2006 in Finland

Incumbents

• President: Tarja Halonen
• Prime Minister: Matti Vanhanen

  Events

• January 1: Municipalities of Rovaniemi and Rovaniemen maalaiskunta united.
• January 15: The first round of the 2006 presidential election.
• January 29: The current incumbent Tarja Halonen selected as the president on the second round of the 2006 presidential election.
• March 16: Translation of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince published at midnight.
• March 29: Partial solar eclipse.
• May 1: Rioting in Helsinki after EuroMayDay demonstrations at the VR warehouses.
• May 5: One of the two VR warehouses burned down in an apparent arson attack only a few days before their demolition was to begin.
• May 20: Lordi wins the Eurovision Song Contest 2006 in Athens, Greece.
• May 26: A crowd of 90,000 celebrates the victory of Eurovision Song Contest 2006 at the Market Square, Helsinki.
• May 29: An arsonist burns the roof of the Porvoo Cathedral causing massive damage to the building.
• July 1: Finland receives the presidency of the Council of the European Union.
• July 25: Jarno Mäkinen, a Finnish UNTSO observer killed in an Israeli attack during the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict.
• October 22: Gordon B. Hinckley dedicates the Helsinki Finland Temple.

  Sports

• Winter Olympic Games held in Turin, Italy:
• *February 26: Finland wins silver after losing to Sweden in the ice hockey.

  Births

Deaths

• January 5: Ilpo Hakasalo, radio journalist
• January 16: Ville-Veikko Salminen, actor
• January 25: Matti Tuominen, actor
• February 10: Kari K. Laurla, heraldist
• February 23: Mauri Favén, painter
• April 18: Anna Hagman, the oldest living person in Finland at the time
• April 19: Tuure Salo, politician
• April 24: Erik Bergman, composer, academician
• April 25: Tabe Slioor, socialite, celebrity journalist
• May 1: Rauno Lehtinen, conductor, composer
• May 3: Nandor Mikola, painter
• May 25: Kari S. Tikka, professor of finance, murdered
• June 4: Jorma Palo, emeritus professor
• July 8: Kari Kontio, author
• July 12: Kari Mannerla, board and card game designer
• July 12: Jorma Pilkevaara, basketball player
• July 14: Alice Kaira, painter
• July 16: Aulis Virtanen, sports editor
• July 17: Paavo Einiö
• July 17: Paula Björkqvist, politician, killed by her husband
• July 18: Ilmari Aarre-Ahtio, actor
• July 20: Risto Karlsson, journalist and author
• August 13: Elina Karjalainen, author
• August 15: Jorma Weneskoski, Jazz musician and manager
• August 19: Jarkko Laine, author
• September 8: Jaakko Pöyry, the founder of Pöyry oyj
• November 24: Juice Leskinen, singer and songwriter