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Tornedalians
Tornedalians (; ; ) are an Ethnicity, ethnic Minority group, minority native to the Torne Valley (Meänmaa) region in northern Sweden and Finland. Tornedalians were officially recognized as a national minority in Sweden in 2000. Tornedalians divide themselves into three distinct groups: Tornedalians, Kvens, and Lantalaiset. Etymology The English word ''Tornedalian'' derives from the Swedish name for the Torne Valley, ''Tornedalen''. The Swedish word Tornedalen derives from the archaic Finnic word ''tornio'' meaning ''spear'' and the Swedish word ''dal'' which means valley. Language Meänkieli, or Tornedalian, is the language or dialect spoken by Tornedalians. While Meänkieli is recognised in Sweden as one of the Official minority languages of Sweden, country's five minority languages, its status as an independent language is sometimes disputed due to its high mutual intelligibility with Finnish. It belongs to the Uralic language family. History Finnic populations first be ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kvenland
Kvenland, known as ''Cwenland'', ''Qwenland'', ''Kænland'', and similar terms in medieval sources, is an ancient name for an area in Fennoscandia and Scandinavia. Kvenland, in that or nearly that spelling, is known from an Old English account written in the 9th century, which used information provided by Norwegian adventurer and traveler Ohthere, and from Nordic sources, primarily Icelandic. A possible additional source was written in the modern-day area of Norway. All known Nordic sources date from the 12th and 13th centuries. Other possible references to Kvenland by other names and spellings are also discussed here. Old English Orosius A Norwegian adventurer and traveler named Ohthere visited England around 890 CE. King Alfred of Wessex had his stories written down and included them in his Old English version of a world history written by the Romano-Hispanic author Orosius. Ohthere's story contains the only contemporary description about Kvenland that has survived from the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Finns
Finns or Finnish people (, ) are a Baltic Finns, Baltic Finnic ethnic group native to Finland. Finns are traditionally divided into smaller regional groups that span several countries adjacent to Finland, both those who are native to these countries as well as those who have resettled. Some of these may be classified as separate ethnic groups, rather than subgroups of Finns. These include the Kvens and Forest Finns in Norway, the Tornedalians in Sweden, and the Ingrian Finns in Russia. Finnish language, Finnish, the language spoken by Finns, is closely related to other Balto-Finnic languages such as Estonian language, Estonian and Karelian language, Karelian. The Finnic languages are a subgroup of the larger Uralic languages, Uralic family of languages, which also includes Hungarian language, Hungarian. These languages are markedly different from most other languages spoken in Europe, which belong to the Indo-European languages, Indo-European family of languages. Native Finns c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Meänmaa
, or sometimes Torne Valley or Torne River Valley (; ) lies at the border of Sweden and Finland. It is named after the Torne River flowing through the valley and into the Gulf of Bothnia. Geographically the townships and municipalities that make up the area are Haparanda, Övertorneå, Pajala and Kiruna in Sweden, and Tornio, Ylitornio, Pello, Kolari, Muonio and Enontekiö in Finland. Culturally the highland Swedish municipality Gällivare is sometimes also considered part of Meänmaa due to the large share of Meänkieli-speaking population in it. Meänkieli surnames and village names are common on the Swedish side of the border to this day, in spite of the dominance of the Swedish language in the area. The Finnish side of the border has standard Finnish as the sole spoken language. History and culture The cultural environment around the Torne River is characterized by agriculture, reindeer farming and fishing. Meänmaa was one of the oldest inhabited areas in northern F ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Meänkieli
(literally 'our language'), or Tornedalian is a Finnic language or a group of distinct Finnish dialects spoken in the northernmost part of Sweden, particularly along the Torne River Valley. It is officially recognized in Sweden as one of the country's five minority languages and is treated as a separate language from Finnish. According to the National Association of Swedish Tornedalians, 70,000 individuals understand Meänkieli, at least to some level. Meänkieli is particularly similar to the Kven language and the Peräpohjola dialects of Finnish spoken in Finland, and it is strongly mutually intelligible with them. Its status as an independent language is sometimes disputed due to this high degree of mutual intelligibility. However, Meänkieli contains strong influences from Swedish and has preserved some archaic features that even the Northern Finnish dialects have lost. It also differs from Standard Finnish because it does not include the language changes and new words ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kvens
Kvens (; ; ; ; ) are a Balto-Finnic ethnic group indigenous to the northern regions of Norway, Sweden, Finland and parts of Russia. In 1996, Kvens were granted minority status in Norway, and in 2005 the Kven language was recognized as a minority language in Norway. Name The origin of the name Kven is unclear. There is a theory among some academic groups that due to the discrimination and suppression by the Norwegian authorities the term ''Kven'' became derogatory in the late 19th century. Therefore, many Kvens preferred to be called ''kainulaiset''. But with the revitalization of the Kven culture in the 1970s, Kvens themselves started using the term. However, even in the 1990s there was a debate whether the Norwegian terms , , or (respectively a Finnish person, Finnish, and of Finnish origin) should be used instead. However, today the term ''Kven'' is accepted and used, for example, in the name of the Kven organization in Norway, ''Norske Kveners Forbund''. Demographi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Karelians
