| Vårdö | |
|---|---|
| Municipality | |
| Vårdö kommun | |
 Boathouses in Simskäla, island in the north of Vårdö | |
 Flag Coat of arms | |
 Location of Vårdö in Finland | |
  VårdöLocation in Åland | |
| Coordinates: 60°14.5′N 020°22.5′E / 60.2417°N 20.3750°E / 60.2417; 20.3750 | |
| Country |  Finland |
| Region | Åland |
| Sub-region | Åland Archipelago sub-region |
| Government | |
| • Municipal manager | Magnus Sandberg |
| Area | |
| • Total | 572.56 km (221.07 sq mi) |
| • Land | 101.75 km (39.29 sq mi) |
| • Water | 471.16 km (181.92 sq mi) |
| • Rank | 298th largest in Finland |
| Population | |
| • Total | 467 |
| • Rank | 304th largest in Finland |
| • Density | 4.59/km (11.9/sq mi) |
| Population by native language | |
| • Swedish | 83.4% (official) |
| • Finnish | 4% |
| • Others | 12.5% |
| Population by age | |
| • 0 to 14 | 16.7% |
| • 15 to 64 | 53.3% |
| • 65 or older | 30% |
| Time zone | UTC+02:00 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+03:00 (EEST) |
| Website | www.vardo.ax |
Vårdö is an island municipality of Åland, an autonomous territory of Finland.
The municipality has a population of 467 (31 October 2024) and covers an area of 572.56 square kilometres (221.07 sq mi) of which 471.16 km (181.92 sq mi) is water. The population density is 4.59 inhabitants per square kilometre (11.9/sq mi) of land.
The municipality is unilingually Swedish.
Two notable Finnish authors, Sally Salminen and Anni Blomqvist, were born in Vårdö. Blomqvist lived her whole life on the Vårdö island of Simskäla.
The word "vårdö" means "the guardian island". On the highest mountain of Vårdö people used to light bonfires to warn the other islands of danger.
The old post route from Stockholm to Turku went through Vårdö, by road from Båthusviken to Hullvik on the main island, otherwise by water. The local citizens took care of the mail transport in any type of weather. The dangerous mail transport lasted for over 300 years (1638–1910). Many people drowned on these journeys and in the memory of them the municipality of Vårdö has erected a memorial on the seashore of Hullvik. Today the post route road is marked with milestones.
References
- ^ "Area of Finnish Municipalities 1.1.2018" (PDF). National Land Survey of Finland. Retrieved 30 January 2018.
- "Finland's preliminary population figure was 5,635,560 at the end of October 2024". Population structure. Statistics Finland. 2024-11-19. ISSN 1797-5395. Retrieved 2024-11-22.
- "Population growth biggest in nearly 70 years". Population structure. Statistics Finland. 2024-04-26. ISSN 1797-5395. Retrieved 2024-04-29.
- "Population according to age (1-year) and sex by area and the regional division of each statistical reference year, 2003–2020". StatFin. Statistics Finland. Retrieved 2 May 2021.
- ^ "Luettelo kuntien ja seurakuntien tuloveroprosenteista vuonna 2023". Tax Administration of Finland. 14 November 2022. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
- "Ennakkoväkiluku sukupuolen mukaan alueittain, maaliskuu.2016" (in Finnish). Statistics Finland. Retrieved 31 March 2016.
External links
Media related to Vårdö at Wikimedia Commons
- Municipality of Vårdö – Official website
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