Vantaa (Finnish pronunciation:[ˈʋɑntɑː];Swedish:Vanda,Finland Swedish:[ˈvɑnːdɑ]) is acity inFinland. It is located to the north of the capital,Helsinki, in southernUusimaa. The population of Vantaa is approximately 253,000. It is the 4th most populousmunicipality in Finland. Vantaa is part of theHelsinki Metropolitan Area, which has approximately 1.6 million inhabitants.
The administrative centre of Vantaa is located in theTikkuriladistrict. Vantaa lies in Southern Finland and shares borders withHelsinki, the Finnish capital, to the south,Espoo to the southwest,Nurmijärvi to the northwest,Kerava andTuusula to the north, andSipoo to the east. The city covers a total area of 240.35 square kilometres (92.80 sq mi), of which 1.97 km2 (0.76 sq mi) is water.[2]
Vantaa is abilingual municipality withFinnish andSwedish as its official languages. The population consists of69% Finnish speakers,2% Swedish speakers (the lowest percentage out of any bilingual municipality in Finland), and29% speakers of other languages, which is well above the national average. According to the 2025 disturbance index used by theFinnish Police, Vantaa is currently the most dangerous city in Finland,[7] andMyyrmäki its most dangerous district.[8]
Remains of an ancient rectangular dwelling dating to 6700 to 6500 BCE have been discovered in Brunaberg in Vantaa. At the time, the dwelling was located at the seashore near the mouth of theKeravanjoki river. The dwelling had been used for decades, apparently mostly in wintertime.[9]: 48 A graveyard-like dwelling dating to theMesolithic has been discovered in Jönsas, which was located at the mouth of a seaside bay at the time.[9]: 48 In the Stone Age, people in Vantaa sought their food mostly from the sea. Seals were an important quarry, but remains ofharbour porpoises have also been found at the numerousNeolithic dwelling sites atJokiniemi.[9]: 62 Remains of permanent dwellings found from Stenkulla inHakkila date from the same period.[9]: 78
There are considerably many findings from theComb Ceramic culture in Vantaa.[11] Many ancient clay figures representing humans have been found in Jokiniemi in Vantaa. They have been estimated to be of various ages from 5300 to 5500 years old.[12][13][14] During the typical Comb Ceramic time, large amounts offlint were brought to Finland from the south and southeast, which was made into blades and points, as well as amber. The Comb Ceramic era humans also knew how to use bows and arrows as weapons.
Iron Age history in Vantaa is not very well known,[15] but the entireUusimaa area was still a sparsely populated backland of Tavastia at the end of the Iron Age.[16] The most researched Iron Age dwelling in Vantaa is located at the same site as the earlier Stone Age dwellings of Jönsas and Palmu. Remains of Morby ceramics have been discovered at these sites, and iron slag has also been discovered in Jönsas. Remains of fireplaces dating to the Iron Age have also been researched in Jönsas.[17]: 232 Remains of dwellings dating to the 10th century have been discovered in Gubbacka inLänsisalmi[9]: 469 as well as remains of smithies from the 12th and 13th centuries.[9]: 508
Information about ancient villages located in the Vantaa area can be found from concentration of soil visible inpalynological analysis as well as retroactive reasoning based on nomenclature and historical documents. According to historianSaulo Kepsu, Finnish population has spread from Tavastia to the Helsinki and Vantaa area in the 11th to 14th centuries, possibly even earlier. The Tavastians had fishing places and other pleasure grounds in the area.[17]: 243–247
TheChurch of St. Lawrence is the oldest building in the Helsinki capital region.[18] The church is located in the district ofHelsingin pitäjän kirkonkylä, which still remains one of the most Swedish-speaking areas of Vantaa.Vanhankaupunginkoski.
Prior to the nameVantaa being taken into use in 1974, the area was known asHelsingin pitäjä (Swedish:Helsinge; "Socken of Helsinki"). The rapids of river Vantaa were known asHelsingfors, from which the current Swedish name of Helsinki derives. Early settlement in Vantaa was centered around the river, inHelsingin pitäjän kirkonkylä ("Helsinki Parish Village"), and from it the city's currentcoat of arms derived its imagery.
TheSwedish colonisation in Vantaa started in connection with the colonisation in the rest ofUusimaa in the late 13th century after theSecond Swedish Crusade. The Swedes called the areaNy land ("new land").[19] There was permanent settlement in the area of the branching point of the rivers in the 14th century.
The history ofHelsingin pitäjä stretches at least to the 14th century. For a long time it was thought that the earliest record of the area was asHelsinge in 1351 when kingMagnus IV of Sweden grantedsalmon fishing rights on the riverHelsingaa (now known as theriver Vantaa) to theEstonianPadise Abbey. However, according to current knowledge, the first mention of Vantaa was in a document given by king Magnus IV inVästerås on 14 September 1331, describing episcopal tithes, requiring a pound of butter for the bishop from every citizen of age 7 years or older.[20]
Since the 14th century, the road betweenTurku andVyborg,King's Road, has run through Vantaa. The road brought significant attention to the city, and its location on the salmon rich river led to a permanent population.
The riverHelsingaa soon gave its name to the entire area, and also inspired the coat of arms of Vantaa. The Helsinkisocken was born from the 1370s to the 1390s, and theChurch of St. Lawrence was built there in 1460. The church was located in a transport hub near the rivers of Vantaa and Kerava. Many roads also ran through the clerical centre: the King's Road from Turku to Vyborg and the Häme road to theHäme Castle and to the coast in the south. The first vicar inHelsingin pitäjä was mentioned in 1395.Helsingin pitäjä is seen as have established itself as a clerical and administrative parish in the 15th century, and the first mention of a church dedicated toSaint Lawrence in the area is from 1401. A localfrälse family donated a land worth oneskattmark fromRekola to the church of St. Lawrence. The nameHelsinge was first mentioned in 1428. In the same year, fishing rights in the area were moved over to theArchdiocese of Turku, which helped the construction of a stone church to replace the old wooden one.
