Rääkkylä (; Swedish also ) is a municipality of Finland. It is located in the province of Eastern Finland and is part of the North Karelia region. The municipality has a population of (), which make it the smallest municipality in North Karelia in terms of population. It covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . The municipality is unilingually Finnish. The municipality has previously also been known as "Bräkylä" in Swedish documents, but is today referred to as "Rääkkylä" also in Swedish. Rääkkylä as an independent municipality was established in 1874 from parts of Kitee and Liperi. Neighbouring municipalities are Joensuu, Kitee, Liperi, Savonlinna and Tohmajärvi. Leading Finnish kantele manufacturer Koistinen Kantele has been functioning in Rääkkylä since 1995. People Actor Esa Pakarinen (1911–1989), better known for his role as Pekka Puupää Author Raimo J. Kinnunen (born 1931) Mari and Sari Kaasinen, founders of the popular Finnish folk music band Värttinä. References External links Municipality of Rääkkylä – Official website Koistinen Kantele Populated places established in 1874 1874 establishments in Finland