Karelians (; ; ; ) are a Baltic Finnic ethnic group who are indigenous to the historical region of Karelia, which is today split between Finland and Russia. Karelians living in Russian Karelia are considered a distinct ethnic group closely related to Finnish Karelians, who are considered a subset of Finns. This distinction historically arose from Karelia having been fought over and eventually split between Sweden and Novgorod, resulting in Karelians being under different cultural spheres. In Russia, Karelians mostly live in the Republic of Karelia, where they are the designated ethnic group, and in other adjacent north-western parts of the country. They traditionally speak the Karelian language and are Eastern Orthodox Christians. There are also significant Karelian enclaves in the Tver and Novgorod oblasts, as some Karelians migrated to those areas after the Russo-Swedish War of 1656–1658. In Finland, the term Karelian generally refers to the Finnish Karelians, who ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Official Minority Languages Of Sweden
In 1999, the Minority Language Committee of Sweden formally declared five official minority languages: Finnish, Sámi languages, Romani, Yiddish, and Meänkieli (Tornedal Finnish). The Swedish language dominates commercial and cultural life in Sweden but did not officially become the country's main language until 2009, when a new language law entered into effect. The need for this legal status had been the subject of protracted debate and proposed legislation was narrowly defeated in 2005. The minority languages have been legally recognized to protect the cultural and historical heritage of their respective speech communities. These communities are given certain rights on that basis, such as school education in their language, and its use in dealing with governmental agencies. Criteria for inclusion These are the criteria established by the Minority Language Committee, influenced by the directives from the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages in 1997. To be ac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Umeå University
Umeå University (; Ume Sami language, Ume Sami: ) is a public university, public research university located in Umeå, in the mid-northern region of Sweden. The university was founded in 1965 and is the fifth oldest within Sweden's present borders. As of 2015, Umeå University has over 36,000 registered students (approximately 16,000 full-time students), including those at the postgraduate and doctoral level. It has more than 4,000 employees, half of which are teachers/researchers, including 310 professors. Internationally, the university is known for research relating to the genome of the Populus, poplar tree and the Norway Spruce, and its highly ranked Umeå Institute of Design, Institute of (industrial) Design. Organisation The highest branch at Umeå University is the University Board of Directors. The board includes eight members (including the board chairman) appointed by the government, the vice-chancellor, three representatives for the teachers, three for other employ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Birkarls
The Birkarls (; ) were a small, unofficially organized group that controlled taxation and commerce in central Lappmarken in Sweden from the 13th to the 17th century.Vahtola, Jouko. ''Tornionlaakson historia I''. Birkarlit, 'pirkkalaiset'. Malungs boktryckeri AB. Malung, Sweden. 1991. The article draws heavily from the material available in the book. Background Birkarls (bircharlaboa) are first mentioned in 1328, when they are listed as one of the settler groups in northern Hälsingland, a designation that covered the western coast of Gulf of Bothnia all the way up and around the gulf to Oulu River. The name ''birkarl'' probably originates from an ancient Scandinavian word '' birk'' that has been used in reference to commerce in various contexts. In the late 16th century, claims about birkarls coming from Great Pirkkala (a parish in Upper Satakunta) emerged, propagated by birkarls themselves in their battle to prevent the state from stripping their privileges. This is at l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Viking Age
The Viking Age (about ) was the period during the Middle Ages when Norsemen known as Vikings undertook large-scale raiding, colonising, conquest, and trading throughout Europe and reached North America. The Viking Age applies not only to their homeland of Scandinavia but also to any place significantly settled by North Germanic peoples, Scandinavians during the period. Although few of the Scandinavians of the Viking Age were Vikings in the sense of being engaged in piracy, they are often referred to as ''Vikings'' as well as ''Norsemen''. Voyaging by sea from their homelands in Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, the Norse people settled in the Viking activity in the British Isles, British Isles, History of Ireland (800–1169), Ireland, the Faroe Islands, Settlement of Iceland, Iceland, Norse settlements in Greenland, Greenland, History of Normandy, Normandy, and the Baltic Sea, Baltic coast and along the Trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks, Dnieper and Volga trade rout ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tavastians
The Tavastians (; ) were an ancient Finnish tribes, Finnish tribe that inhabited the historical province of Tavastia (historical province), Tavastia (). In Russian sources, they are called ''Yem'' (Емь) or ''Yam'' (Ямь), but the term later disappeared from the Russian language after Finland was incorporated into the Swedish realm. The Tavastians are often noted for Finnish–Novgorodian wars, their conflicts with Novgorod. The Tavastians are also a modern subgroup of the Finnish people, distinguished by their use of Finnish language#Dialects, Tavastian dialects. History Tavastia (historical province), Tavastia () has been inhabited since the early Stone Age. The core area of ancient Tavastia was formed around Vanajavesi, Lake Vanajavesi. Example of organized cooperation of iron age Tavastians are the hillforts that form a clear line in south-north direction around Hämeenlinna. Most remarkable from these hillforts is the Rapola Castle which is the biggest hillfort found ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Drots
Seneschal of the Realm (; ; ; ; other plausible translations are ''Lord High Steward'' or ''Lord High Justiciar'') is a Danish and Swedish supreme state official, with at least a connotation to administration of judiciary, who in medieval Scandinavia was often a leader in the government. Background The word drots/drost seems to be of German origin ('' Truchsess'') and means a steward or a leader of the household; in Dutch language however, a drost or drossaard was a historical kind of bailiff in parts of the Low Countries. During the Scandinavian Early Middle Age it developed into an even more powerful political position. The drots was responsible of administering royal justice. Other powers easily became added to the position. The Lord High Constable (marsk) and Lord High Chancellor were the other officers that sometimes held the premiership. The Drots held the privilege to be the Regent during a minority or absence of the king. Quite often, the drots acted as a kind of governor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
