Twin cities
The City of Hämeenlinna has 12 twin cities.
The City of Hämeenlinna has 12 twin cities, all located in Europe.
Twin city activities began in the 1940s, when establishing twin city relationships was a common way to create international networks. The most recent twin city agreement was signed with the Ukrainian city of Sumy in 2024.
Twin city activities are now part of the city’s international operations.
Hämeenlinna’s twin cities
Bærum, Norway
Bærum is located west of Norway’s capital Oslo, on the coast. The twin city agreement between the cities has been in force since 1950.
Celle, Germany
Celle is located on the River Aller, in the state of Lower Saxony, 45 kilometres northeast of Hanover. The twin city agreement between the cities has been in force since 1971.
Frederiksberg, Denmark
Frederiksberg is located as an independent municipality in the centre of Denmark’s capital Copenhagen. The twin city agreement between the cities has been in force since 1947.
Hafnarfjörður, Iceland
Hafnarfjörður is located 12 kilometres south of Iceland’s capital Reykjavik. The twin city agreement between the cities has been in force since 1950.
Lucca, Italy
Lucca is located in the Tuscany region, on the River Serchio, 70 kilometres west of Florence and 20 kilometres northeast of Pisa. Lucca also serves as the administrative centre of the Province of Lucca. The twin city agreement between the cities has been in force since 2019.
Püspökladány, Hungary
Püspökladány is located in Hajdú-Bihar County, 180 kilometres east of Hungary’s capital Budapest. The twin city agreement between the cities has been in force since 1987.
Sumy, Ukraine
Sumy is located in northeastern Ukraine, approximately 30 kilometres from the Russian border and 300 kilometres from Ukraine’s capital Kyiv and 200 kilometres from Kharkiv. Sumy is also the central city of the Sumy administrative region. The twin city agreement between the cities has been in force since 2024.
Tartu, Estonia
Tartu is located on the River Emajõgi, 180 kilometres southeast of Estonia’s capital Tallinn, and is the central city of Tartu County. There is no official twin city agreement between the cities, but cooperation has been strong since 1991 through the Nordic twin city chain.
Toruń, Poland
Toruń is located on the country’s longest river, the Vistula, 260 kilometres northwest of Poland’s capital Warsaw and 170 kilometres south of Gdańsk. The twin city agreement between the cities has been in force since 1989.
Tver, Russia (twin city cooperation suspended)
1 March 2022: Twin city cooperation with Tver is currently suspended following Russia’s initiation of a war of aggression in Ukraine.
Tver is located 60 kilometres northwest of Russia’s capital Moscow. The twin city agreement between the cities has been in force since 1954.
Uppsala, Sweden
Uppsala is located 70 kilometres northwest of Sweden’s capital Stockholm. The twin city agreement between the cities has been in force since 1940.
Weimar, Germany
Weimar is located in the state of Thuringia, 130 kilometres southwest of Leipzig. The twin city agreement between the cities has been in force since 1961.