Närpes is a town and municipality of Finland. It is located in the former province of Western Finland (all provinces were abolished in 2010) and is part of the Ostrobothnia region. The town has a population of 9,561 and covers an area of 2,334.14 square kilometres of which 1,357 km2 is water. Economically, the municipality is known for extensive greenhouse farming of tomatoes and manufacture of trailers for trucks.
Närpes has been a bilingual municipality since 2016. Before that, Närpes was the last unilingually Swedish-speaking municipality in continental Finland. Most locals speak a divergent variety of Ostrobothnian Swedish. The many bands who sing in that dialect include 1G3B and Nektor.
The most significant main roads in Närpes are Highway 8 between Turku and Vaasa, and Highway 67 between Kaskinen and Seinäjoki.
Nature and environment
Nature sites that are partly or completely in Närpes are Närpes archipelago, Kristinestad archipelago, Bredmossmyran with flying squirrel and woodpecker, Orrmossliden, bird lake Hinjärv, Sanemossen which is an excellent cloudberry bog, Risnäsmossen and Kackurmossen.
Architecture
In the center of Närpe is Närpes church which is a cruciform church of gray stone. It began to be built as early as the 1550s. Around it are about 150 church stables. The oldest of the church stables that have been preserved were built in the late 18th century. At these, travelers could leave their horses. In the vicinity of the church there is also a parish magazine, parish cottage and rectory, which makes the area a historic church environment.
In Pörtom there is a wooden church that was built in the 18th century and in Övermark there is a wooden church that was built in the 19th century. [
Öjskogsparken is an open-air museum with about 20 historical museum buildings. The main building Bengtsgården is a farmhouse from the 18th century with well-preserved interior. Other buildings are Haga’s country store, the school cottage, the Pharmacy Museum, the greenhouse museum, sheds, a shed, a windmill and shelters. [
Between Närpes and Kaskö is the farm Benvik which was built by Petter Johan Bladh. [
Culture and events
The Tomato Carnival is a folk festival, festival and market that is organized in the center of Närpes every summer. The tomato carnival is usually held the first weekend in July and has the world’s longest tomato table.
The house “Mitt i Stan” is a culture house, hotel and restaurant. In the house is the culture hall Frans Henriksonssalen, where concerts, theater performances, lectures and cinema are regularly arranged. In the house there is also an art gallery where art exhibitions are arranged.
Every summer, several dance events are arranged in Fagerö Folkpark, which is a dance park located by the sea in the village of Rangsby. The park also has an archipelago restaurant and mini golf course. Every year, flea market days are arranged in the area.
In Öjskogsparken, many events are arranged during the summer. Among other things, Närpes Teater, a Finnish-Swedish amateur theater that has been active since 1964, holds its performances at the turntable in Öjskogsparken. The turntable has 410 seats and the performances are performed in Närpes dialect.
Närpes is a coastal town with an approximately 700 km long shoreline. In the coastal villages there are old fishing villages with fishing huts and archipelago nature. In many places there are also local bathing places as well as small summer kiosks and cafes.
In Närpes, the rocky island of Gåshällan is out in the Bothnian Sea. The island is a couple of hundred meters wide and about 800 m long. At the northern end of the island there is a pilot’s cottage and on the southern part a closed lake guard station.
One of Finland’s most famous music corps is located in Närpes. Närpes school music corps has been of great importance for the development of wind music in Finland. Närpes School Music Corps is a concept in Swedish Finland and is known far across the country’s borders. Närpes School Music Corps has toured in Europe and given concerts in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Germany, Austria, Liechtenstein, Italy, Switzerland, France, Spain, Holland, Belgium, England and also in the USA. Today, approx. 140 young people in the music corps. Närpes school music corps is the only one in Finland that also has a serious commitment to drills. Today, there are 35 drill girls in the business.
