Finnish, Kven
A language of Norway
| Population | 6,500 (1998 The Federation of Norwegian Kven People). |
| Region | North; Tromso and Finnmark counties, Ruija, Kveeniland; Tromso City; Oteren, Skibotn, Storslett, Kvaenangsbotn, Nordreisa, Alta, Borselv, Neiden, Bygoynes, Vadso. |
| Language map |
Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden, reference number 1 |
| Alternate names | Kven, North Finnish |
| Dialects | Standard Finnish [fin] speakers generally understand, except for some vocabulary. More similar to Tornedalen Finnish [fit] (see Sweden) than to Standard Finnish. Various dialects: northern west coast varieties differ from eastern ones. Kven has integrated Norwegian loans, whereas Tornedalen has integrated Swedish [swe] loans. |
| Classification | Uralic, Finnic |
| Language use | From 1997 accepted as a L2 in Norway. Taught in schools 3 hours a week. Mostly older adults. Considered ‘Old Finnish’. Speakers of Tornedalen and Kven recognize the differences between the two. Also use Norwegian [nor] or Finnish [fin]. |
| Language development | Literacy rate in L2: Over 90% in Finnish. Newspapers. |
| Comments | Christian (Laestadian). |
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