Glossary
Glossary
Plain-language definitions, filed by letter.
Terms: 25
H
J
- JärviThe Finnish word for lake, and the ending of many place names. A study in the journal Fennia counts almost 188,000 lakes of more than five ares (500 m²) in Finland, wh...
- JokiThe Finnish word for river. Rivers link many lakes and flow toward the Baltic Sea, so a joki on a map often explains why a chain of lakes forms a long route. Rivers ca...
- JokamiehenoikeusThe right to roam, or everyman's rights: the customary freedom to enjoy nature, with limits and responsibilities. Finnish texts now also use the form jokaisenoikeus, e...
K
- KyläA village or small rural settlement. In Finnish place names kylä marks the traditional centre of a farming community, and many villages still hold a shop, a church or ...
- KaamosThe polar night, the winter period in the far north when the sun stays below or near the horizon. According to finland.fi it lasts almost two months in Utsjoki, four d...
- KansallispuistoA national park. Metsähallitus manages 41 national parks in Finland, covering 10,210 km² at the end of 2025. These protected areas often have marked trails, simple hut...
L
- LampiA small lake or pond, usually found in forest or bog landscapes. There is no sharp size limit between a lampi and a järvi, so treat the word as a clue to small, quiet ...
- LuotoA small islet or skerry, usually low and rocky. The Swedish equivalent is skär. Luodot are the bare outer rocks of the archipelago, often used by seabirds and seals, s...
- LahtiA bay or inlet of a lake or the sea. It is also the name of a city in southern Finland. The Swedish equivalent on coastal maps is vik. A lahti usually offers shelter f...
- LöylyThe steam that rises when water is thrown onto hot sauna stones. It is central to the sauna experience, and Finns talk about its quality with real attention: a gentle ...
- LappiThe Finnish name for Lapland, the large northern part of the country, much of it north of the Arctic Circle. The word covers a historical province and a modern adminis...
M
N
R
- RuskaThe autumn colour season, when leaves and fell vegetation turn red, orange and yellow, especially in the north. Ruska peaks in Lapland when the birches and dwarf shrub...
- RevontuletThe Finnish word for the northern lights, or aurora borealis. They are glowing displays caused by charged particles from the sun meeting the upper atmosphere, and nort...
S
- SaariIsland. In Swedish the equivalent is ö, and both words appear on maps of the coast, especially in the Archipelago Sea and Åland, where one source counts about 6,500 is...
- SalmiA strait or narrow passage of water between two larger bodies of water or islands. The Swedish equivalent is sund. Salmet are natural crossing points for ferries and b...
- SuoA bog or mire. Wetlands are widespread in Finland and can be hard to cross off marked paths, even when the ground looks flat on a map. Look for the marsh symbol before...
- SaunaA heated room used for bathing and relaxation, and an everyday part of life in Finland. UNESCO, which inscribed Finnish sauna culture on its intangible heritage list i...
- SavusaunaA smoke sauna, a traditional type heated by a stove without a chimney, with the smoke released before bathing. UNESCO lists smoke saunas among the forms of Finnish sau...
- SaamelaisetThe Sami, an Indigenous people whose homeland extends across northern Finland and neighbouring countries. Northern Sami, Inari Sami and Skolt Sami are all used in part...
- SaaristomeriThe Archipelago Sea, the island-rich sea area off the southwestern coast of Finland, which continues westward into Åland. Closer to the mainland the islands are larger...