Lars Elenius: Både finsk och svensk. Modernisering, nationalism och språkförändring i Tornedalen 1850-1939. Umeå 2001 (ISBN 91-88466-43-4).

Den fred som undertecknades i Fredrikshamn hösten 1809 var den mest svidande i Sveriges historia. I ett slag delades det svenska riket i två delar. Gränsen drogs längs Torne älv och delade de finskspråkiga socknarna mitt itu. Tornedalingarna hamnade därigenom i två olika nationalstatsprojekt, samtidigt också i två olika moderniseringsprojekt.

I boken Både finsk och svensk undersöker Lars Elenius vilka kon-sekvenser delningen fick för den finskspråkiga minoriteten på den svenska sidan. Den långa sammanhängande tiden med Finland i en gemensam nationalstat gjorde att Svenska Tornedalen blev ett både politiskt och kulturellt omtvistat gränsområde.

Under perioden 1850-1939 genomgick Svenska Tornedalen en revolutionerande modernisering som helt förändrade den finskspråkiga minoritetens livsbetingelser. Under samma tisdsperiod förändrades språkpolitiken i folkskolan från en tolerant inställning till det finska språket, till en mer inskränkt assimileringspolitik. Som bakgrund till förändringen anger författaren det upplevda hotet från Ryssland, den laestadianska väckelsen och den finska nationalismen.

Svenska Tornedalens integrering i den svenska nationalstaten fick djupgående konsekvenser för den finska kulturen och för det finska språket.

Elenius ägnar särskild uppmärksamhet åt språkbytesprocessen i Övertorneå kommun. Genom att jämföra moderniseringens förlopp på den svenska och finska sidan visar författaren hur olika fak-torer påverkade övertorneåbornas språkstrategier. Undersökningen resulterar i en ny syn på sambandet mellan språk, etnicitet och natio-nalism.

English summary

Both Finnish and Swedish. Modernisation, Nationalism and Language change in the Torne Valley. 1850-1939.
This study deals with the impact by modernisation and nationalism on the ethnicity and national identity among the Finnish speaking minority in the Torne Valley in the north of Sweden. The starting point is 1809 when Sweden lost the Finnish part of the kingdom to Russia. It resulted in the division of the Torne Valley into two nation-states and modernisation projects. The aim of the study is to investigate what happened to the ethnic content in the national identity in the two parts of the valley over time. The focus is placed on the parish of Övertorneå on the Swedish side between 1850 and 1939.

According to the modernist and constructivist approach in theories of nationalism, national consciousness and national sentiments are confined to the era of industrialisation and modernisation. In the dissertation nationalism on the contrary is regarded as a myth-symbol complex which is transferred by one or many ethnic groups from the pre-modern state to the modern nation-state. A perspective from both above and below is used in the study. The investigation in the state assimilation policy shows, by contrast with previous studies, that the main aim up to the middle of the 1880s was to maintain religious hegemony in relation to the Laestadian revivalist movement. It also shows that the assimilation policy was influenced by the continuity of the Finnish speaking minority in the nation-state and the previous link of Sweden together with Finland in the former unitary state. Moreover it shows that it was influenced by internal changes in the paradigm of education and party policy, the new international status of national minorities after First World War and language revitalisation in the Torne Valley.

The process of language shift is used as an important marker of ethnicity and national identity. When following the shift of language use among the Torne Valley people from 1890 to 1930 the study shows that the language policy in school played an essential role for the shift, but the difference between women and men also reveals the impact from the society outside school. It also reveals a dynamic change from both Finnish to Swedish and reverse before 1890. In contrast to previous studies the writing abilities in Finnish was at a considerable level and sustain in time compared to the writing abilities in Swedish. The stable pattern of inter-marriage between the Swedish Torne Valley and Finland 1860-1919 reveals a cultural continuity which stands in contrast to the dramatical political events of the time.

Keywords: Modernisation, nationalism, ethnicity, assimilation policy, national identity, marriage pattern, language shift, Torne Valley, elementary school.