Joensuu (Finnish:[ˈjoensuː]ⓘ;Karelian:Jovensuu,lit. 'river's mouth') is acity inFinland and the regional capital ofNorth Karelia. It is located in the eastern interior of the country and in theFinnish Lakeland. The population of Joensuu is approximately 78,000, while thesub-region has a population of approximately 127,000. It is the 11th most populousmunicipality in Finland, and the ninth most populousurban area in the country.
As is typical of cities in Eastern Finland, Joensuu is monolinguallyFinnish. Along with Kuopio, Joensuu is one of the major urban, economic, and cultural hubs ofEastern Finland. Joensuu is a student city with a subsidiary of theUniversity of Eastern Finland, which has over 20,000 enrolled students,[8] and a further 4,000 students at theKarelia University of Applied Sciences.[9]
The explanation of thecoat of arms of Joensuu reads: "shield twice blocked with upper moat and lower corrugated; fields in red, silver and black." The wave bar of the subject refers to the location of the city along thePielinen River and the position of the moat near theeastern border of Finland, while its colors black and red are considered typical colors ofKarelia. The coat of arms was designed by Toivo Vuorela, and it was approved by the Joensuu City Council at its meeting on May 10, 1957. TheMinistry of the Interior confirmed the use of the coat of arms on November 19 of the same year.[10][11][12] In addition to the coat of arms, the city of Joensuu also uses aflag based on it, in which the silver of the coat of arms has been replaced by white.[13]
The city of Joensuu, founded by the CzarNicholas I of Russia in 1848, is the regional centre and the capital ofNorth Karelia. During the 19th century Joensuu was a city of manufacture and commerce. When in 1860 the city received dispensation rights to initiate commerce, former restrictions against industry were removed and the local sawmills began to prosper and expand.[citation needed] Water traffic was improved by the building and opening of theSaimaa Canal in 1856. Consequently, a lively commerce between the regions ofNorth Karelia,St. Petersburg andCentral Europe was enabled. At the end of the 19th century Joensuu was one of the largest harbour cities inFinland.[citation needed]
Throughout the centuriesKarelian traders have plied thePielisjoki River. The river has always been the lively heart of the city. Canals – completed by 1870 – increased the river traffic.[citation needed] Thousands ofsteamboats,barges and logging boats sailed along the river during the golden age of river traffic. The Pielisjoki River has also been an importantlog raft route, providing wood for thesawmills and for the entirelumber industry.[citation needed]
During the last few decades, the formerly modest agrarian town has developed into a vital centre of the province. Success in regional annexations, the establishment of the region ofNorth Karelia, and investments in education have been the most decisive actions in this development.[citation needed]
The municipality ofPielisensuu was consolidated with Joensuu in 1954. At the beginning of 2005, the municipalities ofKiihtelysvaara andTuupovaara were consolidated with Joensuu. At the beginning of 2009 the municipalities ofEno andPyhäselkä were consolidated with Joensuu. After the most recent consolidations, there are approximately 73,000 inhabitants in the Joensuu municipal area.[citation needed]
TheUniversity of Joensuu (now part of theUniversity of Eastern Finland since January 2010.[14]) has, in twenty-five years, expanded to eightfaculties. The university is one of the mainstays for the vitality of the city and so for allNorth Karelia. Diversified international cooperation in science, industry and commerce benefits the whole region.
The proximity of the eastern border has been an important factor in the history of the city. TheRepublic of Karelia is once again a significant area for cooperation with nearby regions inRussia. Export companies in Joensuu continue the pre-revolutionary traditions in foreign trade.
Joensuu offers varied cultural activities. A series of events –Ilosaarirock festival, Joensuu Music Winter, Festival of Visual Culture Viscult, Gospel festivals – and the unspoilt environment increases the attractiveness of the city.
Joensuu is sometimes referred to as the Forest Capital of Europe, mainly because theEuropean Forest Institute is based there. Other forestry research and educational facilities are also based in Joensuu.
