Linguistic rights of the Finland-Swedes : good on paper, but not in practice?

Abstract

The Swedish language is one of two national languages in Finland and is spoken by 5,2 percent of the population. Despite having the status of a national language, the Finland-Swedes are sometimes referred to as a linguistic minority. By looking into what the Constitution of Finland and the Language Act prescribe for the national languages, it becomes clear that Swedish speaker’s linguistic rights are not always fulfilled, and sometimes threatened. The Strategy for the National Languages of Finland from 2012 reflected a concern for the fulfilment of linguistic rights in Finland, and for the language climate. This concern was still pressing in 2019 when the Government called for a renewed strategy. The fulfilment of Swedish speakers’ linguistic rights depends on geographical location, education, language use, recruitment, integration, the political debate and attitudes. The renewed Strategy can give concrete tools on how to address these issues. Although complete fulfilment of Swedish speakers’ linguistic rights in Finland seems unlikely, the renewed Strategy is a step in the right direction to improve linguistic rights and the language climate in Finland in 2021.