Climate: cold temperate; potentially subarctic, but comparatively mild because of moderating influence of the North Atlantic Current, Baltic Sea, and more than 60,000 lakes
Terrain: mostly low, flat to rolling plains interspersed with lakes and low hills lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m highest point: Haltiatunturi 1,328 m
Natural resources: timber, copper, zinc, iron ore, silver
Land use: arable land: 8% permanent crops: 0% meadows and pastures: 0% forest and woodland: 76% other: 16%
Irrigated land: 620 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment: current issues: air pollution from manufacturing and power plants contributing to acid rain; water pollution from industrial wastes, agricultural chemicals; habitat loss threatens wildlife populations natural hazards: NA international agreements: party to - Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Wetlands, Whaling; signed, but not ratified - Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Desertification, Law of the Sea
Geographic note: long boundary with Russia; Helsinki is northernmost national capital on European continent; population concentrated on small southwestern coastal plain
People ------
Population: 5,105,230 (July 1996 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 19% (male 492,616; female 471,736) 15-64 years: 67% (male 1,725,113; female 1,687,974) 65 years and over: 14% (male 275,927; female 451,864) (July 1996 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.1% (1996 est.)
Birth rate: 11.32 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Death rate: 10.92 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Net migration rate: 0.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.61 male(s)/female all ages: 0.96 male(s)/female (1996 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 4.9 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 75.47 years male: 73.82 years female: 77.18 years (1996 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.68 children born/woman (1996 est.)
Nationality: noun: Finn(s) adjective: Finnish
Ethnic divisions: Finn, Swede, Lapp, Gypsy, Tatar
Religions: Evangelical Lutheran 89%, Greek Orthodox 1%, none 9%, other 1%
Languages: Finnish 93.5% (official), Swedish 6.3% (official), small Lapp- and Russian-speaking minorities
Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1980 est.) total population: 100% male: NA% female: NA%
Government ----------
Name of country: conventional long form: Republic of Finland conventional short form: Finland local long form: Suomen Tasavalta local short form: Suomi
Data code: FI
Type of government: republic
Capital: Helsinki
The 1996 Cia World Factbook · The Wunder Library — complete classics, free to read, with narration.