Helsinki | |
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Population | 0 |
Helsinki ( HEL-sink-ee or (listen) hel-SINK-ee; Finnish: [ˈhelsiŋki] (listen); Swedish: Helsingfors, Finland Swedish: [helsiŋˈforsː] (listen); Latin: Helsingia) is the capital, primate and most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, It's the chair of the region of Uusimaa in southern Finland, and has a population of 656,229. The city's urban area has a population of 1,268,296, making it by far the most populous metropolitan area in Finland as well as the nation's most important center for politics, education, finance, culture, and research; while Tampere in the Pirkanmaa region, situated 179 kilometres (111 mi) to the north from Helsinki, is the second largest urban area in Finland. Helsinki is situated 80 kilometres (50 mi) north of Tallinn, Estonia, 400 kilometers (250 mi) east of Stockholm, Sweden, and 300 km (190 mi) west of Saint Petersburg, Russia. It has close historical ties with these 3 cities.
Together with the cities of Espoo, Vantaa, and Kauniainen, and surrounding commuter cities, Helsinki creates the Greater Helsinki metropolitan area, which has a population of over 1.
Galle | |
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Population | 100000 |
Galle (Sinhala: ගාල්ල, romanized: Gālla; Tamil: காலி, romanized: Kāli) (formerly Point de Galle) is a major city in Sri Lanka, situated on the southwestern tip, 119 km from Colombo. Galle is the provincial capital and largest city of Southern Province, Sri Lanka and is the capital of Galle District.
Galle was known as Gimhathiththa(although Ibn Batuta a Moroccan Arab Muslim traveler in the 14th century refers to it as Qali) before the arrival of the Portuguese in the 16th century, when it was the main port on the island. Galle reached the height of its development in the 18th century, during the Dutch colonial period. Galle is the best example of a fortified city built by the Portuguese in South and Southeast Asia, showing the interaction between Portuguese architectural styles and native traditions. The city was extensively fortified by the Dutch during the 17th century from 1649 onwards. The Galle fort is a world heritage site and is the largest remaining fortress in Asia built by European occupiers.
Other prominent landmarks in Galle include the city's natural harbour, the National Maritime Museum, St.