Nurmijärvi

History

The area of what is now Nurmijärvi was inhabited in prehistoric times, indicated by archaeological finds dating back to 4500–3500 BC. At the start of the Middle Ages there was no permanent settlement in the area, but later settlement spread from both Tavastia and the coast, such that in 1540 there were 15 villages with 115 houses. Administratively, Nurmijärvi has been formed by combining areas of Loppi, Vihti and Helsinki parishes. The earliest documentary mention of Nurmijärvi dates back to 1488, when the village of Uotila was mentioned. According to the land register of 1539, Nurmijärvi had 15 villages with a total of 113 houses. An independent congregation had already been formed in 1605 and the administrative parish of Nurmijärvi was formed in 1775, when the area had a population of 1471. Nurmijärvi has long been a strong agricultural parish, and the share of fields in the total municipal area is almost one third, which is more than in many other municipalities in Finland. Horticultural crops have also been heavily cultivated and, for example, almost half of the wild cabbage harvest in Finland is produced in Nurmijärvi. Nevertheless, the municipality has not carried out further processing of agricultural products; for example, there has been no dairy.

Geography

Nurmijärvi is located in the central part of Uusimaa. Salpausselkä passes through the northern part of the municipality via Röykkä, Kiljava and Rajamäki, and the River Vantaa flows through the Nukari and Palojoki rivers in the eastern part of the municipality. Nurmijärvi's lowest terrain is in the Luhtajoki valley at Klaukkala and the highest in Salpausselkä near Herunen. There are few watercourses in the Nurmijärvi area. The municipality is located along the middle course of the River Vantaa and there are two large rapids, the Nukarinkoski and the Myllykoski. The Kuhakoski rapids, located in the village of Perttula and flowing into Lake Valkjärvi, is also significant in terms of industrial history and at the same time a popular attraction with its waterfall. The River Vantaa is joined by the Palojoki River from Hyvinkää and Tuusula, near the Palojoki village. The Lepsämä River and the Luhtajoki River flowing in the southern part of the municipality join the Vantaa town side near the Keimola village before joining the River Vantaa. The largest lake in Nurmijärvi is the Lake Sääksi (which is partly situated on the northwest side of Hyvinkää), which is known for one of the most popular beaches in Finland, being located in the Kiljava village. The other lakes are Lake Vaaksi near Röykkä and Lake Valkjärvi between Klaukkala and Perttula. Herunen, Järventausta, Kiljava, Klaukkala, Leppälampi, Lepsämä, Luhtajoki, Metsäkylä, Nukari, Numlahti, Nummenpää, Nurmijärvi (Kirkonkylä), Palojoki, Perttula, Raala, Rajamäki, Röykkä, Suomies, Uotila, Valkjärvi Table of the all statistical urban areas of the municipality. The administrative centre is in bold. {| class="wikitable sortable" ! # !! Urban area !! Population(31 December 2020) |- | 1 || Klaukkala ||align="right"|20,683 |- |…

Most-observed species

• Black-headed Gull

  Chroicocephalus ridibundus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  6,303
• Great Tit

  Parus major Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  5,903
• Eurasian Blue Tit

  Cyanistes caeruleus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  5,872
• European Pied Flycatcher

  Ficedula hypoleuca (Pallas, 1764) · Aves
  2,868
• European Starling

  Sturnus vulgaris Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  2,756
• Eurasian Blackbird

  Turdus merula Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  2,028
• Eurasian Kestrel

  Falco tinnunculus Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  1,901
• Garden Lupin

  Lupinus polyphyllus Lindl. · Magnoliopsida
  1,727

Most recent

• M 2.6 — 2011-03-19
  Finland