Arabianranta
Encyclopedia
Swedish language
Swedish is a North Germanic language, spoken by approximately 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along its coast and on the Åland islands. It is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Danish...
) ("coast of Arabia") is a fast growing residential part of Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
. It is bound by Vanhankaupunginlahti
Vanhankaupunginlahti
Vanhankaupunginselkä is a bay area which together with parts of adjoining Viikki district constitute a natural conservation zone near downtown Helsinki in the southern part of Finland...
bay from east, and connects to neighboring boroughs of Vanhakaupunki
Vanhakaupunki
Vanhakaupunki is a neighbourhood of the city of Helsinki, Finland, to the north of Toukola. The district's name is because Helsinki was originally founded at the Vanhakaupunki area. Vanhakaupunki even appears in the new Helsinki foundation document from 1639, and the forms Gamla staden or...
in north, Hermanni
Hermanni
Hermanni is a neighbourhood in Central major district of Helsinki, Finland., Hermanni has 3,580 inhabitants living in an area of 1.06 km2. Hermanni is part of Vallila district.-Politics:Results of the Finnish parliamentary election, 2011 in Hermanni:...
in south and Toukola
Toukola
Toukola is a district of Helsinki, Finland, around 4 km north of the town centre, at the port of Vanhankaupunginlahti. Toukola is part of the administrative region of Vanhakaupunki....
and Kumpula
Kumpula
Kumpula is a verdant neighbourhood in Helsinki, bordered by Eastern Pasila to the west, Vallila to the south, Käpylä and Koskela to the north and Toukola and Arabianranta to the east. As of January 1, 2003, Kumpula had approximately 3,600 inhabitants....
in west. Officially it is part of the greater Toukola
Toukola
Toukola is a district of Helsinki, Finland, around 4 km north of the town centre, at the port of Vanhankaupunginlahti. Toukola is part of the administrative region of Vanhakaupunki....
region.
Arabianranta (earlier known simply as Arabia) derives its name from the famous Arabia
Arabia (company)
Arabia is a Finnish ceramics company, founded in 1873, and currently owned by Fiskars. Arabia has specialized in kitchenware and tableware.The original Arabia porcelain factory is located in Toukola ; it continues to be one of Fiskars Corporation's production centres.Ulla Procopé was a well-known...
ceramics
Ceramic
A ceramic is an inorganic, nonmetallic solid prepared by the action of heat and subsequent cooling. Ceramic materials may have a crystalline or partly crystalline structure, or may be amorphous...
and glassware
Glassware
This list of glassware includes drinking vessels , tableware, such as dishes, and flatware used to set a table for eating a meal, general glass items such as vases, and glasses used in the catering industry whether made of glass or plastics such as polystyrene and...
factory, which is located on Hämeentie
Hämeentie
Hämeentie is the longest street in Helsinki, Finland, and among its major thoroughfares. Hämeentie is a multi-lane street beginning at the Hakaniemi square in Siltasaari, and ending near Vanhankaupunginkoski on Koskelantie....
street. The housing area is located on the bayside of Hämeentie
Hämeentie
Hämeentie is the longest street in Helsinki, Finland, and among its major thoroughfares. Hämeentie is a multi-lane street beginning at the Hakaniemi square in Siltasaari, and ending near Vanhankaupunginkoski on Koskelantie....
.
On the other side of the bay lies a popular natural reserve, Viikki
Viikki
Viikki is a neighbourhood of about 5,500 inhabitants in Helsinki, Finland. It is located at the bottom of Vanhankaupunginlahti bay, some 7–10 km from the city centre....
.
History
Arabia is age old industrial area. The ceramics factory is famous for its design products. It was once the biggest ceramics factory in all of EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. Nowadays the factory is not operational anymore, but it houses facilities for the Helsinki University of Art and Design
University of Art and Design Helsinki
Aalto University School of Art and Design , known commonly as TaiK, is the largest art university in the Nordic countries, and was founded in 1871. Media Centre Lume – the National Research and Development Center of audiovisual media – is also located in the university...
. The university is another very dominant factor in the district.
Before the construction of the new housing area begun in 2000, Arabianranta was mostly known for the number of homeless people living in the bayside area.
In 2002, the first shopping center, Kauppakeskus Arabia, was opened in southern part of the region. It has two major grocery stores, an Alko
Alko
Alko is the national alcoholic beverage retailing monopoly in Finland. It is the only store in the country which retails beer over 4.7% ABV, wine and spirits. Alcoholic beverages are also sold in licensed restaurants and bars but only for consumption on the premises...
shop and various speciality retailers.
Public transport
Frequent buses and tramHelsinki tram
The Helsinki tram network forms part of the Helsinki public transport system organised by Helsinki Regional Transport Authority and operated by Helsinki City Transport in the Finnish capital city of Helsinki. The trams are the main means of transport in the city centre. 56.6 million trips were made...
numbers 6 and 8 take about 15-20 minutes to Arabianranta from downtown Helsinki.