Virrat (Finnish: [ˈʋirːɑt]; Swedish: Virdois) is a town and municipality of Finland. It is part of the Pirkanmaa region, and it is located 104 kilometres (65 mi) north of Tampere and 113 kilometres (70 mi) west of Jyväskylä. The distance between Virrat and Helsinki is 285 kilometres (177 mi). The town has a population of 6,274 (31 December 2023)[2] and covers an area of 1,299.07 square kilometres (501.57 sq mi) of which 136.73 km2 (52.79 sq mi) is water.[1] The population density is 5.4 inhabitants per square kilometre (14/sq mi). The municipality is unilingually Finnish.

Virrat
Virdois
Town
Virtain kaupunki
Virdois stad
An intersection of Virtaintie and Leivontie streets in Virrat
An intersection of Virtaintie and Leivontie streets in Virrat
Coat of arms of Virrat
Location of Virrat in Finland
Location of Virrat in Finland
Coordinates: 62°15′N 023°46′E / 62.250°N 23.767°E / 62.250; 23.767
Country Finland
RegionPirkanmaa
Sub-regionUpper Pirkanmaa sub-region
Charter1868
Government
 • Town managerHenna Viitanen
Area
 (2018-01-01)[1]
 • Total1,299.07 km2 (501.57 sq mi)
 • Land1,162.63 km2 (448.89 sq mi)
 • Water136.73 km2 (52.79 sq mi)
 • Rank63rd largest in Finland
Population
 (2023-12-31)[2]
 • Total6,274
 • Rank150th largest in Finland
 • Density5.4/km2 (14/sq mi)
Population by native language
 • Finnish97.1% (official)
 • Swedish0.1%
 • Others2.7%
Population by age
 • 0 to 1411.7%
 • 15 to 6450.7%
 • 65 or older37.6%
Time zoneUTC+02:00 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+03:00 (EEST)
Websitewww.virrat.fi

The town grew rapidly in the middle years of the twentieth century, and by 1950 the population reached more than 12,000. Virrat acquired town status in 1977, although it had received the right to hold markets three years earlier, in 1974. More recently the population level has been adversely impacted by the drift of employment opportunities and people to the larger towns. Apart from the town of Virrat itself, the administratively defined municipality is largely rural, and includes the villages of Äijänneva, Härkönen Jäähdyspohja, Killinkoski, Koro, Kotala, Kurjenkylä, Liedenpohja, Ohtola, Vaskuu, and Vaskivesi.

Major lakes in the area are Lake Toisvesi, beside which the town of Virrat is located, and Lake Tarjanne at the border of the municipalities of Virrat, Mänttä-Vilppula, and Ruovesi.

Virrat crater on Mars is named after it.

Climate edit

Virrat has a subarctic climate (Dfc). Diurnal air temperature variation is higher than in other parts of Pirkanmaa.

Climate data for Virrat Äijänneva (1991-2020 normals, extremes 1993-present)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 7.6
(45.7)
8.6
(47.5)
14.8
(58.6)
22.9
(73.2)
28.2
(82.8)
31.0
(87.8)
32.9
(91.2)
30.7
(87.3)
23.1
(73.6)
19.5
(67.1)
13.0
(55.4)
9.4
(48.9)
32.9
(91.2)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) −3.6
(25.5)
−3.3
(26.1)
1.1
(34.0)
7.9
(46.2)
14.6
(58.3)
18.9
(66.0)
21.6
(70.9)
19.9
(67.8)
14.2
(57.6)
7.0
(44.6)
1.6
(34.9)
−1.7
(28.9)
8.2
(46.8)
Daily mean °C (°F) −6.5
(20.3)
−6.9
(19.6)
−3.3
(26.1)
2.7
(36.9)
8.8
(47.8)
13.4
(56.1)
16.0
(60.8)
14.1
(57.4)
9.3
(48.7)
3.7
(38.7)
−0.6
(30.9)
−4.0
(24.8)
3.9
(39.0)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) −10.3
(13.5)
−11.2
(11.8)
−8.4
(16.9)
−2.2
(28.0)
2.0
(35.6)
6.7
(44.1)
9.7
(49.5)
8.1
(46.6)
4.4
(39.9)
0.8
(33.4)
−2.9
(26.8)
−7.2
(19.0)
−0.9
(30.4)
Record low °C (°F) −36.2
(−33.2)
−37.5
(−35.5)
−33.7
(−28.7)
−19.6
(−3.3)
−9.0
(15.8)
−5.4
(22.3)
−1.1
(30.0)
−2.4
(27.7)
−7.1
(19.2)
−18.3
(−0.9)
−26.9
(−16.4)
−34.2
(−29.6)
−37.5
(−35.5)
Source 1: https://www.ilmatieteenlaitos.fi/ilmastollinen-vertailukausi
Source 2: https://kilotavu.com/asema-taulukko.php?asema=101310

Notable people edit

Gallery edit

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Area of Finnish Municipalities 1.1.2018" (PDF). National Land Survey of Finland. Retrieved 30 January 2018.
  2. ^ a b "Immigration record high in Finland in 2023". StatFin. Statistics Finland. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
  3. ^ "Demographic Structure by area as of 31 December 2022". Statistics Finland's PX-Web databases. Statistics Finland. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  4. ^ "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.
  5. ^ a b "Luettelo kuntien ja seurakuntien tuloveroprosenteista vuonna 2023". Tax Administration of Finland. 14 November 2022. Retrieved 7 May 2023.

External links edit

  Media related to Virrat at Wikimedia Commons