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Iitti

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Iitti (Finnish: [ˈiːtːi]; Swedish: Itis) is a municipality of Finland. It is located in the province of Southern Finland and is part of the Päijänne Tavastia region.[5] The municipality has a population of 6,433 (31 August 2024)[2] and covers an area of 687.09 square kilometres (265.29 sq mi) of which 97.27 km2 (37.56 sq mi) is water.[1] The population density is 10.91 inhabitants per square kilometre (28.3/sq mi). Neighbour municipalities are Heinola, Kouvola, Lapinjärvi, Lahti and Orimattila. The municipality is unilingually Finnish.

Iitti
Itis
Municipality
Iitin kunta
Itis kommun
Church
Church
Coat of arms of Iitti
Coat of arms
Location of Iitti in Finland
Location of Iitti in Finland
Coordinates: 60°53′N 026°20′E / 60.883°N 26.333°E / 60.883; 26.333
Country Finland
RegionPäijänne Tavastia
Sub-regionLahti sub-region
Charter1865
SeatKausala
Government
 • Municipality managerJarkko Salonen
Area
 (2018-01-01)[1]
 • Total687.09 km2 (265.29 sq mi)
 • Land589.81 km2 (227.73 sq mi)
 • Water97.27 km2 (37.56 sq mi)
 • Rank142nd largest in Finland
Population
 (2024-08-31)[2]
 • Total6,433
 • Rank141st largest in Finland
 • Density10.91/km2 (28.3/sq mi)
Population by native language
[2]
 • Finnish97.3% (official)
 • Swedish0.2%
 • Others2.4%
Population by age
[3]
 • 0 to 1414%
 • 15 to 6454.5%
 • 65 or older31.5%
Time zoneUTC+02:00 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+03:00 (EEST)
ClimateDfc
Websitewww.iitti.fi

The current administrative center of Iitti is in the village of Kausala. In 1990, the historical center of Iitti, which surrounds the old parish church, was voted the most attractive kirkonkylä ("church village") in Finland.[6]

In the coat of arms of Iitti, the gray wavy fess refers to Kymi River and the key above it to the municipality's central position along the river. The coat of arms was designed by heraldist Ahti Hammar, and was officially confirmed for use on 3 March 1953.[7]

The Kymi Ring motor sport center is located in Iitti, right next to the border of Kouvola.[8]

History

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Mankala hydropower plant

The surroundings of lakes Urajärvi and Pyhäjärvi have been known to be exploited as wilderness since the Stone Age, although no signs of permanent habitation from the era have been found, and the area is presumed to have been entirely uninhabitated in the interim between the Stone Age and the conversion of Finland to Christianity. By the end of paganism, Iitti had gained its first permanent inhabitants first from Hauho and Vanaja, as well as later on from Hollola.[9]

The oldest village in Iitti is presumed to be Kauramaa, though several others are mentioned in documents dating to the Middle Ages. Administratively, Iitti was a chapel subordinated to the parish of Hollola until 1539, after which it became an independent parish that also included Nastola, Jaala, Valkeala and parts of Mäntyharju, by proclamation from Gustav I. At this time, Iitti had 14 villages and 89 estates.[9]

Iitti suffered greatly over the Russo-Swedish War of 1788–1790, becoming a battleground as well as a headquarters for Swedish forces. The battle of Tillolankangas was one of the bloodiest over the entire war in Finland; the Swedes' victory cemented the liberation of the villages around river Kymi. Over the course of the war, 13 villages were destroyed in Iitti.[9]

Until 2021, Iitti was part of the Kymenlaakso region before it became part of Päijänne Tavastia.[10]

Geography

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Villages

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In 1968, Iitti had the following villages:[9]

  • Haapakimola
  • Kauramaa
  • Kausala
  • Kimola
  • Iitti
  • Koliseva
  • Koskenniska
  • Lyöttilä
  • Kymentaka
  • Muikkula
  • Niinimäki
  • Perheniemi
  • Radansuu
  • Saaranen
  • Sitikkala
  • Säyhde
  • Sääskjärvi
  • Taasia
  • Tapola
  • Vuolenkoski

Demographics

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In 2020, 14.0% of the population of Iitti was under the age of 15, 55.2% were aged 15 to 64, and 31.5% were over the age of 64. The average age was 48.8, above the national average of 43.4 and regional average of 46.4. Speakers of Finnish made up 97.9% of the population and speakers of Swedish made up 0.2%, while the share of speakers of foreign languages was 1.9%. Foreign nationals made up 1.4% of the total population.[11]

At the end of March 2021, the population of Iitti was 6,590. The chart below, describing the development of the total population of Iitti from 1975 to 2020, encompasses the municipality's area as of 2021.

Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
1975 7,995—    
1980 7,770−0.57%
1985 7,690−0.21%
1990 7,889+0.51%
1995 7,687−0.52%
YearPop.±% p.a.
2000 7,534−0.40%
2005 7,265−0.72%
2010 7,005−0.73%
2015 6,910−0.27%
2020 6,625−0.84%
Source: Statistics Finland[12]

Urban areas

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In 2019, out of the total population of 6,711, 3,946 people lived in urban areas and 2,705 in sparsely populated areas, while the coordinates of 60 people were unknown. This made Iitti's degree of urbanization 59.3%.[13] The urban population in the municipality was divided between two urban areas as follows:[14]

# Urban area Population
1 Kausala 3,702
2 Iitti parish village 244

Economy

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In 2018, 10.2% of the workforce of Iitti worked in primary production (agriculture, forestry and fishing), 35.9% in secondary production (e.g. manufacturing, construction and infrastructure), and 50.8% in services. In 2019, the unemployment rate was 9.2%, and the share of pensioners in the population was 35.8%.[15]

The ten largest employers in Iitti in 2019 were as follows:[16]

  1. Halton Oy, 257 employees
  2. Municipality of Iitti, 199 employees
  3. Päijät-Häme Health Care Municipal Consortium, 149 employees
  4. Kiitokori Oy, 61 employees
  5. Kymen Seudun Osuuskauppa, 46 employees
  6. SharpCell Oy, 42 employees
  7. Dinair Clean Air Oy, 40 employees
  8. Iitin Ehtookotiyhdistys ry, 31 employees
  9. Kausalan Matkakeidas Oy, 29 employees
  10. Kaupe Oy, 21 employees

Culture

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Saukonkallio dance hall

Events

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The Iitti Music Festival (Iitin musiikkijuhlat), which focuses on both classical and contemporary music, is held annually in Iitti's church village.[17]

Food

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In the 1980s, a lamb meat called lampahkäppä, a sweetened potato casserole called potaattiloota, a rye lingonberry pastries baked with cabbage leaves called lehikäiset served with plum saftsuppe, and a local baked cheese were named traditional dishes of Iitti parish.[18]

Media

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Iitti has its own local newspaper called Iitinseutu, whose editorial office is located in Kausala.[19]

The 2023 Finnish slasher horror film The Island of Doom (Tuomion saari), directed by Keke Soikkeli, was shot in Iitti.[20][21][22]

Notable residents

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Area of Finnish Municipalities 1.1.2018" (PDF). National Land Survey of Finland. Retrieved 30 January 2018.
  2. ^ a b c "Finland's preliminary population figure was 5,625,011 at the end of August 2024". Population structure. Statistics Finland. 24 September 2024. ISSN 1797-5395. Retrieved 25 September 2024.
  3. ^ "Population according to age (1-year) and sex by area and the regional division of each statistical reference year, 2003–2020". StatFin. Statistics Finland. Retrieved 2 May 2021.
  4. ^ a b "Luettelo kuntien ja seurakuntien tuloveroprosenteista vuonna 2023". Tax Administration of Finland. 14 November 2022. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  5. ^ Päijät-Häme 2021 (in Finnish)
  6. ^ Käyhty, Aila (1 October 1990). "Iitin kirkonkylä on Suomen kaunein". Helsingin Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 31 December 2023.
  7. ^ Suomen kunnallisvaakunat (in Finnish). Suomen Kunnallisliitto. 1982. ISBN 951-773-085-3.
  8. ^ "Home". Kymi Ring. Retrieved 31 December 2023.
  9. ^ a b c d Soikkanen, Mauri; Erävuori, Jukka; Korpela, Kalevi; Penttilä, Antero; Mäkinen, Vesa (1968). "Iitti". Suomenmaa 2: maantieteellis-yhteiskunnallinen tieto- ja hakuteos. 2: Heinola–Kaavi. Helsinki: WSOY.
  10. ^ Korhonen, Antti-Jussi (31 December 2020). "Iitti vaihtaa maakuntaa huomenna – kaikkiaan viisi kuntaa vaihtaa maakuntaa". Yle (in Finnish). Retrieved 26 September 2022.
  11. ^ "Key figures on population by region, 1990-2020". StatFin. Statistics Finland. Archived from the original on 6 April 2019. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  12. ^ "Population according to age (1-year) and sex by area, 1972-2020". StatFin. Statistics Finland. Archived from the original on 25 May 2019. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  13. ^ "Degree of urbanisation by area, 2019". StatFin. Statistics Finland. Archived from the original on 26 November 2019. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  14. ^ "Population in urban settlements and sparsely populated areas by age, sex and municipality, 2019". StatFin. Statistics Finland. Archived from the original on 26 November 2019. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  15. ^ "Municipal key figures 1987-2020 (with the 2021 regional division)". StatFin. Statistics Finland. Archived from the original on 26 April 2021. Retrieved 26 April 2021. (2018, 2019 and 2020)
  16. ^ "Kunnittainen toimipaikkatilasto" (in Finnish). Statistics Finland. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
  17. ^ "Home". Iitti Music Festival. Retrieved 31 December 2023.
  18. ^ Kolmonen, Jaakko (1988). Kotomaamme ruoka-aitta: Suomen, Karjalan ja Petsamon pitäjäruoat (in Finnish). Helsinki: Patakolmonen. p. 99. ISBN 951-96047-3-1.
  19. ^ "Etusivu". Iitinseutu (in Finnish). Retrieved 31 December 2023.
  20. ^ Mannonen, Tuomo (24 February 2023). "Kouvolassa ja Iitissä kuvataan elokuvateatterilevitykseen tuleva kauhuelokuva – Mukana on tv:stä tuttuja näyttelijöitä ja paikallisia harrastajia". Etelä-Suomen Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 31 December 2023.
  21. ^ Sironen, Elina (31 May 2023). "Konsta Hietanen elää kauhun ja humoristisuuden tasapainossa Tuomion saari -elokuvan kuvauksissa". Hämeen Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 31 December 2023.
  22. ^ Niemeläinen, Johannes (30 December 2023). "Tuomion saari on ohjaajansa työnäyte". Iitinseutu (in Finnish). Retrieved 31 December 2023.
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