Lempäälä

Lempäälä is a municipality in southwestern Finland with 19 355 inhabitants (2008). The municipality is located south of the city of Tampere. The municipality covers an area of 306,92 km² of which 37,48 km² is water. The population density is 71,8 inhabitants per km².

The first written account of parish of Lempäälä is from 1430. The oldest building of the town is a medieval church named after Saint Birgitta and was built in the year 1504 [ [http://www.lempaala.fi/historia/pyha_birgitta_maarasi_kirkon_pai/ Pyhä Birgitta määräsi kirkon paikan - Lempäälän kunta ] ] . The only remaining article from medieval times in the church is a wooden crucifix carved of birch.

Finnish novelist Yrjö Kokko lived in Lempäälä, and is buried in the graveyard.

Ideapark, the second largest shopping mall in Nordic countries, is located in Lempäälä along the Helsinki-Tampere motorway.

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