Modern Finland

German linguist and cultural scientist Harald Haarmann is vice-president of the Institute of Archaeomythology and director of its European branch. He has written more than 50 books in various languages, including numerous studies on cultures and languages. He lives in Finland.

“This book fills a niche that no other English-language book on Finland does, so it is an important purchase for all academic libraries…essential”—Choice; “exceptionally well written, organized and presented...very highly recommended”—Midwest Book Review.

• Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction: What Makes a Small Country Like Finland Exceptional?1. How Do People Interact with Nature in Finland? The Natural Environment Vis-à-Vis Human Cultural SpaceThe Power of Nature—How the Environment Formed After the Last Ice AgeHow Many Lakes Are There in Finland?Finland and Wildlife: Where Are the Polar Bears?The Bear and Its Role in Northern People’s Cultural MemoryHow Did the Early Inhabitants of ­Fenno-Scandia Experience Their Environment?• A Prehistoric Chronicle: Rock Art by the Lakeside• The Solar Disk Symbolizing the Giver of Life• Water Birds as Messengers Between the WorldsMythical Realms: Nature and Female ­Guardian-Spirits of Living Things• Mother Nature: A Central Mythological Concept• Ancient Ties to Living Nature: The Shamanistic TraditionTraditional Respect for Nature Meets Modern Environmentalism• Human Interests and the Scope of Nature• The Control of Nature as an Historical Drive in Western Europe• Respect for Nature in the Northern Region: A Traditional Notion Embraced by Modern Science• Buildings and the Space Between Them: Modern Finnish Architecture in Contact with Nature• Breaking the Rules: Talvivaara—The Black Sheep of EnvironmentalismThe Mystery of the Northern LightsThe Gold of Lapland2. Where Do People Live and What Languages Do They Speak? Natives, Newcomers and Social Networking in a Multicultural SocietyThe Saami—Masters of the Arctic Region• Saami Terms for Snow• The Saami Have Many Words for “Reindeer”• Modernization in the Arctic Region: Mass Tourism and Santa Claus• Cultural Heritage in a Box: The Treasure of the Skolt Saami• On the Ways Saami Speak FinnishFinns: Modern Europeans with an Exotic Language• The Coming of Finnic Tribes• Finnish Communities in ­Fenno-Scandia• Who Is Finnish and Who Is Karelian?• Finnish: Some Specifics• Finnish Americans and American Finnish (Finglish)Finland-Swedes: The Nordic Input in Finland and Its History• The Coming of Christianity• Swedish Social Institutions in Finland• The Impact of Swedish on FinnishRussian-Speaking People: One Language—Two Ethnic Groups• Russian-Speaking Immigrants• Russian-Speaking Ingrians• Russian Loanwords in Finnish• Russian in Finnish MediaJews in Finland: Merging with the MajorityRomani–Finland’s Gypsies: Between Ethnic ­Boundary-Marking and Social IntegrationRefugees from Outside Europe: Resettling and Constructing Identity in the New HomelandLanguage Choices in a Multilingual Society: Communicative Networks and How They Function in Finland• Regulations of ­Finnish-Swedish Bilingualism• Regulations of ­Finnish-Saami Bilingualism3. What Makes a Finn and What Makes Finnish Society? Defining FinnishnessWhat’s in a Name? How Finns Call Themselves and How Others Call the FinnsSalient Features of Finnishness• The Environmental Mindset• Sisu: The Secret of Finnish Determination and Resilience• Social Cohesion at Work: Trust and ReliabilityThe Finnish Sense for PragmatismCultural Stereotypes in Light of Finnish Realities• Finnish Sauna: Myth and Reality• Tango—Finnish StyleThe Lure of Snow and Ice: Finns and Some of Their Pastime Activities• Skiing• Ice Hockey• SkatingSome Unusual Competitions• Wife-Carrying (or ­Woman-Carrying)• Mud Soccer (Football)• Mobile Phone ThrowingWhat Holds Finnish Society Together? The Secrets of the Finnish Communitarian Spirit• The Long Trail of Women’s Participation in Communitarian ­Decision-Making• Female Shamans, Healers and the Christian ­Witch-Hunt• Farm Households and ­Self-Confident Farm Mistresses• Women’s