Justice inHelsingin pitäjä was the responsibility of its own district court. It is known that the parish had its own district court in the 16th century. The court could be held by deputies hired by high-ranking judges, so-called lawreaders. The use of lawreaders was common from the late 16th century to the 1680s.[21]: 43, 325, 336–337
Because of its poor location,Porvoo could not compete with theHanseatic merchants inTallinn, so in 1550 kingGustav Vasa decided to found the city ofHelsinki at the site ofHelsingin pitäjä at the mouth of the Helsingaa river.Helsingin pitäjä had already developed into a significant centre of marine trade in Uusimaa in the 1530s. However, theVanhakaupunki area in Helsinki never became the city centre Gustav Vasa wanted during his lifetime.
In 1570, the 25-year Russian war also affected life inHelsingin pitäjä. Increased stress, additional military tax and enemy attacks had their toll on the population and often led to farmsteads being deserted. In 1577 there were 51 farmsteads burned and raided by the enemy.[21]: 53, 83 Serving food to and accommodating the military departments was the responsibility of police chief Olof Mårtensson, who lived at the Malmi horsestead. The largest department served by the police chief consisted of 40 horsemen from the Uppland unit in January 1576. As well as the Malmi horsestead,Helsingin pitäjä was also home to the horsesteads of Pukinmäki, Herttoniemi, Haltiala, Kirkonkylä, Meilby, Kulosaari and Heickby.[21]: 43, 325, 336–337
After theTreaty of Stolbovo, the Diet of Helsinki granted the rights of a staple town to Helsinki for foreign trade in 1617. The wars againstPoland andGermany in the 1620s led to many large manors for the nobility being built inHelsingin pitäjä to support thecavalry, includingWesterkulla andHakunila. In autumn 1640, it was decided to move Helsinki from the Vanhakaupunki area to its current location atVironniemi. The village ofTöölö was annexed fromHelsingin pitäjä to Helsinki proper in 1644, and in 1652 the parish congregation lost its independent status, and in order to support the economy of the Helsinki congregation, the entire church parish of Helsinki was annexed to the city congregation of Helsinki.[22]
TheGreat Famine of 1695–1697 also had its toll onHelsingin pitäjä. Successive years of crop loss caused famine and mortality was high. As well as the peasants, the famine also affected servants of the crown, both the noble and the common estates, and the bourgeoisie.[21]: 349–353
During theGreat Wrath Russian troops invadedHelsingin pitäjä in 1713. Some of the inhabitants fled to the mother country of Sweden or into nearby forests, some fought back against the invaders. As the invasion grew long, circumstances slowly settled and theTreaty of Nystad was made in autumn 1721. A second, shorter invasion, known as theLesser Wrath, happened from 1742 to 1743.
Circumstances inHelsingin pitäjä started improving in the 1720s, as it became one of the most important centres of early industry in Finland. Water-powered sawmills were built in the area, forming a significant concentration of export industry at the time. This export was directed both to central Europe and also far way to theMediterranean Sea in the late 18th century. A significant export target forHelsingin pitäjä was located just near its coast: the construction of theSveaborg fortress, started in 1748, required large amounts of workforce and agricultural and industrial products such as foodstuffs, wood,brick andlime.
Helsingin pitäjä was a Swedish-speaking area. From the middle 18th century to the early 19th century, only about a tenth of the population of the parish spoke Finnish.[21]: 106–109, 396–397
The old station building ofTikkurilaThe historical parish ofHelsingin Pitäjä in the late 1800s
Ore deposits inHelsingin pitäjä had been discovered in the 1700s, but weren't utilized until Finland transferred to Russian control in the early 1800s. Ore extraction and processing lead to rapid industrialization in the area, with communities forming around locations likeTikkurila andKerava. The industrial community in Tikkurila included anexpeller pressing plant, which currently operates in the area as the paint manufacturerTikkurila Oyj.
The capital of autonomous Finland was moved from Turku to Helsinki in the early 1800s andHelsingin pitäjä fell behind the growing population development of Helsinki proper.Helsingin pitäjä gained municipality rights in 1865 because of the first municipal law enacted in Finland, after which it was namedHelsingin maalaiskunta/Helsinge kommun ("Rural Municipality of Helsinki"). In 1805Helsingin pitäjä had 4840 inhabitants, Sveaborg had 4606 and Helsinki had 4337. After six decadesHelsingin pitäjä had about 7000 inhabitants while Helsinki already had 23,000.[22]
The parish assembly meeting in 1823 established the general order, which specified crimes and punishments they resulted in. One of the reasons the general order was made was the increase of rootless vagabonds in the society. The parish assembly meeting and participation of citizens in keeping up the order was needed, because the state officials failed to keep the poor-mannered part of the people under control. Crimes not resulting in a court session were handled in the parish assembly meeting by announcement from thefief holder.[21]: 106–109, 396–397
Interest towards a people's education increased in the early 19th century, when basic education still mostly depended on home tuition. By a suggestion from vicar Erik Crohns, a school was founded in Kirkonkylä in 1825 and a school master was hired.[23]: 19
The year 1865 is considered a significant year in the history of Vantaa, as municipal rule in Finland was established in that year andHelsingin pitäjä becameHelsingin maalaiskunta, the rural municipality of Helsinki. This also led to the congregation regaining its position as an independent vicar area. The railway centre ofMalmi became the administrative centre of the rural municipality.
