Päijät-Häme

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PÄIJÄT-HÄME

Former province : Häme

Official blazon

Sinisessä kentässä vedenneito ja oi keassa yläkulmassa käki; kaikki kultaa.

Origin/meaning

The arms were granted in 1997.

It represents a gorgeous fishtailed woman, Vellamo. The heraldic symbols of the coat of arms refers to the two natural elements typical of the region of Päijät-Häme. Firstly the lake Päijänne and secondly the folding long ridges both dominating the region. Vellamo holds a cuckoo in her right hand which refers to the Karelian people living in the region and the wistfully cuckooing emblem bird of their former homestead.

Many kinds of international and local beliefs of various ages are connected to the mysterious water nymph Vellamo, the symbol of the region of Päijät-Häme. In all its secrecy Vellamo is the perfect symbol of the region with pure lakes.

In the 1980s another proposal was made for the region, but not approved: