Kerava Kervo | |
|---|---|
Town | |
| Keravan kaupunki Kervo stad | |
 Kerava town centre | |
 Coat of arms | |
 Location of Kerava inFinland | |
| Coordinates:60°24′N025°06′E / 60.400°N 25.100°E /60.400; 25.100 | |
| Country |  Finland |
| Region | Uusimaa |
| Sub-region | Helsinki sub-region |
| Metropolitan area | Helsinki metropolitan area |
| Township | 1924–1970 |
| City | 1970– |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Kirsi Rontu |
| Area (2018-01-01)[1] | |
• Total | 30.79 km2 (11.89 sq mi) |
| • Land | 30.63 km2 (11.83 sq mi) |
| • Water | 0.17 km2 (0.066 sq mi) |
| • Rank | 309th largest in Finland |
| Population (2025-06-30)[2] | |
• Total | 38,535 |
| • Rank | 30th largest in Finland |
| • Density | 1,258.08/km2 (3,258.4/sq mi) |
| Population by native language | |
| • Finnish | 81.5% (official) |
| • Swedish | 1.2% |
| • Others | 17.3% |
| Population by age | |
| • 0 to 14 | 16.3% |
| • 15 to 64 | 63.8% |
| • 65 or older | 19.9% |
| Time zone | UTC+02:00 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+03:00 (EEST) |
| Climate | Dfb |
| Website | www |
Kerava (Finnish pronunciation:[ˈkerɑʋɑ];Swedish:Kervo) is atown inFinland, located in the southern interior of the country. Kerava is situated in the centre of theUusimaa region. The population of Kerava is approximately 39,000. It is the 30th most populousmunicipality in Finland. Kerava is part of theHelsinki Metropolitan Area, which has approximately 1.62 million inhabitants.
Kerava's neighbouring municipalities areVantaa,Sipoo andTuusula.
Kerava covers an area of 30.79 square kilometres (11.89 sq mi) of which 0.17 km2 (0.066 sq mi) is water.[1] Thepopulation density is 1,258.08 inhabitants per square kilometre (3,258.4/sq mi). In terms of area, Kerava is the fifth smallest in Finland and the second smallest in the Uusimaa region afterKauniainen. However, it is also the third most densely populated area in the sub-region afterHelsinki and Kauniainen. The municipality is monolingualFinnish.
TheSinebrychoffbrewery operations are based in Kerava.[6] There is also a well-knownprison in the town (Keravan vankila),[7] which includes 94 places in theopen prison ward.
Until theMiddle Ages, Kerava was a wilderness, until twovillages, Ylikerava ("Upper Kerava") and Alikerava ("Lower Kerava"), were created along theKerava River (Keravanjoki). The first signs of established village settlement date back to the 1440s. Kerava was annexed toTuusula when the Tuusula parish was founded in 1643. In 1862, therailway betweenHelsinki andHämeenlinna was opened, which quickly broughtindustry toagricultural Kerava; thecarpentry factory in Kerava was established in 1908, and thewood industry became an important factor in the development of the town. Thecoat of arms designed by Ahti Hammar features awoodworking joints made by acarpenter.[8]
In 1924, Kerava was separated from Tuusula as its owntownship. At that time, it had a population of about 3,000. Originally, it also included part of theKorso area, andKorso railway station was also located in the township area. However, from 1954 onwards, the entire Korso was annexed to the thenHelsinki Rural Municipality.[9] During the peak periods of the late 1960s and 1970s, the population almost doubled due toimmigration and good transport connections, and newsuburbs were created in Kurkela, Kilta and Untola. Kerava was officially grantedtown rights in 1970.[8]
Kerava is located in the north of theHelsinki metropolitan area, 27 kilometres north ofHelsinki. The city is crossed by the (Helsinki-)Kerava–Lahti railway line and theLahdenväylä motorway and theKeravanjoki river. Keravanjoki is a tributary of theVantaanjoki river. Its neighbours areVantaa to the south,Tuusula to the west andSipoo to the east. Kerava forms an almost uniform urban area, which can be roughly divided into the centre andSavio in the south andAhjo in the east. Thecentre of Kerava is surrounded by several radial streets. A pedestrian street runs through the centre under the railway, which is said to be the longest in Finland (850 metres).
Kerava is divided into 10neighbourhoods.
| Number | Name |
|---|---|
| 1 | Kaleva |
| 2 | Kilta |
| 3 | Sompio |
| 4 | Keskusta |
| 5 | Ahjo |
| 6 | Savio |
| 7 | Ylikerava |
| 8 | Kaskela |
| 9 | Alikerava |
| 10 | Jokivarsi |
The city of Kerava has 38,535 inhabitants, making it the 30th most populous municipality in Finland. The city of Kerava is part of theHelsinki metropolitan area, which is the largest urban area in Finland with 1,616,656 inhabitants.
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 1990 | 27,597 |
| 1995 | 29,385 |
| 2000 | 30,270 |
| 2005 | 31,544 |
| 2010 | 34,282 |
| 2015 | 35,293 |
| 2020 | 37,105 |
Kerava is a monolingualFinnish-speaking municipality. As of 2024[update], the majority of the population, 31,361 persons (81.5%), spoke Finnish as their first language. In addition, the number ofSwedish speakers was 443 persons (1.2%) of the population. Foreign languages were spoken by17.3% of the population.[10] 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 Kerava. The most common foreign languages areEstonian (3.4%),Russian (2.9%),Arabic (1.2%),Ukrainian (1.0%) andEnglish (0.7%).[10]
| Population by country of birth (2024)[10] | ||
| Nationality | Population | % |
|---|---|---|
| Finland | 32,573 | 84.7 |
 Estonia | 1,225 | 3.2 |
 Soviet Union | 788 | 2.0 |
 Turkey | 226 | 0.6 |
 Ukraine | 215 | 0.6 |
 Iraq | 212 | 0.6 |
 Vietnam | 190 | 0.5 |
 Thailand | 166 | 0.4 |
 Russia | 159 | 0.4 |
 Sweden | 154 | 0.4 |
 Afghanistan | 153 | 0.4 |
| Other | 2,400 | 6.2 |
As of 2024[update], there were 6,777 persons with a foreign background living in Kerava, or 16% of the population.[note 1] The number of residents who were born abroad was 5,888, or 15% of the population. The number of persons with foreign citizenship living in Kerava was 4,715. Most foreign-born citizens came fromEstonia, the formerSoviet Union,Turkey andUkraine.[10]
The relative share of immigrants in Kerava'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.
In 2023, theEvangelical Lutheran Church was the largest religious group with 53.7% of the population of Kerava. Other religious groups accounted for 3.4% of the population. 42.9% of the population had no religious affiliation.[12]
Kerava has two railway stations,Kerava Central Railway Station andSavio station. The Kerava Central Railway Station is an interchange station, with connections from the main track fromHelsinki toRiihimäki to the tracks toLahti andPorvoo. TheHelsinki Airport (HEL) is located about 15 kilometers to the southwest of the city by car. It is 32 kilometres (20 mi) alongHighway 4 (E75) from Kerava to the city center of Helsinki.
The city of Kerava joinedHelsinki Regional Transport Authority (HSL) in 2010.
Manygarlic dishes were named as traditional foods of the Kerava parish in the 1980s: Yrjö'slamb (à la Jorgos), garlicpotatoes and crushed garlic inoil, and, as a dessert, agooseberry pie withvanilla sauce.[13]
Results of the2019 Finnish parliamentary election in Kerava:
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