Mariehamn

Mariehamn
Mariehamns stad
Town of Mariehamn
Västerhamn ferry terminal, Ålands Lagting, Havsgatan street, Consulate General of Sweden, Saint George church, Ålands Lyceum, the Sails Pavilion
Nickname(s): 
De tusen lindarnas stad (lit.'The town of a thousand linden trees')[1]
Location of Mariehamn in Finland
Mariehamn
Location within the Åland Islands
Coordinates: 60°06′N 019°56′E / 60.100°N 19.933°E / 60.100; 19.933
Country Finland
RegionÅland
Sub-regionMariehamn
Charter21 February 1861 (1861-02-21)[2]
Named forMaria Alexandrovna
Government
 • MayorArne Selander
Area
 (2018-01-01)[3]
 • Total
20.75 km2 (8.01 sq mi)
 • Land11.81 km2 (4.56 sq mi)
 • Water8.96 km2 (3.46 sq mi)
 • Rank311th largest in Finland
Population
 (2025-06-30)[4]
 • Total
11,898
 • Rank86th largest in Finland
 • Density1,007.45/km2 (2,609.3/sq mi)
Population by native language
 • Swedish81.1% (official)
 • Finnish4.7%
 • Others14.1%
Population by age
 • 0 to 1414.2%
 • 15 to 6460.9%
 • 65 or older24.9%
Time zoneUTC+02:00 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+03:00 (EEST)
Postal code
22100, 22101, 22110, 22111, 22120, 22140, 22150, 22160[7]
Websitewww.mariehamn.ax

Mariehamn (/məˈrəhɑːmən/ mə-REE-ə-hah-mən,[9] Finland Swedish: [mɑriːeˈhɑmn] ; Finnish: Maarianhamina [ˈmɑːriɑnˌhɑminɑ]; Latin: Portus Mariae) is the capital of Åland, an autonomous territory under Finnish sovereignty. Mariehamn is the seat of the Government and Parliament of Åland, and 40% of the population of Åland live in the city. It is mostly surrounded by Jomala, the second-largest municipality in Åland in terms of population; to the east, it is bordered by Lemland. Like the rest of Åland, Mariehamn is unilingually Swedish-speaking and around 81% of the inhabitants speak it as their native language.[5]

The theme of the coat of arms of Mariehamn refers to the city's main livelihood, maritime transport, and the city's parks, which are typically lined with linden trees.[10][11][12][13] The coat of arms was designed by Nils Byman and confirmed in 1951.[14]

Due to its central location in the Baltic Sea, Mariehamn has become a major summer resort town for global tourism; as many as 1.5 million tourists visit annually.[15][16][17]

  1. ^ "Turism - Mariehamns stad". Mariehamns stad. Retrieved 23 January 2020.
  2. ^ "Sjöfarts promenaden: Upptäck Mariehamn till fots" (PDF) (in Swedish). City of Mariehamn. Retrieved 21 February 2024.
  3. ^ "Area of Finnish Municipalities 1.1.2018" (PDF). National Land Survey of Finland. Retrieved 30 January 2018.
  4. ^ "Population increased most in Uusimaa in January to June 2025". Population structure. Statistics Finland. 2025-07-24. ISSN 1797-5395. Retrieved 2025-07-24.
  5. ^ a b "Number of foreign-language speakers exceeded 600,000 during 2024". Population structure. Statistics Finland. 2025-04-04. ISSN 1797-5395. Retrieved 2025-04-05.
  6. ^ "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.
  7. ^ "Åland Islands Postal codes". postalcodes.azinfoportal.com. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
  8. ^ a b "Luettelo kuntien ja seurakuntien tuloveroprosenteista vuonna 2023". Tax Administration of Finland. 14 November 2022. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  9. ^ "Mariehamn". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary. Merriam-Webster. Retrieved December 28, 2020.
  10. ^ Suomen kunnallisvaakunat (in Finnish). Suomen Kunnallisliitto. 1982. p. 171. ISBN 951-773-085-3.
  11. ^ "Ahvenanmaan kuntien vaakunat 1947-1987 (I:15) Maarianhamina" [Coats of arms of the municipalities of Åland 1947–1987 (I:15) – Mariehamn] (in Swedish). Kansallisarkiston digitaaliarkisto. Retrieved March 25, 2021.
  12. ^ "Ennen 8.4.1949 annettua kunnanvaakunalakia vahvistetut vaakunat (I:7) Maarianhamina" [Coats of arms confirmed before the Municipal Coat of Arms Act of April 8, 1949 (I:7) – Mariehamn]. Kansallisarkiston digitaaliarkisto (in Swedish). Retrieved March 25, 2021.
  13. ^ "Mariehamns vapen" (in Swedish). City of Mariehamn. Retrieved March 25, 2021.
  14. ^ Mitä-Missä-Milloin, Kansalaisen vuosikirja 1980 (in Finnish). Helsinki: Otava. 1979. p. 165.
  15. ^ Mariehamn – Visit Åland
  16. ^ Tourism Mariehamn & Mariehamn Travel Guide – Discovering Finland
  17. ^ Åland: many travellers, far fewer overnighters – Nordic Labour Journal