Suomussalmi Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids

Suomussalmi

Municipality

Suomussalmen kunta
Suomussalmi kommun

An aerial view of Ämmänsaari, an administrative center of Suomussalmi

Coat of arms

Location of Suomussalmi in Finland

Country

Finland

Region

Kainuu

Sub-region

Kehys-Kainuu

Charter

1867

Seat

Ämmänsaari

Area

(2018-01-01)

• Total

5,857.60 km² (2,261.63 sq mi)

• Land

5,270.33 km² (2,034.89 sq mi)

• Water

587.03 km² (226.65 sq mi)

Area rank

9th largest in Finland

Population

(2023-12-31)

• Total

7,172

• Rank

130th largest in Finland

• Density

1.36/km² (3.5/sq mi)

Population by native language

• Finnish

96.7% (official)

• Swedish

0.1%

• Others

3.2%

Population by age

• 0 to 14

10.1%

• 15 to 64

52%

• 65 or older

37.9%

Time zone

UTC+02:00 (EET)

• Summer (DST)

UTC+03:00 (EEST)

Suomussalmi (Finnish: [ˈsuo̯muˌsːɑlmi]) is a municipality in Finland and is located in the Kainuu region about 90 kilometres (56 mi) northeast of Kajaani, the capital of Kainuu and 120 kilometres (75 mi) south of Kuusamo. The municipality has a population of 7,172 (31 December 2023) and covers an area of 5,857.60 square kilometres (2,261.63 sq mi) of which 587.03 km² (226.65 sq mi) is water. The population density is 1.36 inhabitants per square kilometre (3.5/sq mi). The municipality is unilingually Finnish. Ämmänsaari is the biggest built-up area in the municipality.

Suomussalmi is the second southernmost part of the reindeer-herding area in Finland.

History
Villages
Transport
Notable people
International relations
- Twin towns — Sister cities
See also

History

During the Winter War of 1939–40, several battles were fought in the area around Suomussalmi, the most important ones being the Battle of Suomussalmi and the Battle of Raate Road. In these battles, Finnish forces defeated numerically superior Soviet forces.

Suomussalmi hosted the 2016 World Berry Picking Championship.

Villages

Alajärvi
Ala-Vuokki
Hossa
Jumaliskylä
Juntusranta
Kaljuskylä
Kerälä
Kiannanniemi
Korpela
Korvua
Kuivajärvi
Kurimo
Lomakylä
Myllylahti
Näljänkä
Näätälä
Peranka
Pesiökylä
Pesiönlahti
Piispajärvi
Pisto
Pitämä
Pyhäkylä
Raate
Ruhtinansalmi
Sakara
Selkoskylä
Siikaranta
Suomussalmi (Kirkonkylä)
Tervakangas
Vaaranniva
Vasara
Vuokki
Yli-Vuokki
Ämmänsaari (administrative center)

Kuivajärvi and Hietajärvi, located close to the Russian border, have long belonged to the poetic villages of White Karelia, and the Karelian language, Viena Karelian, has traditionally been spoken in the area.

Transport

Highway 5 (E63) comes from Hyrynsalmi via Suomussalmi to Kuusamo. The rest of the municipality's most important roads are mainly smaller regional roads; regional road 912 from Kuhmo comes to Suomussalmi, regional road 843 from Palovaara to Suomussalmi continues to Kuusamo's Poussuu, regional road 892 runs from Suomussalmi through Korpikylä and Kytömäki to Hyrynsalmi, regional road 897 takes you from Alajärvi from Suomussalmi via Hattuvaara to Yli-Näljänkä, and connecting road 9125 or Raatteentie (also included parts of the current regional road 912) is a connecting road from Raatteenportti to Raate in the municipality of Suomussalmi, which was named after the Battle of Raate in 1940.