But this Lutheran church some 200 kilometers (124 miles) above the Arctic Circle seeks to incorporate the region's minority languages — Northern Sami, Finnish and Meänkieli – into worship services, carrying on an inclusive ethos that has been a cornerstone of the historic wooden church since its founding in 1912.

A convoy of trailers is transporting the 113-year-old Kiruna Church to a new home to make way for the expansion of a large underground iron ore mine.View on euronews

A landmark Swedish church in the Arctic arrived Wednesday at its new home after a two-day move across the town of Kiruna to allow Europe's biggest underground mine to expand.

Construction signs are placed outside the Kiruna Church, a Sami style wooden Swedish Lutheran church, called Kiruna Kyrka in Swedish, in Kiruna, Sweden, Saturday, Aug. 16, 2025, a day before it will be moved along a 5-kilometer (3-mile) route east to a new city center as part of the town’s relocation. (AP Photo/Malin Haarala)