature, distribution of precipitation and sunshine, different from the Gulf of Finland, the Gulf of Bothnia brings the sea wind in places further distant about 50 km from the coast. The city gets more sun than inland places, although current log are unavailable. The highest ever recorded temperature was 32.2 °C (89.6 °F), on 18 July 2018, although a record of 33.7 °C (92.7 °F) was recorded in the city center the same day, which in fact was the hottest day of Finland in 2018 by slightly edging a temperature recorded in Turku Artukainen of 33.6 °C (92.5 °F), also on 18 July 2018, making it the highest temperature ever recorded in Vaasa.

Demographics

Population

The city of Vaasa has inhabitants, making it the most populous municipality in Finland. The Vaasa region has a population of .

Languages

The city of Vaasa is officially

, with both Finnish and Swedish as official languages. , the majority of the population, persons (), spoke Finnish as their first language. The number of Swedish speakers was persons () of the population. Foreign languages were spoken by of the population. As English and Swedish - or Finnish for Swedish speakers - are compulsory school subjects, functional bilingualism or trilingualism acquired through language studies is not uncommon. At least 50 different languages are spoken in Vaasa. The most common foreign languages are Ukrainian (1.2%),

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

(1.1%), English (1.0%) and Russian (0.9%).

Immigration

, there were 9,967 persons with a foreign background living in Vaasa, or 14% of the population. The number of residents who were born abroad was 9,875, or 14% of the population. The number of persons with foreign citizenship living in Vaasa was 7,179. Most foreign-born citizens came from the

, former

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

and

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

. The relative share of immigrants in Vaasa's population is above the national average. Moreover, the city's new residents are increasingly of foreign origin. This will increase the proportion of foreign residents in the coming years.

Religion

In 2023, the Evangelical Lutheran Church was the largest religious group with 65.0% of the population of Vaasa. Other religious groups accounted for 2.4% of the population. 32.6% of the population had no religious affiliation.

Economy

There is a university (

), faculties of Åbo Akademi and Hanken, and two universities of applied sciences in the town. Many workers commute from

, Laihia, and other municipalities nearby. The Vaskiluoto power stations complex is situated on the island of

Vaskiluoto Vaskiluoto (Swedish language, Swedish: ''Vasklot'') is a Finnish island in the Gulf of Bothnia, immediately in front of the city centre of Vaasa, Finland. It is connected to the mainland by the Vaskiluoto road and rail bridge, and has a surface ar ...

, supplying electricity to the national grid as well as district heat to the city. The multi-use cargo and passenger Port of Vaasa is located in Vaskiluoto, connecting Vaasa with Umeå, Sweden, and destinations further afield. The film production company Future Film has its head office in Vaasa.Contact Information
." Future Film. Retrieved on 19 January 2011. "Office Oy Future Film Ab Hovioikeudenpuistikko 9 65100 VAASA FINLAND" Vaasa is also home to Tropiclandia Water Park, located on Vaskiluoto Island adjacent to a local spa hotel. The now disassembled Wasalandia Amusement Park, which ceased operations in 2015 due to a small number of visitors, was located in the immediate vicinity of Tropiclandia.

Transport

Main roads, including highway 3 ( E12) and highway 8 ( E8), connect Vaasa to

Tampere Tampere is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Pirkanmaa. It is located in the Finnish Lakeland. The population of Tampere is approximately , while the metropolitan area has a population of approximately . It is the most populous mu ...

, Oulu,

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 ...

Jyväskylä Jyväskylä () is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Central Finland. It is located in the Finnish Lakeland. The population of Jyväskylä is approximately , while the Jyväskylä sub-region, sub-region has a population of approximately ...

, Kokkola and Seinäjoki. There are from Helsinki to Vaasa, from

Turku Turku ( ; ; , ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Southwest Finland. It is located on the southwestern coast of the country at the mouth of the Aura River (Finland), River Aura. The population of Turku is approximately , while t ...

, from Tampere, from Oulu, from Kokkola, from

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 ...

, from Pori, from

Lapua Lapua (; ) is a List of cities and towns in Finland, town and municipalities of Finland, municipality in Finland's South Ostrobothnia regions of Finland, region. It is located next to the Lapua River. The town has a population of () and cov ...

and from Seinäjoki. It is also a relatively short distance from Sweden to Vaasa. The tourist route called Blue Highway also runs from the port of Vaasa and through the city. In 1962–1964, other Finnish cities introduced regional

speed limit Speed limits on road traffic, as used in most countries, set the legal maximum speed at which vehicles may travel on a given stretch of road. Speed limits are generally indicated on a traffic sign reflecting the maximum permitted speed, express ...

s of 50 km/h, but in Vaasa the limit was 60 km/h for a long time.

Vaasa Airport Vaasa Airport (, ) is located in Vaasa, Finland, about south-east of Vaasa city centre. As of 2024, it is the 7th busiest airport in Finland with 177,592 passengers. History The airport was opened in 1938 when Finnair#Founding, Aero began pass ...

is located about nine kilometers southeast of the city center.

Finnair Finnair Plc (, ) is the flag carrier and largest full-service legacy airline of Finland, with headquarters in Vantaa on the grounds of Helsinki Airport, its airline hub, hub. Finnair and its subsidiaries dominate both domestic and international ...

and Scandinavian Airlines operate from Vaasa Airport, but Norwegian Air Shuttle terminated the Vaasa–Helsinki route on 10 January 2020. There is scheduled traffic from Vaasa Airport to Helsinki (flight time 45 min) and

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

(flight time 1 h 5 min). Port of Vaasa is located on the Vaskiluoto island four kilometers west of the city centre. Daily passenger and cargo traffic between Vaasa and Umeå is operated by shipping company Wasaline.