In 1862, the railway between Helsinki andHämeenlinna was constructed, and one of its seven stations was built in Tikkurila, on its intersection with King's Road. The Swedish architect Carl Albert Edelfelt designed aRenaissance Revival styled station building, which is the oldest extant station building in Finland and (as of 1978) has been adapted into the Vantaa City Museum. The old station building in Tikkurila is the onlybrick station building in Finland preserved in its original state. The building was designed by the provincial architect of theHäme Province,Carl Albert Edelfelt (1818-1869).[22] The railway brought industry and induced population growth.
TheFinnish famine of 1866–1868 decreased the population of Vantaa by 1300 people, and population growth was very slow for a whole decade. Only in the late 1870s Vantaa regained its population from 1865.[23]: 25 The elementary school in Kirkonkylä was founded on 15 September 1869, four years later than originally planned. There were two teachers, one for boys and one for girls.[23]: 125
Four important roads passed throughHelsingin pitäjä in the late 19th century: Hämeentie, theKing's Road, Nurmijärventie and Porvoontie. To the north of Kirkonkylä, Hämeentie leading north crossed the King's Road. The King's Road connectedTurku withVyborg andSaint Petersburg. The King's Road, leading northwest, started from Helsinki as an extension of Läntinen Viertotie (now known asMannerheimintie). Porvoontie connected Hämeentie and the King's Road separating from Hämeentie between Viikki and Malminkylä and connecting to the King's Road in easternHakkila.[23]: 13–15
The largest industrial facility inHelsingin maalaiskunta in the late 19th century was the Arabia porcelain factory. Its production value was greater than that of all the other factories in the municipality put together. The factory was active in the village of Koskela, to the north of Helsinki, and was named after the villa Arabia previously located at the site of the factory.[23]: 111
The growing city of Helsinki needed large amounts of building materials, brought from Uusimaa and Tavastia. Brick factories inHelsingin maalaiskunta were located inTikkurila,Lauttasaari andKulosaari.[23]: 108
A brewery founded by J. K. Kröckell was active inPitäjänmäki, producing several styles of beer, sparkling wine, lemon-flavoured mead and a type of alcohol-free juice called Sorbus. The brewery horses carried malt products both to Helsinki and to the nearby railway station, continuing all the way toTampere. The Pitäjänmäki brewery remained in action until 1914.[23]: 108
In 1899, an edict about tightly populated communities came into force in Finland. During the next couple of decades, almost twenty tightly populated communities were founded in the area ofHelsingin maalaiskunta. Of these,Huopalahti separated into its own municipality in 1920,Oulunkylä in 1921 andKulosaari in 1922. With the exception of Tikkurila, all these communities were discontinued in early 1946 as they were annexed to the city of Helsinki. The tightly populated community of Tikkurila was discontinued together with the rest of the tightly populated communities in Finland in early 1956.
Tikkurila along the Asematie street in 1957.A view of theRing III beltway near the conncection to Kirkonkylä at the intersection toFinnish national road 45, the largest intersection in Finland.
Electricity started replacing steam as an industrial power source inHelsingin maalaiskunta beforeWorld War I. The power stationOy Malmin Sähkölaitos Ab was founded in 1910, and another power station was founded in Oulunkylä in the following year. Malmin sähkölaitos, which had reached a central position, bought a lot fromTapanila for its new power plant. Construction of the power plant and distribution grid, led byGottfried Strömberg, was finished by the end of the year 1910.[23]: 113–114
TheHelsinki-Malmi Airport was built atTattarinsuo in the Malmi area ofHelsingin maalaiskunta in 1936. The soil in the area was very watery and converting it to an airfield was difficult. The airport was taken into use in December 1936. Before this, air traffic in Helsinki had been served by theSantahamina Airport inSantahamina, which was also part ofHelsingin maalaiskunta at the time.
During the great annexation of 1946 the municipalities ofHuopalahti,Oulunkylä andKulosaari as well as about a third of the area ofHelsingin maalaiskunta were annexed to the city of Helsinki. The rural municipality lost two thirds of its population, includingMalmi andPitäjänmäki. In 1954 some of the areas ofKorso inTuusula andKerava were annexed to the rural municipality of Helsinki, as well as a small part of Tuusula in 1959.Vuosaari was annexed to Helsinki in 1966.
The population development ofHelsingin maalaiskunta grew rapidly afterWorld War II.Tikkurila became the new municipal centre in the 1950s. New residential areas consisting mainly of detached houses developed among the main roads and new suburban centres developed along the railways running through the area, such asRekola,Korso andKoivukylä.
In 1952, the newinternational airport of Helsinki opened inHelsingin maalaiskunta for the1952 Summer Olympics, leading to the rural municipality becoming an important transport hub. The new airport split the municipality in half and brought large amounts of traffic and industry to its surroundings. The airport has become a significant part of the cityscape of Vantaa, and even today Vantaa is known abroad as an aviation city.[24]
Because ofWorld War II, many new urban areas had been born in Vantaa already in the 1940s, populated mainly byevacuees from Finnish Karelia andfrontline soldiers, as well as Helsinkians seeking a less densely populated area to live in. The first apartment building groups were built in Tikkurila,Satomäki andVaarala in the 1950s, after whichrural flight sped up construction of apartment buildings. In the record year 1970, the population of Vantaa grew by ten thousand people.
TheKeimola Motor Stadium was built in 1966 along Finnish National Road 3, opposite the residential area ofKivistö, and remained in operation until 1978. Construction of the newKeimolanmäki residential area in place of the former race track started in the 2010s.
