Tornedalians
tornionlaaksolaiset (Meänkieli) | |
|---|---|
.svg) Flag of the Torne Valley | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
 Sweden | 30,000–150,000 (est.)[1] |
| Languages | |
| Meänkieli and Swedish | |
| Religion | |
| Lutheranism (Laestadianism) | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Kvens, Finns | |
Tornedalians (Meänkieli: tornionlaaksolaiset; Swedish: tornedalingar; Finnish: länsipohjalaiset) are an ethnic group native to the Meänmaa region of northern Sweden and Finland.[2] Tornedalians are a recognized national minority in Sweden.[3] Tornedalians generally divide themselves into three distinct groups: Tornedalians, Lantalaiset, and Kvens.[2]
History[edit]
Tornedalians are generally thought to be descended from the ancient Kvens, first mentioned by Ohthere of Hålogaland in 890, though recountings of Tornedalian history often begin with the birkarls who are first mentioned in 1328 in a legal hearing by the Swedish Drots Knut Jonsson over disputes with the Hälsings who the birkarls claimed were encroaching on their lands.[4][5] The birkarls were through the 14th to the 17th century slowly incorporated into the Swedish state, with Christianity establishing beginning in the 1400s though some pagan burials continued until the early 1600s.[6][5]
Following the Treaty of Fredrikshamn between Sweden and Russia in 1809 all Swedish lands east of the Torne and Muonio rivers was ceded to Russia as the Grand Duchy of Finland which contributed to the evolution of Meänkieli as separate from Finnish,[7] though the now split region of Meänmaa continued to be culturally homogenous and the border played little role in every day life for some time after.[8]
Tornedalians were the targets of extensive so-called "racial biology" and swedification policies. In the early- to mid-1900s, Herman Lundborg and others from the State Institute for Racial Biology performed skull measurements on Tornedalians, with Lundborg performing the first measurements in 1913. At the same time, speaking Finnish in schools was banned in parts of the country, including the Torne Valley.[7] This ban was only revoked by the Riksdag in 1957.[9]
In 2000, a new law went into effect recognising the Tornedalians as an official national minority and Meänkieli as an official minority language. A truth and reconciliation commission on historical discrimination against the population was appointed in 2020, and made its final report on 15 May 2023.[9] In both 2020 and 2023, STR-T, the National Association of Swedish Tornedalians have demanded the Swedish government to investigate their status as an indigenous people in accordance with ILO 169 though both times the Swedish government has denied to do so.[10]
Population[edit]
Sweden does not distinguish minority groups in population censuses, but the number of people who identify themselves as "Tornedalians" is usually estimated to be between 30,000 and 150,000. Estimates are complicated by the fact that the remote and sparsely-populated Tornedalen area has been particularly struck by the 20th-century urbanisation and unemployment. In 2006, a large radio survey about Finnish/Meänkieli speakers was conducted in Sweden. The result was that 469,000 individuals in Sweden claimed to understand or speak Finnish and/or Meänkieli. Those who can speak or understand Meänkieli are estimated to be 150,000–175,000.
Literature[edit]
Bengt Pohjanen is a Tornedalian author who has written the first novel in Meänkieli, the language of the Meänmaa.[11] He has written dramas, screenplays, songs and opera. He is trilingual in his writing.
The novel Populärmusik från Vittula (Popular Music from Vittula) (2000) by the Tornedalian author Mikael Niemi became very popular both in Sweden and in Finland. It is composed of colourful stories of everyday life in the Tornedalian town of Pajala. The novel has been adapted for several stage productions, and as a film in 2004.
Flag[edit]
The flag is a horizontal tricolour of yellow, white and blue.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ "Russian Census 2010: Population by ethnicity" (in Russian). Archived from the original on 4 December 2013. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
- ^ a b "Tornedalingar". Minoritet.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ "Fourth Report submitted by Sweden pursuant to Article 25, paragraph 2 of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (ACFC/SR/IV(2016)004)". Council of Europe: Secretariat of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. 1 June 2014. p. 3. Retrieved 31 December 2023.
- ^ Kuoksu, Erik (2010). BIRKARLSSLÄKTER I ÖVER TORNEDALEN [Birkarl clans in the Upper Torne Valley] (in Swedish). pp. 1–4.
- ^ a b Sannings och försoningskommissionens för tornedalingar, kväner och lantalaisets slutbetänkande [The Truth and Reconciliation Commission for Tornedalians, Kvens and Lantalaiset's final report] (in Swedish). 2023. pp. 178–183.
- ^ Antti, Peter. Religionens utveckling i Tornedalen - från hedendom till kristendom [The Evolution of Religion in the Torne Valley - from Paganism to Christianity] (in Swedish).
- ^ a b "Den tornedalska minoritetens historia tar form" (in Swedish). Sámi Parliament of Sweden. 31 January 2021. Retrieved 1 August 2023.
- ^ Lundgren, Edvard (2006). Den nya riksgränsen Byråkratiseringsprocessen och gränsdragningen i Tornedalen 1809-1825 (in Swedish).
- ^ a b Langseth, Anna (21 May 2022). "Lång historia av statliga övergrepp mot tornedalingarna". Syre (in Swedish). Retrieved 1 August 2023.
- ^ Nyheter, S. V. T. (19 October 2023). "Tornedalingar vill bli urfolk – begäran skickas till regeringen". SVT Nyheter (in Swedish). Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ "Meänkieli elämänsä kiikkulaudalla". Kaleva (in Finnish). Retrieved 29 July 2021.