Kerava

---

title: "Kerava" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["kerava", "greater-helsinki", "cities-and-towns-in-finland", "populated-places-established-in-1970", "1970-establishments-in-finland"] description: "Town in Uusimaa, Finland" topic_path: "geography" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kerava" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Town in Uusimaa, Finland ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox settlement"]

Field	Value
name	Kerava
official_name	Keravan kaupunki
Kervo stad
other_name	Kervo
settlement_type	Town
image_skyline	Kerava keskusta 2.jpg
image_caption	Kerava town centre
image_shield	Kerava.vaakuna.svg
shield_size	120x80px
image_map	Kerava sijainti Suomi.svg
map_caption	Location of Kerava in Finland
coordinates
subdivision_type	Country
subdivision_name	Finland
subdivision_type1	Region
subdivision_name1	Uusimaa
subdivision_type2	Sub-region
subdivision_name2	Helsinki sub-region
subdivision_type3	Metropolitan area
subdivision_name3	Helsinki metropolitan area
leader_title	Mayor
leader_name	Kirsi Rontu
established_title	Township
established_date	1924–1970
established_title2	City
established_date2	1970–
area_footnotes
area_total_km2
area_land_km2
area_water_km2
area_rank
population_as_of
population_footnotes
population_total
population_density_km2
population_rank
demographics_type1
demographics1_footnotes
demographics1_title1
demographics1_info1
demographics1_title2
demographics1_info2
demographics1_title3
demographics1_info3
demographics1_title4
demographics1_info4
demographics_type2
demographics2_footnotes
demographics2_title1
demographics2_info1
demographics2_title2
demographics2_info2
demographics2_title3
demographics2_info3
blank_name
blank_info
blank3_name	Climate
blank3_info	Dfb
timezone	EET
utc_offset	+02:00
timezone_DST	EEST
utc_offset_DST	+03:00
website
::

|name = Kerava | official_name = Keravan kaupunki Kervo stad | other_name = Kervo | settlement_type = Town | image_skyline = Kerava keskusta 2.jpg | image_caption = Kerava town centre | image_shield = Kerava.vaakuna.svg | shield_size = 120x80px | image_map = Kerava sijainti Suomi.svg | map_caption = Location of Kerava in Finland |coordinates = |subdivision_type = Country |subdivision_name = Finland | subdivision_type1 = Region | subdivision_name1 = Uusimaa | subdivision_type2 = Sub-region | subdivision_name2 = Helsinki sub-region | subdivision_type3 = Metropolitan area | subdivision_name3 = Helsinki metropolitan area | leader_title = Mayor | leader_name = Kirsi Rontu | established_title = Township | established_date = 1924–1970 | established_title2 = City | established_date2 = 1970– |area_footnotes = |area_total_km2 = |area_land_km2 = |area_water_km2 = |area_rank = |population_as_of = |population_footnotes = |population_total = |population_density_km2 = |population_rank = |demographics_type1 = |demographics1_footnotes = |demographics1_title1 = |demographics1_info1 = |demographics1_title2 = |demographics1_info2 = |demographics1_title3 = |demographics1_info3 = |demographics1_title4 = |demographics1_info4 = |demographics_type2 = |demographics2_footnotes = |demographics2_title1 = |demographics2_info1 = |demographics2_title2 = |demographics2_info2 = |demographics2_title3 = |demographics2_info3 = |blank_name = |blank_info = | blank3_name = Climate | blank3_info = Dfb |timezone = EET |utc_offset = +02:00 |timezone_DST = EEST |utc_offset_DST = +03:00 | website = Kerava (; ) is a town in Finland, located in the southern interior of the country. Kerava is situated in the centre of the Uusimaa region. The population of Kerava is approximately . It is the most populous municipality in Finland. Kerava is part of the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, which has approximately million inhabitants.

Kerava's neighbouring municipalities are Vantaa, Sipoo and Tuusula.

