Finland

Raseborg (Finnish: Raasepori) is a town and municipality of Finland. It was created on January 1, 2009, when the municipalities of Ekenäs, Karis and Pohja were consolidated into a single town.
The name of the new town is based on the Castle of Raseborg located in Ekenäs, or formerly in the municipality of Snappertuna. Historically the name of the county was also Raseborg in the 14th century. The town has a population of 28 706 (28 Feb 2015) and covers an area of 2,354.17 square kilometers of which 1,206.47 km2 is water. The town is bilingual, with majority (65,6%) being Swedish and minority (30,7 %) Finnish speakers. The Fiskars scissors with orange handlers are as well-known as Sibelius and Kimi Räikkönen. Before the scissors, the ironworks forged wellbeing for centuries in the region that is today known as Raseborg: Fiskars (1649), Billnäs (1641), Svartå (1560), Antskog (1630) and Åminnefors (1875). When the ironworks gradually slowed down, the void was filled with new industry. The most charming thing in Ekenäs is the old town by the sea. King Gustav Vasa granted the town charter to the small fishing village in 1546 to grow into a trade centre and compete with Reval, the modern-day Estonian city of Tallinn. Ekenäs didn’t, however, become the leading trade centre. Instead of rapidly expanding to a big city, Ekenäs remained an idyllic small town. Among the street names you can still find The Hatter’s Street, Glover’s Street, Cloth Weaver’s Street, Smith’s Street and Leather Worker’s Street, reminding us of the life in the old days.