The municipality has a population of 21,947 (31 March 2016) and covers an area of 872.13 square kilometres (336.73 sq mi) of which 109.22 km² (42.17 sq mi) is water. The population density is 28.77 inhabitants per square kilometre (74.5/sq mi). The municipality is unilingually Finnish.

Iisalmi traces its roots back to 1627, when the parish of Iisalmi was formed around the local church.

In the 18th century, when Finland was under Swedish control, Sweden was frequently at war with Imperial Russia, and the area of Koljonvirta in Iisalmi was a battlefield on which one of the greatest Swedish victories occurred. However, Sweden lost its last war with Russia and had to surrender Finland to the Russian Empire in 1809.

Iisalmi gained its status as town in 1891.

Olvi, the last big independent beer brewery in Finland, has its factory and headquarters in Iisalmi. (Other big Finnish breweries have been bought by multinational companies.)

Genelec, the manufacturer of high-quality active monitors and loudspeakers used in recording studios worldwide, has its factory and headquarters in Iisalmi.

Normet, engineers and manufacturers of mechanised equipment for underground rock-mining and tunnelling, also has its factory and headquarters in Iisalmi.

Profile Vehicles Oy, makes ambulances and police cars.

Iisalmi has its own railway station on the VR network. The line between Iisalmi and Oulu was electrified in December 2006, replacing diesel haulage of trains.

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Wikipedia