Puolanka

Puolanka [ puɔlɑŋkɑ ] (Swedish historically Puolango ) is a municipality in the north- eastern Finland. It is located approximately 125 kilometers northeast of Oulu.

The most sparsely populated municipality is mostly covered by forests and swamps in which to lose a few small settlements: Aittokylä, Askankylä, Auho, Joukokylä, Kivarinjärvi, Kotila, Lylykylä, Puokio, Puolanka, Rasi, Suolijärvi, Väyrylä and Yli- Oterma. They are all affected by massive rural exodus in decades and aging rapidly. In January 2007 the municipality had the third highest unemployment rate of all Finnish municipalities with 21.5 percent.

Originally, the area belonged to the municipality of the parish Paltamo. 1764 a chapel community was founded, which in 1786 the parish Hyrynsalmi assumed. However, the construction of the chapel was delayed initially because there was dispute over the their location. Ultimately, the church building was erected in 1792 on the banks of the lake Puolankajärvi. After this the entire chapel community was named Puolanka, which originally meant " clearing " means. 1867 Puolanka was raised as a separate parish.

Other attractions in the forest and lake scenery is one of the Hepoköngäs, the highest waterfall with 24 meters of Finland, also the rapids Kalliuskoski, which flows through the Kiiminkijoki after his discharge from the lake Kivarinjärvi. The Church of Puolanka is designed by Olavi Sortta functionalist construction of brick and wood. The towerless building has a rectangular plan and a steep gable roof and allows travel back to the formal language of the medieval Finnish stone churches. The present church replaced an old wooden church, which was burned down in 1949 after a lightning strike.

Church of Puolanka

Lakes at Kalhamajärvi

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