This article is about the Finnish city; for other uses see Oulu (disambiguation).

Oulu (Uleåborg in Swedish) is a city and municipality of about 125,000 inhabitants in the province of Oulu and the region of Northern Ostrobothnia, in Finland. It is the largest and most important city in Northern Finland and the sixth biggest city in the country. Its population growth rate is almost comparable with that of the Helsinki Metropolitan Area.

Founded on August 8 1605 by King Karl IX of Sweden opposite the castle built on the island of Linnansaari. This took place after favourable peace settlements with the Russians, which removed the threat of them attacking the region via the main east-west waterway, the river Oulu (the surrounding areas were populated much earlier). Oulu is situated by the Gulf of Bothnia, at the mouth of Oulu River , which is an ancient trading site. One source for the name Oulu is a word in the Sami language meaning floodwater, but there are other suggestions. Oulu has been the capital of Oulu province since 1776.

From being a town known for wood tar and salmon, Oulu has evolved into a major centre of competence in the field of high technology, particularly IT and wellness technology. Other prominent industries are wood refining, paper and steel industry. The University of Oulu is located 6 km north of the city center. The Oulu Airport, located in neighbouring municipality of Oulunsalo, is the second busiest in Finland.

The City of Oulu will be celebrating its 400^th anniversary in 2005.

Distances

• Helsinki 550 km S
• Jyväskylä 333 km S
• Kotka 582 km S
• Kuopio 284 km SSE
• Lahti 505 km S
• Lappeenranta 548 km SSE
• Pori 501 km SSW
• Rovaniemi 207 km NE
• Tampere 476 km SSW
• Tornio 131 km NNW
• Turku 620 km SSW
• Vaasa 290 km SW

External links

• City of Oulu
  
• Oulu This Week event calendar
  
• University of Oulu
  
• Koskilinjat Oy — local bus timetables