Ahvenanmaa

Ahvenanmaa (Swedish Åland), autonomous province of Finland, composed of the Åland Islands, situated at the northern end of the Baltic Sea, at the mouth of the Gulf of Bothnia, between Sweden and Finland. It comprises approximately 6,500 granite islands and rocky reefs, with an area of 1,481 sq km (about 572 sq mi). Only 80 of the islands are inhabited; the population is about 25,000 (1992 estimate). Mariehamn, the administrative centre and chief port, is located on Åland, the largest of the islands, which is linked by daily ferry and steamship services to the Swedish and Finnish mainlands. There are also frequent flights from Mariehamn Airport. The Åland Islands are themselves connected by inter-island ferries and by bridges between the larger islands. Fishing, shipping, and tourism are the chief industries. Farming produces grains, fruits, vegetables, beef, and dairy products. The islands publish their own stamps, greatly prized by collectors. The population is almost entirely Swedish-speaking, and there is a steady trend of migration to Sweden.

Mariehamn is known as the “town of a thousand linden trees” and attracts thousands of island-hopping tourists in the summer months. Attractions include the maritime museum and a four-masted barque Pommern, built in 1903. On the island of Sund is the medieval castle, Kastelholm, and there are later Russian fortifications at Bomarsund that date from the Crimean War.

The islands have been inhabited since prehistoric times, and Åland has many Viking settlement sites and graveyards. The islands were Christianized by Sweden in the 12th century; in 1809 they and all of Finland were ceded to Russia. The position of the islands made them strategically important during the Crimean War, after which they were demilitarized. In 1918, at the end of World War I, Finland granted the islands administrative autonomy to quiet a strong, pro-Swedish secessionist movement. Finnish sovereignty over the islands was confirmed by a 1921 decision of the League of Nations.

In 1951 revised autonomy legislation provided for independent rights of legislation in internal affairs and for autonomous control over the islands' economy. Further revisions in 1991, effective from 1993, increased the province's autonomy, extending the legislature's rights to enact laws and control the islands' budget. Constitutional reform in 1988 introduced the principal of majority government and the former coalition politics of the 30-member parliament (Lagting) was tempered by the formation of a formal parliamentary government and opposition. The President of Finland is represented by a governor. The islands, alongside Finland, joined the European Union in 1995 but negotiated duty-free laws that helped the inter-country ferry services to survive.