Åland Islands

Country status Åland

Åland is an autonomous island province of Finland, between Finland and Sweden. As such, it is partly dependent on Finland, but is largely self-governing. Since the Middle Ages, the Åland Islands were Swedish and became part of the Russian Tsarist Empire in 1809. In 1921, the region was granted to Finland under a demilitarized status. In the course of the 20th century, there were numerous conflicts over the assignment of Åland to Finland and Sweden respectively.

The country's own flag is based on the Swedish past. Politically, too, Åland is predominantly oriented towards Sweden. Due to the dependency relationship, the inhabitants of Åland also participate in the elections of the Finnish parliament and its president. They also have Finnish citizenship, which is supplemented by a "right of residence" in Åland. This right of citizenship does not have the status of a second citizenship, but it does have functions.

Åland has its own national flag, license plates that differ from those of Finland, but currently still uses the Finnish telephone area code. The only official language of the country is Swedish. The Åland parliament has been freely elected since 1922, and the national holiday on June 9 dates back to the country's first plenary session.

Most important cities

City	Population
Mariehamn / Capital	12,000
Jomala	3,660
Finström	2,410
Lemland	1,830
Saltvik	1,690
Hammarland	1,400
Sund	1,080
Eckerö	1,030
Föglö	632
Brändö	515
Geta	452
Vårdö	411
Kumlinge	384
Kökar	355