Southern Lapland (Finnish: Peräpohjola or Peräpohja;[1]Swedish: Nordbotten[2] or Överbotten; lit.'Rear Bothnia') was the northernmost part of the historical province of Ostrobothnia, and has sometimes been considered a separate region,[3][4] but it is now part of the Lapland region. It belonged to the province of Oulu for a long time, but from 1938 it formed the southern part of the province of Lapland, which was founded that year. Parts of the Salla-Kuusamo area, which included the easternmost part of southern Lapland, were ceded to the Soviet Union in 1940, after the end of the Winter War[5] and again in 1944, after the end of the Continuation War.[6]
The willow ptarmigan (Lagopus lagopus) is the regional bird of Southern Lapland.[7]