Joensuu has asubarctic climate (Köppen:Dfc) closely bordering on ahumid continental climate (Köppen climate classification:Dfb) due to its high latitude and inland position. Being quite far inland, Joensuu has a more continental climate than most of Finland. As a result, Joensuu can be prone to temperature extremes both in winter and summer. For example, Joensuu is on average warmer than Dublin or Manchester in July, and colder than Moscow in January. Winters are long, cold and snowy. Summers however, bring frequent temperatures above 20.0 °C (68.0 °F) and thunderstorms occur typically on 10–15 days per year.[15] The highest temperature ever recorded 37.2 °C (99.0 °F) on July 29, 2010, is the highest recorded temperature in Finland and the second highest ever recorded temperature in the Nordic countries, only behind Sweden's all time record at 38.0 °C (100.4 °F). The lowest temperature ever recorded in Joensuu was −40.0 °C (−40.0 °F) on December 10, 1955. In winter, the snowcover is reliable and on average 50–70 cm deep. Annually, Joensuu experiences on average 24 days with temperatures −20 °C (−4 °F) or colder while temperature below −30 °C (−22 °F) is observed about once per year. Annual total precipitation averages at 589 mm, with about 225 mm of it falling in the form of snow.[16][17]
Climate data for Joensuu (1991–2020, extremes 1955–present)
The city of Joensuu has 78,398 inhabitants, making it the 11th most populous municipality in Finland. TheJoensuu region has a population of 127,132.[21]
Population size of Joensuu (and merged municipalities) 1990–2020[20]
Joensuu is a monolingualFinnish-speaking municipality. As of 2024[update], the majority of the population, 71,940 persons (91.4%), spoke Finnish as their first language. In addition, the number ofSwedish speakers was 80 persons (0.1%) of the population. Foreign languages were spoken by8.5% of the population.[21] AsEnglish andSwedish are compulsory school subjects, functional bilingualism or trilingualism acquired through language studies is not uncommon.
At least 40 different languages are spoken in Joensuu. The most commonly spoken foreign languages areRussian (3.4%),Ukrainian (0.6%),Arabic (0.4%) andEnglish (0.4%).[21]
As of 2024[update], there were 6,814 persons with a foreign background living in Joensuu, or 9% of the population.[note 1] The number of residents who were born abroad was 6,6626, or 8% of the population. The number of persons with foreign citizenship living in Joensuu was 4,911.[21] Most foreign-born citizens came from the formerSoviet Union,Russia,Ukraine,Sweden andBangladesh.[21]
The relative share of immigrants in Joensuu's population is below to the national average. However, the city's new residents are increasingly of foreign origin. This will increase the proportion of foreign residents in the coming years.
In 2023, theEvangelical Lutheran Church was the largest religious group with 62.8% of the population of Joensuu. Other religious groups accounted for 6.2% of the population. 31.0% of the population had no religious affiliation.[23]
Joensuu is a growing provincial center with a service-orientedbusiness life. The concentration of information andcommunication technology companies has taken place in the premises offered by the Joensuu Science Park. Major industrial companies includelock manufacturerAbloy Oy and forest machine manufacturerJohn Deere. Research and product development in Joensuu is held at the university,science park, METLA and a few companies in areas such as color research and diffractive optics. The companies that paid the mostcorporate tax in 2015 were Broman Group Oy, which sells car spare parts and accessories, the key company Assa Abloy Oy, the North Karelia Cooperative, E. Hartikainen Oy, which operates in theconstruction and car business areas, and Autokiinteistöt Laakkonen Oy.[24]
Theunemployment rate in Joensuu on December 31, 2018 was 14.7%.[25] Largest employers in 2006: City of Joensuu (4,409 employees), North Karelia Hospital District Consortium (2,220),University of Joensuu (1,244), Abloy Oy (800), North Karelia Education Consortium (537), Pohjois-Karjalan Osuuskauppa or PKO (512),VR companies (430),Pohjois-Karjalan Kirjapaino Oyj or PunaMusta Media (317) and Schauman Wood Oy (292). In the 2010s, the Palkeet Agency[26] and theFinnish Defense Forces Service Center[27] were established in Joensuu.
Joensuu has arailway station and a bus station, which offers intercity connections to Helsinki and local connections to several other places. Numbered bus service is available to all parts of Joensuu. Joensuu also has anairport (located in nearbyLiperi), with flights toHelsinki.
There is also the Joensuu Sports Academy, which is a co-operation network of educational institutions that offersathletestraining andcoaching.[40][41][42]
