Ostrobothnia (region)

Ostrobothnia Österbotten (Swedish) Pohjanmaa (Finnish)
Region
Region of Ostrobothnia Landskapet Österbotten Pohjanmaan maakunta
Coat of arms
Ostrobothnia on a map of Finland
Country	Finland
Historical province	Ostrobothnia
Capital	Vaasa
Area
• Total	7,932.36 km2 (3,062.70 sq mi)
Population  (2019)
• Total	180,445
• Density	23/km2 (59/sq mi)
GDP [1]
• Total	€6.929 billion (2015)
• Per capita	€38,193 (2015)
Time zone	UTC+2 (EET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+3 (EEST)
ISO 3166 code	FI-12
NUTS	195
Regional bird	Common swift (Apus apus)
Regional fish	Common whitefish (Coregonus lavaretus)
Regional flower	European meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria)
Website	osterbotten.fi

Ostrobothnia (Swedish: Österbotten; Finnish: Pohjanmaa) is a region in western Finland. It borders the regions of Central Ostrobothnia, South Ostrobothnia, and Satakunta. It is one of four regions considered modern-day Ostrobothnia, hence it is also referred to as Coastal Ostrobothnia to avoid confusion.

Ostrobothnia is one of two Finnish regions with a Swedish-speaking majority (the other being the constitutionally monolingual province of Åland); Swedish-speakers make up 51.2% of the total population.^[2] The region contains thirteen bilingual municipalities and one that is exclusively Finnish-speaking. The capital of Vaasa is predominantly inhabited by Finnish speakers, whereas smaller towns and rural areas are generally dominated by the Swedish language. The three municipalities with the largest number of Swedish speakers are Korsholm, Jakobstad and Pedersöre.

Geographically, Ostrobothnia has little topographical relief, because it is mostly former seafloor brought to surface by post-glacial rebound and the accumulation of alluvial sediment. Ostrobothnia has both vast expanses of cultivated fields (lakeus) as in Southern Ostrobothnia, and the archipelago of Kvarken (Finnish: Merenkurkku). Glacial transport has deposited large quantities of rocks in the area.^[3] Like elsewhere in Ostrobothnia, rivers are a prominent part of the landscape. The major rivers that discharge into the Gulf of Bothnia in Ostrobothnia are Kyrönjoki, Lapuanjoki and Ähtävänjoki.

Kaskinen, a coastal town located in the southern part of the region, is the smallest town in Finland in terms of both area and population.^[4]