Kerava covers an area of {{Data Finland municipality/total area|Kerava}} km2 of which {{Data Finland municipality/waters area|Kerava}} km2 is water. The population density is PD/km2. In terms of area, Kerava is the fifth smallest in Finland and the second smallest in the Uusimaa region after Kauniainen. However, it is also the third most densely populated area in the sub-region after Helsinki and Kauniainen. The municipality is monolingual Finnish.

The Sinebrychoff brewery operations are based in Kerava. There is also a well-known prison in the town (Keravan vankila), which includes 94 places in the open prison ward.

History

Until the Middle Ages, Kerava was a wilderness, until two villages, Ylikerava ("Upper Kerava") and Alikerava ("Lower Kerava"), were created along the Kerava River (Keravanjoki). The first signs of established village settlement date back to the 1440s. Kerava was annexed to Tuusula when the Tuusula parish was founded in 1643. In 1862, the railway between Helsinki and Hämeenlinna was opened, which quickly brought industry to agricultural Kerava; the carpentry factory in Kerava was established in 1908, and the wood industry became an important factor in the development of the town. The coat of arms designed by Ahti Hammar features a woodworking joints made by a carpenter.

In 1924, Kerava was separated from Tuusula as its own township. At that time, it had a population of about 3,000. Originally, it also included part of the Korso area, and Korso railway station was also located in the township area. However, from 1954 onwards, the entire Korso was annexed to the then Helsinki Rural Municipality. During the peak periods of the late 1960s and 1970s, the population almost doubled due to immigration and good transport connections, and new suburbs were created in Kurkela, Kilta and Untola. Kerava was officially granted town rights in 1970.

Geography

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/39/Keravan_kartta.png" caption="Map of the Kerava town"] ::

Kerava is located in the north of the Helsinki metropolitan area, 27 kilometres north of Helsinki. The city is crossed by the (Helsinki-) Kerava–Lahti railway line and the Lahdenväylä motorway and the Keravanjoki river. Keravanjoki is a tributary of the Vantaanjoki river. Its neighbours are Vantaa to the south, Tuusula to the west and Sipoo to the east. Kerava forms an almost uniform urban area, which can be roughly divided into the centre and Savio in the south and Ahjo in the east. The centre of Kerava is surrounded by several radial streets. A pedestrian street runs through the centre under the railway, which is said to be the longest in Finland (850 metres).

Kerava is divided into 10 neighbourhoods.

::data[format=table]

Number	Name
1	Kaleva
2	Kilta
3	Sompio
4	Keskusta
5	Ahjo
6	Savio
7	Ylikerava
8	Kaskela
9	Alikerava
10	Jokivarsi
::

Demographics

Population

The city of Kerava has inhabitants, making it the most populous municipality in Finland. The city of Kerava is part of the Helsinki metropolitan area, which is the largest urban area in Finland with inhabitants.

| title = Population size of Kerava 1990–2020 | label_type = Year | data_type = Population | bar_width = 47 | width_units = em | label3 = 1990 | label4 = 1995 | label5 = 2000 | label6 = 2005 | label7 = 2010 | label8 = 2015 | label9 = 2020 | data_max = 39000 | data3 = 27597 | data4 = 29385 | data5 = 30270 | data6 = 31544 | data7 = 34282 | data8 = 35293 | data9 = 37105

Languages

|thumb = left |direction=row |caption = Population by mother tongue (2024) |label1 = Finnish |value1 = 81.5 |color1 = #002F6C |label2 = Estonian |value2 = 3.4 |color2 = #0072CE |label3 = Russian |value3 = 2.9 |color3 = #D52B1E |label4 = Arabic |value4 = 1.2 |color4 = #165D31 |label5 = Swedish |value5 = 1.2 |color5 = #FFCD00 |label6 = Ukraine |value6 = 1.0 |color6 = #0056B9 |label7 = English |value7 = 0.7 |color7 = #FFFFFF |label8 = Other |value8 = 8.1 |color8 = #C5C5C5 Kerava is a monolingual Finnish-speaking municipality. , the majority of the population, persons (), spoke Finnish as their first language. In addition, the number of Swedish speakers was persons () of the population. Foreign languages were spoken by of the population. As English and Swedish are compulsory school subjects, functional bilingualism or trilingualism acquired through language studies is not uncommon.

