Lemi facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lemi
Municipality
Lemin kunta Lemi kommun
The center of Lemi
Coat of arms
Location of Lemi in Finland
Country	Finland
Region	South Karelia
Sub-region	Lappeenranta sub-region
Charter	1688
Municipality	1867
Area  (2018-01-01)
• Total	262.48 km2 (101.34 sq mi)
• Land	217.96 km2 (84.15 sq mi)
• Water	44.71 km2 (17.26 sq mi)
Area rank	255th largest in Finland
Population  (2023-12-31)
• Total	2,862
• Rank	221st largest in Finland
• Density	13.13/km2 (34.0/sq mi)
Population by native language
• Finnish	97.4% (official)
• Swedish	0.1%
• Others	2.4%
Population by age
• 0 to 14	17.3%
• 15 to 64	56.8%
• 65 or older	25.8%
Time zone	UTC+02:00 (EET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+03:00 (EEST)
Climate	Dfc
Website	www.lemi.fi

Lemi is a small municipality in Finland. It is located in the South Karelia region, which is in southeastern Finland. Lemi has a population of about 2,862 people (as of 31 December 2023). This makes it the smallest municipality in South Karelia by population.

Lemi covers an area of about 262.48 square kilometres (101.34 sq mi). A small part of this area, 44.71 km² (17.26 sq mi), is water. The official language spoken in Lemi is Finnish.

Lemi is famous for being named the "heavy metal capital of the world" in 2018. This title was given because of the high number of heavy metal bands compared to its population. With 13 bands and only about 3,076 residents at the time, Lemi had an amazing ratio of 422.6 bands per 100,000 people! The well-known Finnish thrash metal band Stam1na is also from Lemi.

Exploring Lemi's Geography

The main center of Lemi is a village called Juvola. Besides Juvola, Lemi has many other villages. Some of these include Ahtiala, Hakulila, Heikkilä, and Kuukanniemi.

You can find schools in both Juvola and Kuukanniemi. Kuukanniemi and the villages around it are home to about 750 people.

A Glimpse into Lemi's Past

How Lemi Became Independent

Lemi was first established in 1688 as an independent Evangelical Lutheran church parish. Later, in 1867, the local government was separated from the church. This change made Lemi an independent municipality.

Lemi During Wartime

A Canet 152/45-C naval gun, similar to those used in Lemi during the war.

During the Finnish Civil War in 1918, some fighting happened in Lemi's cemetery.

Later, during World War II, Lemi played a role in Finland's defense. After the Winter War, Finland had to give up some land to the Soviet Union. To protect the new border, Finland built a strong defense line called the Salpa Line. Large naval guns were moved to Lemi to become part of this defense.

For example, two powerful Canet 152/45-C naval guns were brought to Kärmeniemi, a village in Lemi. These guns were later moved to other locations for testing and use in the Continuation War. After the wars ended, these big guns were no longer in Lemi. However, you can still see the places where these gun positions once stood in Kärmeniemi and Juvola. These sites remind us of Lemi's role in Finland's history.

Places to Visit in Lemi

Lemi has some interesting places to explore:

• The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Lemi: This is the main church in the municipality.
• Juvolan mörssäripatteri – The mortar battery of Juvola: This site shows the partly restored positions of four large 280 mm mortars from 1877. These mortars were part of the Salpa Line defense during the wars. The original mortars were destroyed after the Continuation War.
• Kärmeniemen patteri – The battery of Kärmeniemi: This is where two large Canet 152/45-C guns were once located. Like the mortar battery, this site was also part of the Salpa Line. The guns themselves are no longer there.

Images for kids

• 

  Lemi church

• 

  Bell tower in Lemi's center

Famous People from Lemi

• Elias Muukka, a well-known painter.
• Mirja Hietamies, an Olympic champion in cross-country skiing.
• Stam1na, a popular thrash metal band.

See also

In Spanish: Lemi para niños