Finland Proper (historical province)

This article is about the historical province. For the modern region, see Southwest Finland. For other uses, see Varsinais-Suomi (disambiguation).
Not to be confused with Mainland Finland or Old Finland.
Finland Proper
Historical province
Coat of arms
Historical province of Finland Proper in blue (borders of the modern regions in yellow)
Country Finland
 Sweden (before 1809)
RegionsSouthwest Finland (excluding Somero and Loimaa)

Finland Proper or Southwest Finland (Finnish: Varsinais-Suomi; Swedish: Egentliga Finland) is a historical province in southwestern Finland, administered by its historic capital of Turku (Swedish: Åbo). Before the Treaty of Fredrikshamn in 1809, it was part of Sweden. It borders Satakunta, Tavastia (Häme), and Uusimaa. It is also bounded by the Baltic Sea facing Åland. The historical provinces have no administrative function today but live on as a historical legacy in Finland and Sweden.

The modern region of Southwest Finland largely corresponds to the historical province. However, the modern region includes Loimaa, which was historically part of Satakunta, and Somero, which historically belonged to Tavastia.

Southwest Finnish dialects are spoken in Southwest Finland.

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