In the early 20th century, the majority of the population ofHelsingin maalaiskunta was Swedish-speaking. Afterwards, the rapid increase in the population has brought much more primarily Finnish-speaking population to the city, and today only 3.1 percent of the population in Vantaa are Swedish-speaking.
The roads in Finland were widened in the 1960s and 1970s, and theRing III beltway was built to connect five national roads with each other.Myyrmäki became a second centre in the area after the construction of the Martinlaakso railway, which also sped up development in southwestern Vantaa. New residential suburbs were born along the main railway in the 1960s to 1980s, sped up by rural flight. Areas left outside the main traffic connections, such asSeutula in the west andSotunki in the east, were left mainly unbuilt and rural-oriented.
In 1972, the municipality was renamedVantaa (Swedish:Vanda) and promoted to a kauppala (market town) (i.e.Vantaan kauppala/Vanda köping). In 1974, the town got full city rights asVantaan kaupunki/Vanda stad or "City of Vantaa".[25] The name "Vantaa" comes from the river Vantaa running through the city, along which settlement in the Vantaa area was originally centred. The 650th anniversary of Vantaa was celebrated in 2001.[22]
The city grew rapidly starting from 1960s and a railway line was built to the western side of the city in 1970s.
Since the days of the rural municipality, Vantaa has rapidly developed to its current form because ofrural flight and good traffic connections. Like the neighbouring city ofEspoo, Vantaa has many suburbancommuter towns and lacks a specific city centre. TheHelsinki Airport, the busiest airport in Finland by far, is located in central Vantaa.
In 2015, an extension to the existing railway line, theRing Rail Line opened, providing service to the airport and new residential and working districts. Along the ring road, new residential were constructed. The largest of these developments is the Kivistö suburb followed by the residential districts of Leinelä and Aviapolis. The Ring Rail Line connects the Vantaankoski railway to theFinnish Main Line via theHelsinki Airport atHiekkaharju.[26]
To connect the municipality on the west–east, a new tramway is planned to open in 2030.[27] This tramway will run from the Helsinki-Vantaa airport through districts of Pakkala, Aviapolis and Koivuhaka to the administrative centre of Tikkurila and further onward to Hakkila and Länsimäki in the east. The tram will also provide a link to the Helsinki metro at Mellunmäki station. This tramline will be the first tram in Vantaa.
Colonists arriving fromSweden in the 14th century settled in the area what is now Vantaa and named the river in the area asHelsingå orHelsingaa. The etymology of this name is not known for sure, but according to an old tradition it probably comes from colonists who originally arrived at theHälsingland area in Sweden.[28]
The same river has also been known as the river Vantaa (Vanda å inSwedish). Unlike the nameHelsingaa, the name Vantaa comes from the Finnish-speaking Tavastian inhabitants upstream of the river. There is a village named Vantaa near the source of the river, at the area which now belongs to the city ofRiihimäki. According to a theory, the name comes from theFinnish wordsvanan taka, wherevana means a riverbed and so Vantaa (possibly originally spelled "Vanantaa") means a place behind a riverbed.[28] Only later did the name also came to use also downstream and replace the old nameHelsingaa.[28]
TheVanhankaupunginkoski rapids at the mouth of the river Vantaa were originally known asHelsinge fors ("Helsinki rapids"), which also gave the nameHelsingfors to the city founded along the rapids.
The Vantaa blast furnace founded at the shore of theVantaankoski rapids in 1837 gave the name "Vantaa" to its entire environment.[29]
By the new municipal law in 1865 the Finnish name of the municipality becameHelsingin maalaiskunta ("the rural municipality of Helsinki"), when the concept ofsockens in Finland was discontinued. The Swedish name remained asHelsinge, in contrast toHelsingfors, the Swedish name for Helsinki proper. WhenHelsingin maalaiskunta became a market town in 1972, proposed new names includedHelsingin kauppala,Helsinginjoen kauppala andVantaanjoen kauppala. The accepted name wasVantaan kauppala after the river Vantaa. Two years later Vantaa received city rights.
The city bordersHelsinki, the Finnish capital, which is to the south and southwest. Other neighbouring municipalities areEspoo to the west;Nurmijärvi,Kerava, andTuusula to the north; andSipoo to the east. Vantaa is a part of the Finnish Capital Region, which is the inner core of theHelsinki capital region.
Vantaa consists mostly of lowlands cut up byrivers. According to a survey done by theNational Land Survey of Finland on 1 January 2022, Vantaa encompasses 240.35 square kilometres (92.80 sq mi), of which 1.97 km2 (0.76 sq mi) is water.[2] The city is mostlysuburban andurban area with some rural landscape, notably in the districts ofSotunki andSeutula. Average population density is 1,060.17/km2 (2,745.8/sq mi), which rises above 5,000 inhabitants per square kilometre (13,000/sq mi) in concentrated urban districts like Myyrmäki and Tikkurila.
