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The map shows languages in the Nordic region and surrounding areas (i.e., Danish in Northern Germany) which are officially recognised by law or international agreements and ratifications.

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Languages within the Nordic region adhere to different language branches, of which the Germanic languages have the largest number of speakers. Recognised Germanic languages in the Nordic region include Swedish (Sweden, Finland), Danish (Denmark, Germany, Greenland, Faroe Islands), Norwegian (Norway – with two main variants, bokmål and nynorsk), Icelandic (Iceland), Faroese (Faroe Islands), and the minority languages Jiddisch (Sweden) and German (Denmark). Among the Finno-Ugric languages in the Nordic region, Finnish by far has the largest number of speakers. Both Finnish and Sami are recognised in the three Nordic countries of Finland, Sweden and Norway (in Norway, Finnish is also known as Kven), whereas Meänkieli has minority language status in Sweden. Greenlandic, within the Greenlandic language family, is official language in Greenland. The Indo-Iranian language Romani is recognised as minority language in Norway, Sweden, and Finland.

The recognition of these languages is generally based on their long-standing history within the particular country. However, the status and classification of these languages vary between the countries. E.g., in Finland, both Finnish and Swedish are official languages, while in Sweden, Swedish is the official language and Finnish is one of five minority languages. Likewise, in the Faroe Islands, both Faroese and Danish are official languages, while in Greenland, only Greenlandic is official language but Danish is an “administrative” language. Also, the nature of the formal recognition of minority languages varies within the Nordic region. In Denmark, German (Southern Jutland) is since 1955 protected through a bilateral parliamentary agreement with Germany, which in turn gives language rights to the Danish speaking minority in Northern Germany; in several Nordic countries, the minority languages are protected by specific language laws.

Map ID: 10146f

Designer/Cartographer
Linus Rispling

Data source
DK & DE: Bonn-Copenhagen Declarations (1 April 1955), Bund Deutscher Nordschleswiger, Sydslesvigsk forening, Danmarks tredje rapport i henhold til den europæiske pagt om regionale sprog eller mindretalssprog (Indenrigs- og Sundhedsministeriet 2010). FI: Laws/language laws (2003/423, 2003/1086, 1991/1144, 11.6.1999/731), Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities, Kotus. FO: Lov om Færøernes Hjemmestyre (lov 137 af 23/03/1948). GL: Lov om Grønlands Selvstyre (12. juni 2009), Inatsisartutlov nr. 7 af 19. maj 2010 om sprogpolitik. IS: Language law (61/2011). NO: Language laws (01.04.2007, 2012-10-12-964), European Charter for regional or minority languages. Second periodical report: Norway
(Council of Europe, March 2002), KMD, Språkrådet. SE: Language laws (2009:600, 2009:724), Parkvall, Mikael: Sveriges språk – vem talar vad och var? (Stockholms universitet 2009), Språkrådet.

Published 15 June 2015

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Languages in the Nordic region

Official, main, minority, and administrative languages in the Nordic region

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Linus Rispling
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Languages in the Nordic region

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