The map shows the language situation in Finland according to official administrative boundaries by 1 January 2015.
The Language law of Finland stipulates that Mainland Finland has two national languages, Finnish and Swedish. In the Åland Islands, the official language is Swedish only. In four Sami populated municipalities of Northern Finland, Sami is recognized as official language.
Regarding the official languages in Mainland Finland, Finnish and Swedish, the language status of each municipality is regularly reviewed. A municipality is given one out of four statuses: Finnish speaking; Swedish speaking; Bilingual with a Finnish speaking majority (with Swedish as the minority language); and Bilingual with a Swedish speaking majority (with Finnish as the minority language). A municipality is bilingual when a minimum of 8 % of the inhabitants or at least 3000 inhabitants use the minority language as mother tongue.
The vast majority of Finland’s municipalities, and almost all of the inland municipalities, are officially Finnish speaking. Municipalities where Swedish is recognized either as minority or majority language are located along the Western coast (mainly in Österbotten), and along the southern coasts of Mainland Finland.
Data source
The Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities; Language law (423/2003); Autonomy Act of Åland (1144/1991); Sami language law (Saamen kielilaki 1086/2003)
Published 24 February 2015
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