Theriver Vantaa runs through western Vantaa, and itstributaryKeravanjoki runs through eastern Vantaa. In 1966, the rural municipality of Helsinki (now known as Vantaa) lost the district ofVuosaari to Helsinki proper, cutting it almost completely off from the sea.[31] Up to 2008, Vantaa still reached the seashore at its southeastern corner at thePorvarinlahti bay, until the "Västerkulla wedge" with its seashore was annexed into Helsinki together with part ofSipoo in 2009.[32][33] Thus Vantaa formally became the second largest inland city in theNordic countries afterTampere.[citation needed]
For its area, Vantaa has relatively few lakes. The city encompasses two natural lakes:Kuusijärvi inKuninkaanmäki andLammaslampiPähkinärinne,Hämeenkylä. In addition to these, there is anartificial lake,Silvolan tekojärvi. Vantaa shares two lakes withEspoo:Odilampi andPitkäjärvi. Of the lakes in theSipoonkorpi National Park,Bisajärvi and most ofGumböle träsk are located in Vantaa. Ponds formed in sand pits includeVetokannas, renovated into a swimming beach and the Vaaralanlammet ponds inVaarala.[34]
The easternmost districts of Vantaa,Rajakylä andLänsimäki, are located right next to the border to Helsinki and are connected to the Helsinki districts ofVesala andMellunmäki. Part of the turnstile of theMellunmäki metro station is located in Vantaa.[35]
Vantaa exhibits frequent exposedgranitebedrock ground, which is common in Finland. Resulting from erosion in thelast glacial period (about 10,000 years ago), elevated surfaces often lack soil (superficial deposits), revealing bare stone unsuitable for most plant life. Other geological impacts of the last Ice Age include a series ofeskers running through central Vantaa, which is one of the best sources ofgroundwater in the city. After the glacial period, most of the area of the current city of Vantaa was underwater except for the highest hills. As the land rose, bays stretching far inland were left behind, along with the river Vantaa, which changed its discharge fromMätäoja to Keravanjoki about two millennia ago. The bays flushed against the hills leaving shore formations still visibile today. They also formed flat deposits of clay at the bottom, which now form valleys especially along the rivers.[citation needed]
Vantaa belongs to thetaiga zone and its flora represents the southern parts of the zone. Vantaa is located at the border between the southern boreal zone characteristic of inland southern Finland and the hemiboreal subzone characteristic of southwestern Finland.
The hemiboreal subzone is a transition subzone between coniferous and deciduous forests, and deciduous trees growing naturally in the subzone includeoaks andelms. The river valleys running through Vantaa have previously been full of lush groves, but today most of them are farmed land. However, at some places they are connected to lushmixed forests, transitioning into shadowy spruce forests at some places.
There are prominentalder meadows along the river Mätäoja, which are home to various rare insect and plant species. The most common type of forest in Vantaa is a blueberry conifer forest with spruce and birch trees, whereas dry forests are only located at bare cliff areas.
The second most common forest type in Vantaa is the more lush grove-like forest. Its undergrowth includes blueberry,wood sorrel,herb Paris andlady fern, as well aswood anemone at some places.
There are lush groves growing mosaically among the forests, containing common southern grove plants such as theliverwort. The groves in Vantaa vary greatly, ranging from moist and shady spruce groves growingostrich fern to dry groves growing liverwort andcommon hazel and hardwood groves. In springtime during the first weeks of May the wood anemone flowers very noticeably in almost all groves and grove-like forests, which is characteristic to the forest growth in southwestern and southern Finland.
There is a centuries-old oak forest in the district ofTammisto, which is considered to be the only natural oak forest in the Finnish capital area. The forest has been protected under the nature preservation law in 1946.[36]
Although Vantaa is a very urbanised area, a great deal of its surface area still remains as rural fields or forest. The city of Vantaa contains 12.41 square kilometres of nature preserved area (about 5% of the surface area of the city).[37] The first nature preserve area in Vantaa was founded in 1946 inTammisto. There are two especially protected species in the nature preserve areas in Vantaa, the beetle speciesHylochares cruentatus and the orchid speciesMalaxis monophyllos.[38]
Vantaa has ahumid continental climate (Köppen: Dfb). The city has four distinct seasons, the amount of precipitation is relatively uniform throughout the year. The driest season is spring. Summers are generally relatively warm and winters are cold. Although the city does not have a coastline along theBaltic Sea, it is close enough to experience the mitigating influence of the sea and theGulf Stream. The record low temperature in Vantaa is −35.9 °C (−32.6 °F) and the record high temperature is 34.0 °C (93.2 °F).
Climate data forHelsinki Airport (Vantaa) 1991–2020 normals, records 1952–present
The coldest month of the year is in February, when the average temperature based on measurements from 1981 to 2010 was -5.8 degrees Celsius.[42] After this, the temperatures rise rapidly. The average temperature in April for the same period is +4.0 degrees and the one in May is +10.5 degrees. The warmest month of the year is in July, when the average temperature is +17.7 degrees. The second warmest month is in August with an average temperature of +15.7 degrees and the third warmest is June with an average temperature of +14.7 degrees.[42] The average number of hot weather days in Vantaa is 17, of which over half occur in July on average. In sporadic years hot weather can extend to September. The summer thunderstorm period in Vantaa is very short and varying: it typically starts aroundMidsummer and ends in middle August, peaking at the end of July.
The temperatures lower in autumn slower than they rise in spring. The average day temperature in November is +0.3 degrees and the one in December is -3.3 degrees.[42] In autumn and early winter low pressure storm fronts move eastwards from theAtlantic Ocean passing over Vantaa. Vantaa's location inFennoscandia warmed by theGulf Stream near the coast of the Gulf of Finland makes Vantaa a clearly more temperate area than the average based on its latitude. For example, the southern tip ofGreenland is located south of Vantaa, as are the tundra areas of theLabrador Peninsula. The period when Vantaa is normally covered in snow is typically from late December to early April, after which the snow rapidly melts away.
