Lohja

Lohja
Lojo
City

Coat of arms

Location of Lohja in Finland
Coordinates: 60°15′N 024°04′E / 60.250°N 24.067°E / 60.250; 24.067Coordinates: 60°15′N 024°04′E / 60.250°N 24.067°E / 60.250; 24.067
Country  Finland
Region Uusimaa
Sub-region Helsinki
Charter 1926
City rights 1969
Government
 • City manager Mika Sivula
Area (2018-01-01)[1]
 • Total 1,109.73 km2 (428.47 sq mi)
 • Land 349.41 km2 (134.91 sq mi)
 • Water 91.78 km2 (35.44 sq mi)
Area rank 82nd largest in Finland
Population (2017-08-31)[2]
 • Total 46,931
 • Rank 23rd largest in Finland
 • Density 134.31/km2 (347.9/sq mi)
Population by native language[3]
 • Finnish 93.6% (official)
 • Swedish 4% (official)
 • Others 2.4%
Population by age[4]
 • 0 to 14 18.7%
 • 15 to 64 66.4%
 • 65 or older 14.9%
Time zone UTC+2 (EET)
 • Summer (DST) UTC+3 (EEST)
Municipal tax rate[5] 19.5%
Urbanisation 89.7%
Unemployment rate 8.4%
Climate Dfb
Website www.kaupunki.lohja.fi

Lohja (Finnish pronunciation: [ˈlohjɑ]; Swedish: Lojo) is a city and municipality in the Uusimaa region of Finland. The city has a population of 47,518 (2017),[2] and it covers an area of 1,109.73 square kilometres (428.47 sq mi) of which 91.78 km2 (35.44 sq mi), or 8.3 percent, is water.[1] The population density of Lohja is 134.31 inhabitants per square kilometre (347.9/sq mi). The municipality is bilingual, with the majority being Finnish and minority Swedish speakers.[3] Lohja has the fourth-most summer houses of any municipality in Finland, with 8,468 located within the city as of June 2018.[6] Lohja is located near Greater Helsinki, and it benefits from a good road network. It takes less than an hour to drive from Helsinki to Lohja on the E18 motorway.

The landscape of Lohja is characterized by manors and gardens. Its area is divided by the Lohja ridge, which forms a watershed for the largest lake system in Uusimaa, Lohjanjärvi. The medieval Church of St. Lawrence is the architectural highlight of downtown Lohja, which also includes a heterogeneous mix of buildings mostly dating from the 1960s onwards. The Lohja library, which was opened in 2005, is a distinctly modern building placed in the very centre of the city.

Lohja has been a focal point for the population and economy of western Uusimaa since the early 14th century. It was renowned as a trading centre in the Middle Ages. The local inhabitants were among the pioneers of the Finnish mining and construction material industries. Lohja has long-established traditions in horticulture and especially in market gardening. These traditions are represented by the symbols of present-day Lohja: limestone and an apple.

During the Second World War, the Soviet Union heavily bombed the city, attempting to destroy the Tytyri limestone mine.

Politics

Local

Mika Sivula is the city manager of Lohja. The city manager oversees the city committee.[7] In addition to the city committee, Lohja has a 51-seat municipal council. The parties represented in the council as well as their seat counts are listed below.

City Council of Lohja[8]
Party Seats
Social Democratic Party 11
National Coalition Party 10
Green League 7
Left Alliance 6
Finns Party 6
Centre Party 5
Meidän Lohja 3
Swedish People's Party 1
Christian Democrats 1
Haloo Lohja 1

National

2015 parliamentary election

Results of the 2015 parliamentary election in Lohja[9]
Party Vote share
Social Democratic Party 25,5%
Finns Party 22,9%
National Coalition Party 16,5%
Centre Party 12,9%
Green League 7,2%
Left Alliance 5,9%
Swedish People's Party 3,1%
Christian Democrats 3,1%
Change 2011 1,1%

Culture

Lohja is famed for its cultural events. More than a hundred different events are arranged in the city each year by its residents and organizations. The most notable are the Lohja Summer Cultural Festival, the Apple Carnival organized by representatives of business and commerce, the retailers' Hurlumhei Carnival and the Old Time Christmas market continue the tradition of fairs dating back to the Middle Ages.

The Doom Metal band Reverend Bizarre hails from Lohja.

Sights

One unique experience is the Tytyri limestone mine, which has a museum located 100 metres under ground. This attraction and exhibitions can be reached using either an old mine wagon or a modern lift.[10] Other places of note are:

  • Lohja museum area
  • The surroundings of Lohjanjärvi
  • The gothic Church of St. Lawrence which dates from the 15th century
  • Kisakallio Sport college
  • Floating Restaurant-Café Kaljaasi
  • Alitalo vineyard
  • St. Lawrence Golf and the recreation bath Neidonkeidas

Sports

Lohjan Pallo is the football team of the city.

Municipal consolidations

The municipality of Lohja was consolidated with the city of Lohja in 1997, and the municipality of Sammatti in 2009. The municipalities of Karjalohja and Nummi-Pusula were consolidated with Lohja in 2013.

List of municipal consolidations into Lohja
Municipality Year
Lohja (municipality) 1997
Sammatti 2009
Karjalohja 2013
Nummi-Pusula 2013

Twin towns

Lohja is twinned with:

References

  1. 1 2 "Area of Finnish Municipalities 1.1.2018" (PDF). National Land Survey of Finland. Retrieved 30 January 2018.
  2. 1 2 "Ennakkoväkiluku sukupuolen mukaan alueittain, elokuu 2017" (in Finnish). Statistics Finland. Retrieved 18 October 2017.
  3. 1 2 "Population according to language and the number of foreigners and land area km2 by area as of 31 December 2008". Statistics Finland's PX-Web databases. Statistics Finland. Retrieved 29 March 2009.
  4. ↑ "Population according to age and gender by area as of 31 December 2008". Statistics Finland's PX-Web databases. Statistics Finland. Retrieved 28 April 2009.
  5. ↑ "List of municipal and parish tax rates in 2011". Tax Administration of Finland. 29 November 2010. Retrieved 13 March 2011.
  6. ↑ "Kuopio on mökkipaikkakuntien ykkönen, mutta yhdessä Suomen kunnassa ei mökkeile kukaan – Hakukone kertoo, miten oman mökkikuntasi suosio on kehittynyt". Helsingin Sanomat (in Finnish). 2018-06-23. Retrieved 2018-06-23.
  7. ↑ kaupunki, Lohjan. "Lohjan kaupunki johtoryhmä". kaupunki.lohja.fi. Retrieved 2018-06-23.
  8. ↑ Lohja (in Finnish) http://kaupunki.lohja.fi/default.asp?kieli=246&id_sivu=3157&alasivu=3157. Retrieved 2018-06-23. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  9. ↑ "Kokeile HS:n vaalikoneella, kenen ehdokkaan arvomaailma on lähimpänä sinua". www.vaalikone.fi. Retrieved 2018-06-20.
  10. ↑ Tytyri Mine Museum
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