A new research project examines the role of English in today’s Finnish society.
Public debate on the status of English in Finnish society, and the potential threat it poses to the country’s national languages, has been ongoing for years. This autumn saw the launch of a new research project, English in Coexistence with the National Languages of Finland, at the University of Eastern Finland. The project explores the current status and use of English in three areas of Finnish society: business, science and higher education, and public administration. The project addresses the question of whether the vitality and areas of use of Finnish and Swedish are narrowing due to the prevalence of English.
“The Strategy for the National Languages of Finland approved by Prime Minister Sanna Marin’s Government in 2021, among others, sees English as posing a threat to Finnish and Swedish, especially in science and higher education. Yet, data on this topic hasn’t been collected since the early 2000s,” says Mikko Laitinen, Professor of English Language and Culture.
The project comprises two parts: the first part consists of three surveys to be carried out in collaboration with key actors of the sectors involved in the study. The second part consists of social media data, which complements the survey results.
“For instance, we know that roughly one third of messages posted by Finns on social media are in English, but we are lacking a bigger picture of how much and in what languages municipalities, for example, advertise their services to residents.”
The research project involves Project Researcher Sara Backman (on the left), University Researcher Paula Rautionaho, Professor Mikko Laitinen and Professor Emerita Sirpa Leppänen.
According to University Researcher Paula Rautionaho, it is important that the debate on the changing status of English rely on research-based information.
“Finland is home to very high-level research in this area. When formulating language policy guidelines for English, decision-making should be guided by research on its use and impact.”
This is the first comprehensive study into the status of the English language in Finland since the national survey carried out in 2007, which was led by University of Jyväskylä Professor Emerita Sirpa Leppänen, who is also involved in the present project.
The project seeks to generate research-based information on the changing status of the English language to serve as the foundation for political decision-making to support the vitality of the national languages of Finland, multilingualism in society, and diverse language resources of Finns at different school levels.
The project is commissioned and funded by the Finnish Government. The first results are expected in spring 2023, and the final report will be published in the following autumn.