Spring in Vantaa experiences significantly less rain than autumn. The average monthly rainfall in February through May is only about 30 to 40 millimetres. In summer the weather becomes rainier, and the average monthly rainfall in July through November is 60 to 80 millimetres. The rainfall varies greatly throughout the year: in the late months of the year there are monthly rainfalls of less than 20 millimetres, as well as over 200 millimetres. Respectively, the weather becomes drier in the early months of the year. The total average rainfall in Vantaa in a year is 682.9 millimetres.[42]
The city of Vantaa has 252,724 inhabitants, making it the 4th most populous municipality in Finland. The city of Vantaa is part of theHelsinki metropolitan area, which is the largest urban area in Finland with 1,616,656 inhabitants. The city of Vantaa is home to 4% of Finland's population. 29.2% of the population has a foreign background, which is three times higher than the national average.[44]
In 2017, 69% of people aged 15 and over in Vantaa had completed higher education,[45] meaning that 31% of the population had completed primary education at most. 38% had completed upper secondary education. Of the population with tertiary education (31%), 9% had the lowest degree, 12% had a lower degree and 9% had a higher degree.
The average income in Vantaa is lower than elsewhere in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, but still higher than in the rest of Finland.[46] On the other hand, housing in Vantaa is on average cheaper than in Helsinki and Espoo. Income levels in Vantaa vary widely due to differences between suburbs and single-family areas. On average, women in Vantaa earn about 71% of men's income, which is slightly higher than the Finnish average (69%). Many families with children live in Vantaa, accounting for about 55% of all households. Women make up 50.2% of the population of Vantaa.
The city of Vantaa is officiallybilingual, with bothFinnish andSwedish as official languages. As of 2024[update], the majority of the population,69.1%, spoke Finnish as their first language. There are 5,348Swedish speakers in Vantaa, or2.1% of the population. This compares with5.4% in Helsinki and6.3% in Espoo.[44] The number of Swedish speakers in Vantaa has remained more or less constant over the decades, but the proportion of Swedish speakers in the city has declined steadily as a result of immigration. In 1960, about ten per cent of the population of Vantaa spoke Swedish. In 1980, the proportion was about five per cent. Since the beginning of the 20th century, Vantaa has been a predominantly Finnish-speaking municipality.
Vantaa remains officially bilingual, as the Finnish Language Act states that a municipality must be declared bilingual if the number of speakers of the official minority language (Finnish or Swedish) is at least 8% of the population or 3,000 people.[47] In relation to the total population, the proportion of Swedish speakers in Vantaa is the lowest of all bilingual municipalities in Finland. Among Vantaa's districts, the proportion of Swedish speakers was highest inHelsingin pitäjän kirkonkylä (19.0%),Sotunki (16.6%) andLuhtaanmäki (11.5%) in 2019.[48]
The number of people who speakSámi, Finland's third official language, is only 26 inhabitants. In Vantaa,28.7% of the population speak amother tongue other than Finnish or Swedish.[44] AsEnglish andSwedish are compulsory school subjects, functional bilingualism or trilingualism acquired through language studies is not uncommon.
There are at least 100 different languages spoken in Vantaa. The most common foreign languages areRussian (4.3%),Estonian (3.4%),Arabic (2.4%),Albanian (2.0%),Somali (1.3%) andEnglish (1.3%).[44]
As of 2024[update], there were 73,487 people with a migrant background living in Vantaa, or 29% of the population.[note 1] There were 61,603 residents who were born abroad, or 25% of the population. The number of foreign citizens living in Vantaa was 42,366.[44]
Among the major Finnish cities, Vantaa has the highest proportion of immigrants – more than three times 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 47.0% of the population of Vantaa. Other religious groups accounted for 4.5% of the population. 48.6% of the population had no religious affiliation.[50] TheFinnish Orthodox Church had 1.2% of the population. The proportion of members of the Lutheran Church has steadily decreased in the 21st century, while the proportion of people with no religious affiliation has steadily increased.[51]
Of the congregations of theOrthodox Church of Finland, the Orthodox congregation of Helsinki is active in Vantaa.[53] The Tikkurila Orthodox Church is located near the Tikkurila sports park inViertola[34][54]
Of the member congregations of the Pentecostal Church of Finland, the Myyrmäki Pentecostal congregation, Vantaan Kotikirkko and Vantaan Minttukirkko are active in Vantaa. IndependentPentecostal congregations in Vantaa include the Credo church, the Korso Pentecostal congregation and Seutulan Betania.[55]
The Vantaa free congregation, belonging to the Free Church of Finland, is located in Hiekkaharju, and the congregation has also founded the Free congregation of western Vantaa inAskisto in western Vantaa.
In the latest years, Vantaa has stabilised its economy via an economy and debt program accepted in 2012. The growth of the loan stock was stopped by the end of the council term from 2013 to 2017. In 2016 the city managed to decrease its loan stock a little, which had grown to over one billion euro.
Vantaa has been in increasing debt since the early 2000s, due to a decrease in state funding and an increase in investments. A contributing factor to its situation is the high concentration of families with children, leading to comparatively larger social expenditure.[56] According to the former mayor Juhani Paajanen, the worst expenditures have ended, and the city's gains are increasing.[57]
On a nation-wide perspective, Vantaa has a high level of tax income, but in perspective of the capital region, the tax income of Vantaa is lower than those of Espoo and Helsinki. The state subsidy system and its stabilisation of tax income based on a nation-wide comparison have been seen as problematic because of special challenges of the cities in the capital region and because of constant rapid growth.
The municipal tax in Vantaa is 19.00%, which is clearly below the average in Finland and one of the lowest in the large cities.[58] The last time Vantaa raised its municipal tax was in 2010. The state of Finland has raised the lower limit of the property tax because of new legislation.
