Q How do you promote the Finnish
language and culture in the UK?
A You can actively connect with the Finnish
culture at the Finnish Institute in London –
a non-profit trust linking communities,
individuals and organisations. This year's focus
is 'Future of Work, Borders, Sustainability and
Well-being'. Its contemporary art prize, Below
Zero, offers a Finnish artist a one-month
residency in London, mentoring and the
chance to show their work at a London gallery.
For the institute's 10×10 Stories from
Finland campaign, 100 books written by
Finnish authors were translated into English,
including modern masterpieces and classics
such as the epic Kalevala. The books were
donated to 10 libraries around the UK. The
Embassy of Finland was a major partner in
this project, along with seven publishers.
Posters around London are currently
promoting the Finnish word hän. This is part of
a campaign about equality (finland.fi/han), with
the idea of thanking English, French, German,
Spanish and Swedish languages for their
loanwords, and spreading awareness about
equality. The third-person singular pronoun
hän is neutral in terms of gender and social
@Linguist_CIOL
OCTOBER/NOVEMBER The Linguist 11
FEATURES
Embassy insights
status, so it represents equal opportunity.
Q What is the role of the Suomi (Finnish)
schools in the UK?
A They support bilingual children's language
learning and teach expatriate children about
Finnish culture. Around 20 Finnish schools
currently operate in the UK, accommodating
500 pupils, 200 adult learners and 70 teachers.
We focus on supporting language learning,
especially in Finnish-British families, and
strengthening the Finnish identity. The Finnish
Institute, UCL's School of Slavonic and Eastern
The Finnish Ambassador to the UK, HE Markku Keinänen, talks to
Romana Sustar about Portuguese culture and language in the UK
European Studies, the University of Edinburgh
and other bodies also offer language courses.
Q How diverse is Finland?
A Finland is a rather ethnically homogeneous
country with cultural minorities, including
Ingrian Finns and Karelian speakers. There
are around 300,000 Swedish-speaking Finns,
12,000 Roma and 10,000 Saami.
Q If you could teach the UK one thing from
Finnish culture, what would it be?
A Sauna. There are more saunas in Finland
than cars. The idea is to take time for yourself
and reflect. There is a famous Finnish saying:
Build the sauna, then the house.
HE Markku Keinänen became Ambassador
to the UK in June. Twitter @MKeinanen. For
details of Finnish events, see www.fininst.uk.
Council member Romana Sustar MCIL CL is
a multilingual Digital Marketing Manager.
Twitter @RomanaSustar
More than 20,000 Finns live in the UK,
most of them in London. Finland gained
autonomy from the Russian Empire in
1917, diplomatic relations with the UK
were established on 28 March 1918 and
the UK officially recognised Finland on
6 May 1919. Finland currently holds the
six-month rotating presidency of the
Council of the European Union, with a
focus on the climate.
FACT FILE: FINLAND
ARTISTIC IMPRESSIONS
Finnish photo exhibition about winter swimmers
at Europe House; and (inset) Markku Keinänen
