Åland Islands

Archipelago, southwestern Finland, constituting Ahvenanmaan autonomous (commune). It consists of about 35 inhabited islands (pop., 2002 est.: 26,000) and more than 6,000 uninhabited ones, with a total land area of 599 sq mi (1,552 sq km). Åland, the largest island, is the location of Mariehamn, the administrative capital and chief seaport. The islands were Christianized by 12th-century Swedish missionaries. When Finland declared its independence in 1917, the Ålanders sought to become part of Sweden. Though the archipelago remains with Finland, it has been given unique autonomy.

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