Pori
Pori (Finnish: [ˈpori]; Swedish: Björneborg [bjœːrneˈborj] ⓘ; Latin: Arctopolis[8]) 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 83,000, while the sub-region has a population of approximately 129,000. It is the 10th most populous municipality in Finland, and the eighth most populous urban area in the country.
For other uses, see Pori (disambiguation).
Pori
Björneborg (Swedish)
March 8, 1558[2]
2,062.00 km2 (796.14 sq mi)
1,156.16 km2 (446.40 sq mi)
870.01 km2 (335.91 sq mi)
121.37 km2 (46.86 sq mi)
64th largest in Finland
83,117
10th largest in Finland
71.89/km2 (186.2/sq mi)
84,026
693.6/km2 (1,796/sq mi)
95% (official)
0.6%
4.4%
14%
59.7%
26.3%
11.08%
Pori is located some 10 kilometres (6 mi) from the Gulf of Bothnia, on the estuary of the Kokemäki River, 110 kilometres (68 mi) west of Tampere, 140 kilometres (87 mi) north of Turku and 241 kilometres (150 mi) north-west of Helsinki, the capital of Finland. Pori covers an area of 2,062.00 square kilometres (796.14 sq mi) of which 870.01 km2 (335.91 sq mi) is water.[3] The population density is 71.89/km2 (186.2/sq mi).
Pori was established in 1558 by Duke John, who later became King John III of Sweden.[1][2] The municipality is unilingually Finnish. Pori was also once one of the main cities with Turku in the former Turku and Pori Province (1634–1997). The neighboring municipalities are Eurajoki, Kankaanpää, Kokemäki, Merikarvia, Nakkila, Pomarkku, Sastamala, Siikainen and Ulvila.
Pori is especially known nationwide for its Jazz Festival, Yyteri's sandy beaches, Kirjurinluoto, Porin Ässät ice hockey club, FC Jazz football club, which won two championships in the Veikkausliiga in the 1990s, and Pori Theater, which is the first Finnish-language theater in Finnish history.[9] Pori is also known for its local street food called porilainen.[10] During its history, the city of Pori has burned down nine times; only Oulu has burned more often, as many as ten times.[11][12][13][14][15] The current coat of arms of Pori was confirmed for use by President P. E. Svinhufvud on December 11, 1931,[16] and was later redrawn by Olof Eriksson. The city council reaffirmed the use of the redrawn version on October 27, 1959. The bear motif of the coat of arms comes from a 17th century seal and the motto, deus protector noster or "God is our protector", is also on the coat of arms of the city's founder, Duke John.[1]
Name[edit]
Pori literally means 'Bear City'. The name comes from the -borg part (meaning citadel, fortress or castle) of the original name in Swedish with a Fennicised pronunciation.[17] The whole Swedish name Björneborg literally means Bear Fortress or Bear Castle (Finnish: Karhulinna), and the Latin-Greek Arctopolis means Bear City (Finnish: Karhukaupunki).[18][19][20]
History[edit]
Early years[edit]
City of Pori was established on March 8, 1558 by Duke John of Finland (Finnish: Juhana III or Juhana-herttua) who was later known as John III of Sweden.[2] It was a successor to the medieval towns of Teljä (Kokemäki) and Ulvila. Sailing the Kokemäki river had become more and more difficult since the 14th century due to the post-glacial rebound. The importance of Kokemäki and Ulvila began to decline as the ships could no longer navigate the river. In the 16th century the situation had become so bad that Duke John decided to establish a new harbour and market town closer to the sea.
Geography[edit]
River and delta[edit]
The geological uplift after the last ice age has been relatively high at the mouth of the Kokemäenjoki river. When the city was established in 1558, it was situated on the shore of Pori bay. Because of this uplift the delta of the river now begins in front of the city. The recreation area of Kirjurinluoto is actually on an island connected with bridges to the mainland. Pori National Urban Park preserves the story of the phases of development of the town born at the mouth of the river Kokemäenjoki.
Climate[edit]
Pori has a humid continental climate (Dfb), with moderation from the Gulf of Bothnia helping to keep September above the 10 °C (50 °F) isotherm, and is amongst the northern extent of that climate in Finland. Winters are long, and cold, but are notably shorter and warmer than in the Northern parts of Finland due to the marine effect and location by the Bothnian Sea. The temperatures measured in the city center are slightly higher on average due to the urban heat island effect. Summers are relatively warm. The highest ever recorded temperature in this weather station was 33.3 °C (91.9 °F), on 13 July 2010 and the lowest official temperature ever recorded was -36.8 °C (-34.2 °F), on 3 February 1966. Visiting the famous "Yyteri" beach is arguably the best pastime thing to do in Pori on warm summer days. In fact, it gathers the most visitors out of any other beach in Finland on summers.
Politics[edit]
The largest parties in Pori are Social Democratic Party and National Coalition Party. In 2021 municipal elections the parties gained 21.5% and 20.4% of vote, respectively.[38] The mayor of Pori is Lauri Inna, who was elected to run the city in 2022 after the former mayor, Aino-Maija Luukkonen, retired from the post.[39]
Media[edit]
The most widely read daily newspaper of Pori area is the independent Satakunnan Kansa.[66] Other local media were the politically-affiliated papers Uusi Aika, which was aligned with the Social Democrats,[67][68] and Satakunnan Työ, which was aligned with the Left Alliance.[69][70]
Radio Pori is a radio station established in 1985 as one of the first commercial stations in Finland.[71] Eazy 101 was during 2012–2015 a local radio station mainly for younger people under 30.[72][73] Public service radio in Pori area is Yle Satakunta, a regional station of Yle Radio Suomi.[74] Yle TV2 screens daily local news from the Pori region and Satakunta province on its national channel.
