Sonkajärvi (; formerly known as Rutakko) is a municipality of Finland. It is located in Northern Savonia region, north of Kuopio. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . The municipality is unilingually Finnish. The coat of arms of Sonkajärvi is inspired by the many watermills in the region, which the picture of the water wheel refers to, and the slash-and-burn cultivation of the past, which the flames on top of the wheel refer to. The coat of arms was designed by Ahti Hammar, and the Sonkajärvi municipal council approved it at its meeting on July 15, 1954. The Ministry of the Interior approved the coat of arms for use on October 15 of the same year. Geography Neighbouring municipalities are Iisalmi, Kajaani, Lapinlahti, Rautavaara, Sotkamo and Vieremä. Nature There are 204 lakes in the area of Sonkajärvi. Biggest of them are Laakajärvi, Sälevä and Kiltuanjärvi. There are unique nature sights in the municipality of Sonkajärvi, for example the northernmost in Finland reliably confirmed habitats of wild small-leaved lime (Tilia cordata) in the vicinity of the lake of Kangaslampi, 63° 45′ N and near the hill of Salmisenmäki, 63° 43′ 42" N. History The municipality was founded in 1922. Before it Sonkajärvi was a part of Iisalmen maalaiskunta. Transport Highway 5 (E63) is located about west of the center of Sonkajärvi. Wife carrying competition Sonkajärvi has gained a worldwide fame for the alternative sport of wife-carrying ( or ). The first Wife Carrying World Championship dates to 1994, but the creation of the contest, apart from its humorous aspects, has deep roots in the local history. In the late 19th century there was in the area a brigand called Rosvo-Ronkainen, who is said to have accepted in his troops only those men who proved their worth on a challenging track. In those days, it was also a common practice to steal women from the neighbouring villages. In the Wife Carrying competition each team has one male and one female member, the objective being for the male to carry the female through a special obstacle track. The basic rules are that the woman must be over 17 years of age and have a weight of at least . If she is below that weight, she must be burdened with such a heavy rucksack so that the total weight