Rights to Vote in Local and National Elections• Women’s Equality in the Welfare State• Giving Profile to the Scandinavian Model of a Welfare State4. What Do Carl Gustaf Mannerheim and George Washington HaveCommon? Impressions from the Drive for IndependenceA Glimpse at Family HistoryThe Guidance of ProvidenceSetting the Stage for ­Finnish-Russian ConfrontationMannerheim as Leader of the White Finns in the Civil WarA Secret Diplomatic Mission and Early International RecognitionFinland’s IndependenceMannerheim as an Integrative National Figure at a Time of CrisisMannerheim and Washington: The Profile of Humble Public Servants5. How Did Finland Modernize? The Secrets of Finnish Entrepreneurship, ­Know-How and InventivenessMaxims of Entrepreneurship and Finnish Work EthicsIndustrializing Finland: A Latecomer but a Fast DeveloperThe ­Finland-Swedish Impact on Industry and CommerceFinland’s Economic Miracle: Standards of Technological ModernizationThe Nokia Story: From Pulpwood and Rubber Boots to Communication Systems• Modest Beginnings in the 1860s• Engaging in the Production of Electrical Equipment Since the Early 20th Century• Digitalization and the Great Endeavor of the Mobile Phone Business• Selling a New Image of Global Telecommunication: Mobile Phones for Everybody• Nokia’s Decline and Fall and Rise to New Heights• Nokia’s Communicative Strategy for International MarketingManaging Network Society: A Small Country Mobilizing ­Know-How and Capacities6. What Makes Finland’s School Education So Efficient and How Important Are the Language Choices for ­Knowledge-Construction?The Art of Learning Fast: Finnish Education and the Test of TimeFinnish as a Written Language: From Religious BooksCybercommunicationWhich Are the Media of Finnish ­Know-How? Foreign LanguagesMental Capital• Latin and French• Latin and German• Latin and Swedish• Finnish and German• Finnish and EnglishEnglish as the Icon of Modernity and of Intercommunication• Domains of a Practical Use of English in Finland• English as a Vehicle of Symbolic InternationalizationThe Role of English for Higher Education and Professional Specialization• The Passive Consumption of Academic Texts in English by Students• The Passive Consumption of Academic Texts in English by Scientists• The Production of Oral English Texts for Teaching and Training at the University Level• The Production of Written Scientific Texts (i.e., ­Non-Literary Prose) in English7. What Is Known in the World About Finnish Culture? Global Manifestations of the Finnish Creative MindArchitectureArt: Finnish PaintingFinnish Design and Fashion• Finnish Glassware• Finnish Furniture• Finnish Homeware and Ceramics• Finnish Textiles and FashionLiterature• The National Epic Kalevala and Its Legacy• Sofi Oksanen’s Purge: An Unconventional Success StoryFinnish Filmmakers and Movie Stars AbroadWhat Makes Finnish Music Attractive for the World? Composers, Conductors, Opera and Jazz• Traditional Finnish and Saami Music• Jean Sibelius and the Finlandia• Finnish Composers Beyond Sibelius• The World of Opera and the Savonlinna Opera Festival• Finnish Creative Leadership in the Orchestra World• Finnish Singers with an International Career• The Pori Jazz FestivalThe Moomins and Their ValleyAngry Birds and Other Computer Games8. Do the Finns Have a Recipe for World Peace? Minding One’s Own Business and That of Others in a Cooperative FashionPrelude: Finland’s Contribution to Securing Bulgaria’s IndependenceFinnish Peacekeeping Missions in the World Since the 1950sGetting Along with World Powers• Finland’s Flexibility to Cope with Foreign Rule: Per Brahe and Alexander II in Focus• Per Brahe• Alexander II• The Odds of “Finlandization”• The Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (1975)The Art of Negotiating: Martti Ahtisaari and His Imprints on World Peace• Achieving Independence for Namibia• Negotiating Peace for Kosovo• Negotiating Autonomy for the Aceh Region in IndonesiaEpilogue: How to Cope with Accelerating GlobalizationAppendix I: Finland in FiguresAppendix II: Administrative Regions of FinlandBibliographyIndex