Finnmark (Finnmárku in Sami) is a county in the extreme north of Norway, bordering Troms. In 2002 there were 73,732 inhabitants, which is 1.6% of the total population in Norway. Its area is 48,637 km². The county administration is in Vadsø. Finnmark is a part of the Lapland region which spans over four countries. It borders to Lapland Province in Finland, Murmansk Oblast in Russia. It is also a part of the Barents Region.
Finnmark is the northernmost county in Norway. (Svalbard is not considered as a county.) The northern and western parts are indented by bays. The nature varies from bare coast to river areas with gullies and tree vegetation. The point Knivskjellodden at Nordkapp is the northernmost point on the European mainland. Furthemore, Finnamrk is the largest county by area, at the same time being the less populated. Outdoor life and beach life is widespread in Finnmark in the summer. Hammerfest is the centre of Finnmark's tourist trade.
Much of the Sami population of Norway live in Finnmark, and to a certain extent Troms; scholars belive they have been living there for at least two thousand years. Finnmark and the municipalities Kautokeino, Karasjok, Tana, Nesseby, Porsanger and Kåfjord (in Troms) also have official names in the Sami language.
There are archeological findings from the earliest times in Finnmark, belonging to the so called Komsa culture. There are also findings suggesting that the Sami people have been there for a long time. From the middle ages, the place has been populated by ethnical norwegians and been part of the kingdom.
Finnmark is also the elder name for Lapland in Sweden and also used by some inhabitans in this region. The title comes from Linné's expeditions in the northern Nordic during the 1700s.
