Pirkkala Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids

Pirkkala

Birkala

Municipality

Pirkkalan kunta
Birkala kommun

Tampere-Pirkkala Airport

Coat of arms

Location of Pirkkala in Finland

Country

Finland

Region

Pirkanmaa

Sub-region

Tampere sub-region

Metropolitan area

Tampere metropolitan area

Charter

1922

Seat

Naistenmatka

Area

(2018-01-01)

• Total

104.04 km² (40.17 sq mi)

• Land

81.42 km² (31.44 sq mi)

• Water

22.66 km² (8.75 sq mi)

Area rank

304th largest in Finland

Population

(2023-12-31)

• Total

20,763

• Rank

50th largest in Finland

• Density

255.01/km² (660.5/sq mi)

Population by native language

• Finnish

95% (official)

• Swedish

0.4%

• Others

4.6%

Population by age

• 0 to 14

19.9%

• 15 to 64

61.8%

• 65 or older

18.3%

Time zone

UTC+02:00 (EET)

• Summer (DST)

UTC+03:00 (EEST)

Pirkkala (pronounced PEERK-kah-lah) is a town in Finland. It's located in the Pirkanmaa region, just southwest of the bigger city of Tampere. Pirkkala is home to about 21,000 people. It's also part of the larger Tampere metropolitan area, which has around 417,000 residents.

Pirkkala is the 50th most populated town in Finland. It covers an area of about 104.04 square kilometres (40.17 sq mi), with 22.66 km² (8.75 sq mi) of that being water. It's known for being the most densely populated municipality in Finland that isn't officially called a city. Pirkkala is also growing very fast in the Pirkanmaa region. The main language spoken here is Finnish.

You can find the Tampere-Pirkkala Airport in the southwest part of Pirkkala. The main road that goes through Pirkkala is the Tampere Ring Road.

A Look at Pirkkala's Past
Cool Places to See in Pirkkala
Famous People from Pirkkala
Pirkkala's Global Connections
- Twin Towns
Gallery
See also

A Look at Pirkkala's Past

The Story of Great Pirkkala

Long ago, in the 1300s, there was a huge area called Suur-Pirkkala, or Great Pirkkala. It covered more than half of the Pirkanmaa region, which today has over 526,000 people. Over time, this large area started to split up. New towns and communities wanted to become independent.

North and South Pirkkala Emerge

In 1922, Pirkkala officially split into two parts: Pohjois-Pirkkala (Northern Pirkkala) and Etelä-Pirkkala (Southern Pirkkala). This happened because people in the south, led by a farmer named Hannes Palmroth, wanted to be separate from the more industrial north.

Pirkkala Gets Its Name Back

Later, in 1938, Northern Pirkkala changed its name to Nokia. Then, in 1939, after a special request to the President of Finland, Kyösti Kallio, Southern Pirkkala got its original name back: Pirkkala. The entire Pirkanmaa region, which was created in the 1950s, was named after Pirkkala. This is because Pirkkala was right in the middle of the area that used to be the historic Great Pirkkala.

Cool Places to See in Pirkkala

Pirkkala has a very long history. People have lived here since the Stone Age and Iron Age. Many old artifacts have been found in the area.

The old church, made of red brick, was designed by Ilmari Launis in 1921. We know it was built where an even older church used to stand. There's also a newer church, built in 1994. It's white and has a modern design by Simo Paavilainen and Käpy Paavilainen. This new church is located near the town center, Naistenmatka. When it was finished, it was even chosen as the most beautiful new building in Finland!

You can also visit the Sculpture Park near the town center. This park has amazing modern art sculptures. They were created during special events in 2001 and 2003 where artists worked with cast iron. Most of these sculptures are placed around Lake Vähäjärvi. The idea for these events came from Villu Jaanisoo, an artist from Pirkkala who moved there from Estonia. One of the most famous sculptures is Jaaniso's Peruspirkkalalainen (meaning "Basic Pirkkala Resident"). It's located near the Suupantori market square in the town center. People sometimes call it the Valte statue.

Famous People from Pirkkala

Pirkkala has been home to many interesting people:

Minna Craucher (1891–1932), a well-known socialite and spy.
Lauri Ala-Myllymäki (born 1997), a football player.
Tuija Brax (born 1965), a politician and former Minister of Justice.
Jan-Mikael Järvinen (born 1988), an ice hockey player.
Jarno Laitinen (born 1988), an ice hockey player.
Joonas Lehtivuori (born 1988), an ice hockey player.
Sanna Marin (born 1985), who became the Prime Minister of Finland.
Mika Mäki (born 1988), a racing driver.
Reijo Mikkolainen (born 1964), an ice hockey player.
Pertti Palmroth (born 1931), a shoe designer.
Pasi Petriläinen (born 1978), an ice hockey player.
Riikka Purra (born 1977), a politician.
Lauri Pyykönen (born 1978), a cross-country skier.
Jukka Tammi (born 1962), an ice hockey player.
Artturi Tienari (1907–1998), a military officer, business leader, and politician.
Allu Tuppurainen (born 1951), an actor and screenwriter.
Jouko Turkka (1942–2016), a famous theater director.

Pirkkala's Global Connections

Pirkkala has a special friendship with another town far away. This is called a "twin town" or "sister city" relationship. It helps towns learn from each other and build good connections.