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and welcome to Svenskfinland! We’re happy you are here and want to learn more about the Finland Swedish culture. Finland’s Swedish speaking folk proudly identify as being Finnish, however, they also have their own intriguing culture and traditions that is riddled with complexity and rich history. In the articles below you can read and learn about all things Finnish Swedish. We hope you find this website enlightening and useful.
Who are the Finland-Swedes?
The Finland-Swede’s culture is centuries old and dates from the reign of the Swedish kingdom, through the times of Russian rule, up to its status today as a protected linguistic minority. The Swedish spoken by Finland-Swedes consists of distinct dialects that are understandable to other Swedish speakers and those who speak other Scandinavian languages. The majority of Swedish-speaking Finns are bilingual…
Politics
The Swedish-speaking population of Finland, although small, has always been active in seeking to maintain its cultural identity and safeguard its social and economic interests. There is only one monolingual Swedish-language political party, the SFP or Svenska folkpartiet (Swedish People’s Party). It has voter support of about 4% and its main task is to pursue……
History and geography
The Finland- Swedes The history of Swedish-speakers in Finland goes back hundreds of years, well before Finland existed as an independent nation. The land that is now Finland was part of the Kingdom of Sweden from the Middle Ages until 1809. The union between Finland and Sweden came to an end at this time due……
The history of the Finland- Swedes
The history of Swedish-speakers in Finland goes back hundreds of years, well before Finland existed as an independent nation. The land that is now Finland was part of the Kingdom of Sweden from the Middle Ages until 1809. The union between Finland and Sweden came to an end at this time due to the Napoleonic……
Language
There are some areas of Finland where Finnish is in fact rarely, if ever, spoken in day-to-day life. In Österbotten, on the west coast, and Nyland, between Åbo (Turku) and Helsinki, there are towns where the vast majority of inhabitants speak Swedish, and you could go days without hearing Finnish.
About 4 % of the 311 Finnish communities are considered Swedish-speaking only, a figure that consists primarily of the population of the Åland islands (0.5 per cent of the country’s total). The majority of Swedish-speaking Finns are bilingual, or can at least manage in both languages.
Swedish language in Finland
There are several European countries where more than one language is spoken, but Finland is one of only five that have more than one official language – Belgium, Ireland, Luxembourg and Malta being the others. Finland is a country with three official languages: Finnish, Swedish and Sami. Sami is an official language in the Sami……
Learning Swedish
Assuming that you’re capable in general of learning another language and that – as you are reading this – you speak English, Swedish is relatively easy to pick up. Compared with Finnish, the language seems almost reassuringly familiar. Partly this is because Swedish and English share the same Germanic roots, so have similar traits. “We……
Living without Finnish in Finland
There are some areas of Finland where Finnish is in fact rarely, if ever, spoken in day-to-day life. In Österbotten, on the west coast, and Nyland, between Åbo (Turku) and Helsinki, there are towns where the vast majority of inhabitants speak Swedish, and you could go days without hearing Finnish. About 4 % of the……
Culture
Across such disciplines as literature, theatre, movies, music and poetry, Finland Swedes have always found unique ways in which they can express themselves.
Casting an eye back through Finland’s history, the artistic landscape holds an abundance of famous Finland Swedes. Did you know that prominent Finnish artists Jean Sibelius and Tove Jansson were both born into Swedish-speaking families?
Art
In Finnish art history, the Finnish Swedes are well represented. The period known as the golden age of Finnish art began in the second half of the 19th century and is considered to have lasted until about 1920. Many of this era’s best known artists were Finnish Swedes: Elin Danielson-Gambogi, Albert Edelfelt, Akseli Gallen-Kallela (born……
Literature
Internationally, Svenskfinland is probably best known for its contributions to literature. Of course, Moomin is by far the largest export of Finnish literature, but it is far from the only one. In 2019, poet Tua Forsström was elected to The Swedish Academy as the first Finnish member ever, while Kjell Westö won prizes in both……
Music
In parts of the Finnish music world, Finnish Swedishness is not necessarily considered to be relevant, and thus a large number of Finnish Swedish musicians fly under the radar and are mainly defined as Finnish. Exceptions are music that directly and deliberately target a Finnish-Swedish audience, such as many “dance bands” (dansband) and groups that……
Theater
For more than a hundred years, Svenska Teatern (The Swedish Theater) in the city center of Helsinki has been called Finland’s Swedish national scene, but its history extends further back in time than that. When the theater was originally founded in 1827, it was the very first theater house in the city of Helsinki, and……
Media
One of the cornerstones of Finnish-Swedish culture is the wide range of newspapers, magazines, podcasts and television and radio programs.
Radio and TV
The states public service company Yle has a Swedish-speaking unit that produces news broadcasts and operates the TV channel Yle Fem. It also provides two of the most popular Swedish-language radio stations in Finland: Radio Vega and Radio X3M. Svenska Yle also has a website on which everything from news articles to interviews, reviews and……
Newspapers and magazines
The very first newspaper published in Finland was the Swedish-language and pompously named Tidningar Utgifne Af et Sällskap i Åbo, founded in 1771. At present, the Finnish media company KSF Media is the largest publisher of Swedish-language newspapers, while magazines are usually independent. Newspapers Hufvudstadsbladet The famously named Hufvudstadsbladet is popularly called HBL, Husis or……
Education in Swedish
One of the cornerstones of Finnish-Swedish culture is the wide range of newspapers, magazines, podcasts and television and radio programs.
The school path
Kindergartens For children under school age, toddler pedagogy is offered in municipal day care centers aimed at children between one and six years. By toddler pedagogy does not mean daycare that is similar to school, but care that is educationally planned and that includes music, play, crafts and excursions. However, toddler pedagogy is voluntary and……
Immigrants and Swedish-language day care
For those with children who have moved temporarily or permanently to Finland, the issue of schooling is naturally of paramount importance. Private schools do exist where the language of instruction is English, but these tend to be more popular either with families who are in Finland for a short time and will be moving on……