At least 40 different languages are spoken in Kerava. The most common foreign languages are Estonian (3.4%), Russian (2.9%), Arabic (1.2%), Ukrainian (1.0%) and English (0.7%).

Immigration

::data[format=table] | Nationality || Population || % | |---| | Finland | | Estonia | | Soviet Union | | Turkey | | Ukraine | | Iraq | | Vietnam | | Thailand | | Russia | | Sweden | | Afghanistan | | Other | ::

, there were 6,777 persons with a foreign background living in Kerava, or 16% of the population. The number of residents who were born abroad was 5,888, or 15% of the population. The number of persons with foreign citizenship living in Kerava was 4,715. Most foreign-born citizens came from Estonia, the former Soviet Union, Turkey and Ukraine.

The relative share of immigrants in Kerava's population is above the national average. Moreover, the city's new residents are increasingly of foreign origin. This will increase the proportion of foreign residents in the coming years.

Religion

In 2023, the Evangelical Lutheran Church was the largest religious group with 53.7% of the population of Kerava. Other religious groups accounted for 3.4% of the population. 42.9% of the population had no religious affiliation.

Transport

Kerava has two railway stations, Kerava Central Railway Station and Savio station. The Kerava Central Railway Station is an interchange station, with connections from the main track from Helsinki to Riihimäki to the tracks to Lahti and Porvoo. The Helsinki Airport (HEL) is located about 15 kilometers to the southwest of the city by car. It is 32 km along Highway 4 (E75) from Kerava to the city center of Helsinki.

The city of Kerava joined Helsinki Regional Transport Authority (HSL) in 2010.

Culture

Food

Many garlic dishes were named as traditional foods of the Kerava parish in the 1980s: Yrjö's lamb (à la Jorgos), garlic potatoes and crushed garlic in oil, and, as a dessert, a gooseberry pie with vanilla sauce.

Politics

Results of the 2019 Finnish parliamentary election in Kerava:

• Social Democratic Party 19,8%
• National Coalition Party 19,3%
• Finns Party 19,0%
• Green League 12,9%
• Left Alliance 8,6%
• Centre Party 6,8%
• Movement Now (common list of Uusimaa) 4,4%
• Christian Democrats 3,2%
• Blue Reform 1,9%

Notable people from Kerava

• President J. K. Paasikivi (1870–1956), lived in Kerava from 1917 to the 1940s
• Hanna-Maria Seppälä (b. 1984), Finnish freestyle swimmer
• Volmari Iso-Hollo (1907–1969), Olympic medalist
• Jean Sibelius (1865–1957), Finnish composer
• Väinö Bremer (1899-1964), Finnish Olympic medalist biathlete and pilot who died here in a plane crash

Notes

References

References

1. "History of the Company".
2. [https://www.rikosseuraamus.fi/en/index/units/prisons/keravaprison.html Kerava Prison – R/SE] (in English)
3. "Historiaa". Town of Kerava.
4. "Korson kunta". Korso Social Democratic Workers' Society.
5. (2025-04-04). "Number of foreign-language speakers exceeded 600,000 during 2024". Statistics Finland.
6. "Persons with foreign background". Statistics Finland.
7. [https://pxdata.stat.fi/PXWeb/pxweb/en/StatFin/StatFin__vaerak/statfin_vaerak_pxt_11ra.px Key figures on population by region, 1990-2023] Statistics Finland
8. Jaakko Kolmonen: ''Kotomaamme ruoka-aitta: Suomen, Karjalan ja Petsamon pitäjäruoat'', p. 56. Helsinki: Patakolmonen Ky, 1988. (in Finnish)

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::