Häme

Häme (Swedish: Tavastland, Latin: Tavastia) is the name of a geographical region in Finland, associated with the Tavastians, or Häme people (hämäläiset), a subgroup of the Finnish people. The precise area referred to can vary depending on the context.

In contemporary contexts:

• Häme, an often vaguely defined area in Southern Finland associated with the Tavastians; the most prominent regions of contemporary Häme are:
  • Tavastia Proper (Kanta-Häme)
  • Päijänne Tavastia (Päijät-Häme)
  • Pirkanmaa (historically, most of this area belonged to Satakunta, but today it is strongly associated with Häme)
  • Central Finland (historically, most of this area unambiguously belonged to Tavastia, or Häme, but today the association is weaker)
• Place names including the element Häme in its genitive form Hämeen:
  • Hämeenkatu, the main street of Tampere; streets bearing the same name can be found elsewhere in Finland as well
  • Hämeenkyrö, a municipality in Pirkanmaa
  • Hämeenlinna, the administrative centre of Tavastia Proper
    • Hämeen linna, or Häme Castle, a medieval castle in Hämeenlinna, after which the city has been named
  • Hämeentie, the longest street in Helsinki; streets bearing the same name can be found elsewhere in Finland as well

In historical contexts:

• Tavastia (Häme), a historical province within the Swedish realm from around the 13th century until 1809
• County of Nyland and Tavastehus (Uudenmaan ja Hämeen lääni), 1634–1809, roughly a combination of the historical provinces of Tavastia and Uusimaa
• Governorate of Nyland-Tavastehus (Uudenmaan ja Hämeen lääni), 1809–1831, the continuation of the preceding administrative entity within the Grand Duchy of Finland
• Governorate of Tavastehus (Hämeen lääni), 1831–1917, split off again from the Governorate of Nyland-Tavastehus
• Häme Province (Hämeen lääni), 1917–1997, the continuation of the preceding administrative entity within the independent Finland
  • the provinces of Finland into which the regions of the Häme Province were merged in 1997:
    • Southern Finland (1997–2009)
    • Western Finland (1997–2009)

Other uses

• The Tavastian dialects, or Häme dialects (hämäläismurteet), of the Finnish language
• Häme Regiment, a unit of the Finnish Army located in Lahti