Culture

* Ostrobothnian Museum * Kuntsi Museum of Modern Art * Vaasa Car & Motor Museum

Other sights

* The

Statue of Liberty The Statue of Liberty (''Liberty Enlightening the World''; ) is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, within New York City. The copper-clad statue, a gift to the United States from the people of French Thir ...

(''Suomen Vapaudenpatsas'') * Söderfjärden

Sport

* Vaasan Sport, men's

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

team playing in the Liiga, home ice is Vaasan Sähkö Areena * Vaasan Mailattaret, a women's Finnish baseball team playing in the Superpesis, home ground is Hietalahti Pesäpallo Stadium * Vaasan Sport Naiset, women's ice hockey team playing in the Naisten Liiga, home ice is Vaasan Sähkö Areena * Vaasan Palloseura, men's

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

club playing in the Veikkausliiga, home ground is Hietalahti Stadium * Vasa IFK, men's football club playing in the

Ykkönen ''Ykkönen'' (Finnish language, Finnish for 'Number One'; , previously I divisioona) is the third highest level of the Finnish football league system (after the Veikkausliiga and Ykkösliiga), managed by the Football Association of Finland. Until ...

, home ground is Hietalahti Stadium * FC Kiisto, men's football club playing in the Kolmonen, home ground is Hietalahti Stadium * Vaasa Rugby Club **Vaasa Wolves, inactive men's rugby union team, played in the Finnish Championship Rugby League until 2019 **Vaasa Foxes, women's rugby sevens team playing in the Finnish Championship 7's Series

Education

Vaasa has three universities. The largest one is the

, which is located in the neighbourhood of Palosaari. Palosaari is a peninsula near the center of Vaasa, connected to it by bridges. The other two universities are Åbo Akademi, headquartered in

, and the Hanken School of Economics headquartered in

. Unique to Vaasa is the Finland-Swedish teachers training school Vasa övningsskola, part of Åbo Akademi. The

also has a small unit, specialized in law studies, in the city centre. The city has two universities of applied sciences: Vaasa University of Applied Sciences (former Vaasa Polytechnic), located right next to the University of Vaasa, and Novia University of Applied Sciences (former Swedish University of Applied Sciences). City has about 13,000 university students and about 4,000 vocational school students.Todellinen opiskelijakaupunki – Vaasa
(in Finnish)

Notable people

* Monica Aspelund – Singer * Fanny Churberg (1845–1892) – Painter * Sebastian Da Costa – singer and rapper * Seppo Evwaraye –

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

player * Rabbe Grönblom – Businessman * Kai Hahto - Metal Drummer/drum teacher * Nanny Hammarström (1870–1953) – Author * Jarl Hemmer – Author * Edvin Hevonkoski – Sculptor * Mikaela Ingberg – Javelin thrower * Fritz Jakobsson – Painter * Vesa 'Vesku' Jokinen – Musician, the lead singer of Klamydia * Mikael Jungner – MD of Yleisradio * Samuli Kivimäki - ice hockey player * Sari Krooks – Ice hockey player * Heli Koivula-Kruger – Athlete * Miika Koivisto – Ice hockey player * Susanna 'Suski' Korvala – Singer * Björn Kurtén – Paleontologist, author * Joachim Kurtén – Businessman, politician * Toivo Kuula – Composer * August Alexander Levón – Industrialist, businessman * Jani Liimatainen – Guitar player * Matias Mäkynen – Politician * Nandor Mikola – Painter * Håkan Nyblom – Finnish wrestler * Camilla Nylund – Opera singer * Jorma Ojaharju – Author * Oskar Osala – Ice hockey player * Pekka Puska – Doctor, expert on public health, politician * Viljo Revell – Architect, works included Toronto City Hall in Canada. * Camilla Richardsson – Middle-distance runner * Seppo Sanaksenaho – Mayor of Vaasa 1997–2001, Deputy Mayor 1979–1996 * Leif Segerstam – Musician, composer, conductor * Carl Axel Setterberg – Architect, creator of the new Vaasa * Pekka Strang – Actor * Jani Toivola – Member of parliament, actor, television host ( Finnish Idols 2007, The Voice TV) * Onni Tommila – Actor ( Big Game, Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale) * Allu Tuppurainen – Actor, creator of Rölli * Jenny Wilhelms – Musician * Carl Gustaf Wolff – Businessman * Mathilda Wrede – "Friend of the inmates" * Yrjö Sakari Yrjö-Koskinen (Georg Zacharias Forsman) – Politician, professor, fennoman * Jukka Seppo - Ice hockey player * Lauri Tähkä - Singer/songwriter * Vappu Taipale - Psychiatrist and politician * Juha Tapio - Singer, lyricist, composer and guitarist *

Erik Adolf von Willebrand Erik Adolf von Willebrand (1 February 1870 – 12 September 1949) was a Finnish physician who made major contributions to hematology. Von Willebrand disease and von Willebrand factor are named after him. He also researched metabolism, obesity an ...

— physician who made major contributions to haematology

Twin towns

, Vaasa has

town twinning A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inte ...

treaties or treaties of cooperation signed with the following ten cities:Bellingham Sister Cities Association
Godfather Town
Twin Town
Cooperation Treaty
Sister City

Notes

References

Bibliography

* Julkunen, Mikko: ''Vaasa - Vasa''. ''Vaasa: Vaasa'', 1982. (Photo book with English text.)

External links

Vaasa
– Official website {{Authority control Cities and towns in Finland Populated coastal places in Finland Grand Duchy of Finland Populated places established in 1606 Former capitals of Finland 1606 establishments in Sweden Port cities and towns in Finland Port cities and towns of the Baltic Sea