In a comparison of characteristic figures of large cities Vantaa has developed positively in the latest years. In regard to municipal concerns and financing various investments, the differences in loan amounts in the cities have balanced out.[58] In the early 2000s over half of the city's debt consisted of rental apartments owned by the city (managed by the company VAV Asunnot Oy). On the other hand, the city ended up in a crisis mainly because it had made large investments in its own balance with borrowed money. The city has hardly sold any of its property in the early 2000s.[59]
Because of good traffic connections, Vantaa has a large amount of food, HVAC and machinery industry as well as businesses. There are industrial areas along the Ring III beltway, particularly near the airport and in the neighbouring districts ofViinikkala,Veromies,Pakkala andKoivuhaka as well as inHakkila, connected to the main railway line by a branch terminal line. TheAviapolis area has developed around the airport, containing many businesses in logistics and high technology. In 2000 74.6% of the jobs in the city were in services, 23.8% in refinery and only 0.5% in agriculture. In 2001 the rate of self-sufficiency in jobs in Vantaa had risen to 97.1%. In the 2000s the number of jobs in Vantaa had grown by about 15%.[citation needed]
An interesting future possibility for Vantaa and for the entire capital region comes from theRing Rail Line, which allows for significant increase in the number of apartments and jobs and provides a direct rail connection from the main railway line to theHelsinki Airport. The Ring Rail Line required an investment of over one hundred million euro from Vantaa. The city of Helsinki had been proposing the idea of joining the municipalities in the capital region, in order to better develop the area, for decades. The cities of Vantaa, Espoo and Kauniainen have rejected this idea each time, although Vantaa has done so a bit more slowly than the others. The municipal and city managers of Vantaa have repeatedly rejected Helsinki's proposal fearing Vantaa would become a "backyard" of Helsinki. Helsinki has been expanding towards Vantaa throughout the 20th century, including the great annexation in 1946 and the annexation ofVuosaari in 1966. Through the annexation ofÖstersundom inSipoo and theVästerkulla wedge to Helsinki in 2009, Vantaa lost its only connection to the sea, becoming the second-largest inland city in the Nordic countries, afterTampere.
The Vantaa culture award is awarded each year as a recognition of significant contributions to the arts and the artistic life in the city, to a person living in Vantaa or to a community active in the city. The award was first awarded in 1976.[65]
The signature animal of Vantaa is thesalmon, also featured in the coat of arms of the city, the traditional dish issalmon soup and the signature plant is thecommon dog-violet.[66][67]
Ankkarock was a rock music festival held every summer inKorso between 1989 and 2010.
Louhela Jam is the oldest continuously organised rock music festival in Vantaa. The festival lasts one day and is free of charge. It is held in the Jokiuomanpuisto park betweenLouhela andMartinlaakso on the first Sunday in June after the end of the spring semester in school.[71]
The Tikkurila Festival, held on a weekend in late July at the Hiekkaharju sports field represents newer summer festival tradition in Vantaa.[72][73]
TheVantaan barokki festival was held in summertime for sixteen years until its discontinuation in 2008. TheVantaan musiikkijuhlat festival was founded in 2010, continuing the previous festival's tradition in concentrating on older music. The newer festival covers a longer time period, and according to the artistic directorMarkku Luolajan-Mikkola the festival concentrates more on periodical instruments than any specific time period.[74]
TheHerättäjäjuhlat festival of theAwakening movement was held in Vantaa in 2016.[75]
The symbol of Heureka,Neljä kuutiota ("Four cubes") by Anssi Asunta, is an optical illusion looking like cubes.
Tikkurila is home of the majorscience centre in Finland,Heureka, opened in April 1989. The purpose of the science centre is to develop the understanding of scientific information and to develop methods of scientific education. The name Heureka refers to the famous statement "I have found it!" byArchimedes.
The city museum of Vantaa in Tikkurila.
The city museum of Vantaa is located in the old station building of therailway station in Tikkurila[76][77] which has exhibitions with various themes on local history. The museum is housed in the oldest station building in Finland, designed byCarl Albert Edelfelt and completed in 1861. The museum moved to the building after it was renovated in autumn 1990.[78] The first two floors of the red brick museum building host exhibits and the third floor hosts the offices of the museum staff.
The concert house Martinus inMartinlaakso, built in 1987, offers premises for various events ranging from meetings and seminars to cultural events.
Because of its goodacoustics, the concert hall has been used for many musical recordings. The hall has also been used for many television recordings. There are 444 guest seats in the hall, of which six are seats for disabled people.[79] The foyer of the concert hall can host small-scale concerts and other events. Martinus is the home hall of the Vantaa entertainment orchestra run by Nick Davies.[80]
The Myyrmäkitalo all-activity house in western Vantaa hosts theMyyrmäki library offering services at a main library scale (another such library in Vantaa is theTikkurila library), the Vantaa art museum Artsi and a rising auditorium with 188 seats. The auditorium hosts the film theatreKino Myyri. Main users of the educational facilities of the house include the Vantaa school of arts, the Vantaa adult education institute and many hobby clubs. The house, built in autumn 1993, is located near theMyyrmäki railway station and theMyyrmanni shopping centre.
There are eight healthcare stations in Vantaa. Most of the major districts have their own healthcare stations, although the Aviapolis major districts are served by healthcare stations from neighbouring major districts.[83] Vantaa has twohospitals,Peijas Hospital inAsola and Katriina Hospital inSeutula. Peijas is responsible foremergency and short-term health services, while Katriina specializes inlong-term care andelderly care.
