The Åland Islands or Åland (pronounced "Oh-lahnd") are a group of small islands officially belonging to Finland in the Baltic Sea, consisting a surrounding archipelago. It is autonomous, demilitarised and is the only monolingually Swedish-speaking region in Finland. Åland's original name was in the Proto-Norse language - Ahvaland which means "Land of Water". In Swedish, this first developed into Áland and eventually into Åland, literally "river land"—even though rivers are not a prominent feature of Åland's geography. The Finnish and Estonian names of the island, Ahvenanmaa and Ahvenamaa ("perch land"), are seen to preserve another form of the old name.
3 Hallowe'en Traditions With Roots in Ancient Celtic Ireland
Frightful Hallowe’en is many people’s top holiday of the year – but did you k... read more
Video: Where's the World's Second Biggest Oktoberfest?
Munich's annual extravaganza of beer halls, buxom girls in dirndls, pretzels ... read more
Riding the Rails AND the Waves in the Latest Travel Trend
There’s a phrase in travel: ‘Multi-modal’. Think of ‘planes, trains and autom... read more
What's a Travel Bubble? Plus 3 Tips For Making the Most of Yours
You might see this view sooner than you think.The world of travel has begun t... read more
Best Reasons to Travel to Europe's Christmas Markets this Year
If you’re like most of us, your holiday season last year fell a little bit sh... read more
Juno Beach Centre
The Juno Beach Centre is Canada’s Second World War museum and cultural centre... read more