Introduction
Place in Norrbotten, SwedenHaparandaHaparanda railway stationHaparandaShow map of NorrbottenHaparandaShow map of SwedenCoordinates: 65°50′N 024°08′E / 65.833°N 24.133°E / 65.833; 24.133Country SwedenProvinceNorrbottenCountyNorrbotten CountyMunicipalityHaparanda MunicipalityArea • Total4.43 km2 (1.71 sq mi)Population (31 December 2010) • Total4,856 • Density1,097/km2 (2,840/sq mi)Time zoneUTC+1 (CET) • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST) Haparanda (Swedish: [hapaˈrǎnːda]; Meänkieli and Finnish: Haaparanta, lit. 'aspen shore or bank') is a locality and the seat of Haparanda Municipality in Norrbotten County, Sweden. It is adjacent to Tornio, Finland. Haparanda has a population of 9,166 inhabitants (2024). Haparanda is located near the Sweden-Finland border, at the northerly extreme of the Swedish coastline, as well as the easternmost point in Sweden, far removed from large cities. Its summers are very warm for a coastal location so far north, and winters are normally not extremely cold in spite of the relative proximity to the Arctic Circle. As a twin city, Haparanda has strong connections to Tornio and the Finnish side of the river and bilingualism of Swedish and Finnish is common although Swedish is the sole official language and the mother tongue of a vast majority of inhabitants. In 2010, it was estimated that 70% of Haparanda's inhabitants spoke Finnish as a second language. Haparanda, for historical reasons, is often still referred to as a "city" despite its small population, although Statistics Sweden only counts localities with more than 10,000 inhabitants as cities. The municipality itself, on the other hand, uses the term Haparanda stad (City of Haparanda) not only for the town itself, but for its whole territory (927 km2 or 358 sq mi). At 24° 8' E, Haparanda is Sweden's easternmost settlement.