Languages

Majority of Finns wants Russian language instead of Swedish

Russia and the Russian language

A majority of the Finnish people think that pupils in the eastern part of the country should be allowed to learn Russian instead of Swedish.

Location

62 percent of the participants in a poll by TNS Gallup think that pupils in schools close to the Russian border should be allowed to swap Swedish for Russian. Only 21 percent say an absolute “no” to this, Finnish newspaper Hufvudstadsbladet reports.

Finland’s Prime Minister Mari Kiviniemi also supports this idea. During a visit to North Karelia in September, she said that the proposed changes can start on a trial basis in parts of the country, BarentsObserver reported.

As the country’s second official language, Swedish remains obligatory at all schools. However in Eastern Finland Russian speakers far outnumber Swedish speakers. Most of the nation’s 5.4 percent Swedish-speaking minority is concentrated along the coast.