The Vantaa branch of theHelMet library network has 12libraries in Vantaa, with a total of 441,736 books in 2011.[37] The main library is inTikkurila.[84]
Additionally, Vantaa has threegolf courses. There are two 18-hole golf courses inKeimola, a 9-hole golf course in the Hiekkaharju sports park (in the districts ofJokiniemi andHavukoski), and a golf course inPetikko which was expanded from 9 to 18 holes in 2018.[34][92][93]
Bus transport in Vantaa is extensive: there are over one hundred bus lines in Vantaa, of which the majority are internal lines in Vantaa and the rest are regional lines travelling to Helsinki, Espoo and Kerava.
Of the express bus stops in Vantaa, the stops atKaivoksela,Martinlaakso andKeimolanportti are located along Hämeenlinnanväylä, while the stop atTammisto is located along Tuusulanväylä and the stops atVantaanportti and Ilmakehä are located between Tuusulanväylä and the Helsinki Airport. The stop atTuupakka serves the express buses between the Helsinki Airport andTampere. There are no express bus stops along Lahdenväylä in Vantaa. However, the express buses betweenLahti and the Helsinki Airport stop at Korso. The express buses from the Helsinki Airport toPorvoo andKotka stop at the Tikkurila intersection on the Ring III beltway.
The stations on the Vantaankoski railway areMyyrmäki,Louhela,Martinlaakso andVantaankoski. The stations on the Ring Rail Line areVehkala,Kivistö,Aviapolis,Helsinki Airport andLeinelä. The stations on the main railway areTikkurila railway station,Hiekkaharju,Koivukylä,Rekola andKorso. There are also direct local bus connections to the Helsinki Airport from the Martinlaakso and Vantaankoski stations as well as the Korso and Koivukylä stops. There are preliminary plans for a new station atVallinoja between Korso andSavio with the working nameUrpia. In 2004 a fourth track to Kerava was added to the main railway, so local trains and long-distance trains now run on separate tracks. The Ring Rail Line was completed in 2015, connecting the main railway with the Vantaankoski railway, also travelling via the Helsinki Airport.[96] The completion of the Ring Rail Line has sped up development of new residential and office areas. For example, the number of jobs in the Vantaankoski area has doubled. An idea contest was held for new design ideas in the area.[97]
The largestairport in Finland, and the primary airport of metropolitan area,Helsinki Airport, is located in Vantaa. It attracted a total of 17.1 million passengers in 2016 and a total of 18.9 million passengers in 2017.[98] The airport has done well in international comparisons.[99] The airport splits Vantaa roughly into an eastern and a western part: the administrative centre and the main concentration of population are mostly located in eastern Vantaa.
As a major transport hub, Vantaa suffers from extensive noise and pollution caused by airplanes, railways and motorways. According to noise research, over 77,000 citizens of Vantaa live in an area experiencing over 55 dB of noise. Road noise in Vantaa is caused by theRing III beltway, Hämeenlinnanväylä, Tuusulanväylä, Lahdenväylä and Porvoonväylä. About 7000 citizens of Vantaa live in an area experiencing noise from airplane traffic and about 9000 live in an area experiencing noise from railway traffic.[102]
Vantaa offers diverse opportunities in primary education. The city has a total of 50 Finnish-speaking, five Swedish-speaking, and one English-speakingprimary andjunior high schools.[103][104] The schools come in various sizes, of which the smallest is the Swedish-speakingKyrkoby skola, which has been located in the same school building since 1837.[105] In contrast, the largest primary schools in Vantaa are Finnish-speaking schools of over 800 students such as the Mikkola and Lehtikuusi schools.[106]
Vantaa has five Finnish-speakingupper secondary schools, includingTikkurila Upper Secondary, the largest upper secondary school in the Nordic Countries, as well as one Swedish-speaking upper secondary school. In addition, Vantaa has aSteiner school including primary and secondary education, online education at the Sotunki Upper Secondary and adult education at the Tikkurila Upper Secondary.[107]
Forvocational education, Vantaa has severalvocational schools, such as the Varia vocational school, the Mercuria school of business economics, the Vocational school for probation, Työtehoseura and Edupoli, of which the latter two offer vocational training for youths and adults and hold vocational screening.[108] Vocational education for special groups is offered by the Vantaa offices of the Vocational school Live and the Kiipula vocational school. It is also possible to take the Finnish matriculation examination in connection with vocational education (a double examination for example in the Varia vocational school).[109]
Vantaa has twouniversities of applied sciences:Metropolia andLaurea. Metropolia has offices inMyyrmäki (technical education and Metropolia Business School) andTikkurila (institution for design). Laurea offers education in communications and social and healthcare in Tikkurila.[110]
The Vantaa institution for adult education is one of the largest educational institutions in Finland. Education is also provided by the Vantaa institution for arts, the Vantaa institution for music, the Vantaa institution for creative writing and a couple of private educational institutions.
^Nikander, Anniina (5 February 2025)."Paha paikka" [A Bad Place].Iltalehti (in Finnish). Retrieved7 February 2025.
^abcdefgGeorg Haggrén, Petri Halinen, Mika Lavento, Sami Raninen ja Anna Wessman (2015).Muinaisuutemme jäljet. Helsinki: Gaudeamus. pp. 48, 62, 72.ISBN978-952-495-363-4.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link).
^Tarkiainen, Kari (2010).Ruotsin itämaa. Helsinki: Svenska litteratursällskapet i Finland. p. 122.ISBN978-951-583-212-2.
^"Vantaa onkin kymmenen vuotta vanhempi", HS Metro 13 September 2018, p. 17.
^abcdefKuisma, Markku:Kuisma, Markku: Helsingin pitäjän historia II. Vanhan Helsingin synnystä isoonvihaan 1150-1713, city of Vantaa 1990.ISBN951-8959-05-6.
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