Karelia facts for kids

Karelia is a special region in northern Europe, located in the eastern part of Fennoscandia. It's a beautiful area with lots of forests, lakes, and rivers. People have different ideas about exactly where Karelia begins and ends.

Today, most of Karelia is part of Russia. A smaller part of Karelia belongs to Finland. The Russian side is called the Republic of Karelia. On the Finnish side, you'll find two areas: North Karelia and South Karelia.

The first people to live in Karelia were the Karelians. They speak a language called Karelian, which is very similar to Finnish. The Karelians were known for their old poems and stories. Many of these poems were collected in a famous Finnish book called Kalevala. This book is very important to both Finnish and Karelian culture.

In the Republic of Karelia today, most people are Russians. The Karelian people are a smaller group, also known as a minority. Some people worry that the Karelian language and culture might disappear over time.

For a long time, much of Karelia was part of Finland. But after a conflict called the Winter War, the Soviet Union took control of a large part of it. Later, after World War II, Finland had to officially give most of Karelia to the Soviet Union as part of a peace agreement. After this, many people from other parts of the Soviet Union moved to live in Karelia.

Images for kids

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  Parts of Karelia, as they are divided today

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  Kizhi Pogost, an amazing example of old wooden buildings on Kizhi island

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  East Karelia and West Karelia with borders from 1939 and 1940–1947. These are also known as Russian Karelia and Finnish Karelia.

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  A view of the old town of Kem in 1916.

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  Viipuri Castle on the Gulf of Finland in the city of Vyborg. Viipuri was once considered the capital of Karelia when it was part of Finland.

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  Pioneers in Karelia, painted in 1900 by Pekka Halonen.

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  A map showing the Republic of Karelia and the Finnish regions.

See also

In Spanish: Carelia para niños