For the past few years, language issues have been prominent in Finland's national media, making the vitality of the Finnish language a common topic of discussion. The LAIF research project, funded by the Kone Foundation, uses sociolinguistic methodology to examine prevailing language ideologies and attitudes in Finland. The project aims to raise language awareness in Finland and bring scientific research closer to citizens. For example, we want to provide information on what it means to live in multilingual contemporary Finland from the perspective of different language groups and thus to increase mutual understanding among people living in Finland. In doing so, we join the growing body of work that has been described as the Fourth Wave of Sociolinguistics (e.g., Baugh 2018, Charity Hudley et al. 2020), meaning that we combine high-quality research with linguistic activisim, aiming to redress social injustices and inequalities.
For us, it's all about LAIF! That is, Language Awareness and Ideologies in Finland, with a special focus on English since we are all scholars of English (although we also research other languages, including Finnish). Dr. Elizabeth Peterson is the head of the project (PI), overseeing the work of two postdoctoral researchers and a doctoral researcher. Dr. Laura Hekanaho's research focuses on language attitudes, and she will conduct a national survey to investigate Finnish people's attitudes towards English in Finland. Doctoral researcher Katariina Pyykkö will complete her PhD on the role of English for academically trained migrants living in Finland, also working with survey data. Dr. Marika Hall will collaborate with both Hekanaho and Pyykkö throughout the project, investigating language ideologies.
With the aim of increasing language awareness, we will use this blog space to share results about our ongoing research studies — so stay tuned!
Psst... For our non-Finnish readers, our acronym LAIF is actually a Finnish word borrowed from English, pronounced like the word "life" and sharing the same meaning, made famous by a beloved Finnish anti-hero, olympic ski jumper Matti Nykänen, who uttered the words "Elämä on laiffii" (life is life!).
Baugh, J. (2018). Linguistics in pursuit of justice. Cambridge University Press.
Charity Hudley, A., Mallinson, C. and Bucholtz, M. (2020). Toward Racial Justice in Linguistics: Interdisciplinary Insights into Theorizing Race in the Discipline and Diversifying the Profession. Language 96: 4
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