Nivala is a Finnish city located in the province of Northern Ostrobothnia, along the middle reaches of the Kalajoki River in Oulu, about 150 km from Oulu and about 90 km from Kokkola and about 29 km from Ylivieska at the junction of highways 27 and 28. Nivala is part of the Nivala – Haapajärvi region. The city has a population of 10,622 and an area of 536.87 km², of which 9.03 km² are water bodies. The population density is 20.12 inhabitants / km². Nivala's neighboring municipalities are Haapajärvi, Haapavesi, Sievi and Ylivieska.
The Nivala region was already inhabited during the
Stone Age. Weapons of the pre-ceramic period have been made in
Konttila, Pajula and the Erkkisjärvi region. In Järjakpää,
Sarjakylä, on the shores of Lake Erkkisjärvi, a residence has been
found during the comb ceramics.
The Nivala regions were long
inhabited by Lapps, whose memories include such place names as
Lapinniemi, Lapinvainio and Lapintuli in Välikylä. From the 8th
century onwards, Kainuu and Pirkkala bottom visitors came to the
area, which were later joined by inland Häme residents. Gradually,
the inhabitants of the Kalajoki Valley estuary took over the area.
Permanent settlements in the region did not emerge until the 16th
century. Initially, birch burning was practiced, which gave way to
arable farming and tar burning in the 17th century. The peasants of
the region transported their tar barrels along the river to the
Kalajoki market. The region's new clearing work was hampered by
repeated roof years, wars and heavy taxation. In the 17th century,
there were decay years every decade. The Russians conquered the
region in 1714, when the suffering of great hatred began. As a
result of troubled times, Pidisjärvi had only two inhabited farms in
1719. It was not until after the little hatred that the population
of the region began to grow rapidly in the mid-18th century. In
terms of population and population density, Nivala developed into
the core area of the river valley.
The Nivala region
initially belonged ecclesiastically to the parish priest of Saloinen
and from 1540, whose first inhabitant was, according to Kyösti
Wilkuna, Niva-Kaija, who named his house Nivala. In 1693 it became
part of the Haapajärvi Chapel Parish. A private preaching room was
built on Lake Pidisjärvi in 1682, but a separate rectory was not
obtained until 1782. In 1782, the Ylivieska Välikylä was added to
the parish area. Pidisjärvi received the rights of the chapel in
1802. The following year the chapel parish received a new church to
replace the dilapidated church built in 1761. In 1838, Pidisjärvi
became the chapel of the independent Haapajärvi parish. Nivala was
separated as an independent parish by an imperial letter of order on
May 11, 1868. At that time, the name of the parish was also changed
to Nivala. The municipality of Nivala is a year older than the
parish, it was founded in 1867. In 1805 there were more than 1,500
inhabitants and in 1860 the limit of 4,500 inhabitants was exceeded.
In the 19th century, Nivala's life was drastic. Nivala's forest
robbers "knife-rivers" were known throughout the county.
Counterbalance to moral decay was accompanied by a strong spiritual
life. Under the leadership of Niilo Kustaa Malmberg, the region
became the center of revival. During the great years of frost and
famine in the 1860s, the Lestadian revival movement also gained
support.
Nivala's oldest industries were tar burning and the
production of potash and sage. There were also mills and sawmills in
the area and later dairies. Nivala's first actual industrial plant
was Nivala Nahkimo, which produced leather in 1873. Oy Jyrkänkoski,
later Nivala Oy, which was mainly engaged in the wood industry, was
founded in 1920. In the summer of 1932, the famous Nivala machine
revolt caused great economic hardship. In 2004–2006, the River
Valley Opera Center performed the Pula Opera, which tells of a cone
revolt.
Nivala is also known as the homeowner of President
Kyösti Kallio. Kallio was born in Ylivieska in 1873. Kallio moved to
Nivala in 1895, when he bought the Heikkilä farm. In the late 1930s,
Heikkilä developed into the largest farm in Oulu County under the
care of the rock. From Rivaka’s host, I also moved time for many
social activities. Kallio's career went through 1930 as President
and Minister. The Winter War exhausted Kallio, and he resigned in
1940. When the journey home to Nivala began, Kallio died in front of
an honorary company at Helsinki Central Station.
By the
beginning of the 20th century, the population had already risen to
almost 8,000. Demographic development continued throughout the first
half of the 20th century, and in the early 1950s the peak of
population development was reached, when Nivala had a population of
just over 12,600. At that time, Nivala was one of the most densely
populated rural municipalities in Oulu County. Over the next 20
years, however, the population declined by more than 2,500
residents. In the mid-1970s, the population began to grow again. In
1985, the population was 11,037.
In 1942, the Makola mine was
opened, from which nickel-copper ore was mined until the mid-1950s,
when the mine ran out. The new Malmio was discovered north of Makola
in Hitura in 1962. Work began in Hitura in 1980. In 2010, the aim
was to secure the mine's operations, and at that time it was assumed
that the nickel reserves would be sufficient for at least six years.
However, production at the Hitura mine was suspended in 2013 and the
Hitura mining company went bankrupt in 2015. The final closure of
the Hitura mine began in 2017.