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			'''Kvens''' (alternate spellings: Cwen, Kven, Kvæn, Kveeni, Quen) are a minority ethnic group in the far north of Norway, primarily in the counties of ] and ]. The number of Kvens is uncertain, but as many as 50,000 - 60,000 Norwegians claim Kven descent; though a minority of these speak the Kven language. The Kvens share a distinct language known as ], closely related to ] and in particular ]. The Kven minority in Norway was subject to discrimination in modern times, particularly in the early 20th century; but Kven culture and language is recently gaining interest and popularity.
⚫	~~'''Kvens'''~~ ~~(alternate~~ ~~spellings:~~ ~~Cwen,~~ ~~Kven,~~ ~~Kvæn,~~ ~~Kveeni,~~ ~~Quen) were~~ a historical group of people that lived in the coastal areas around the ], part of today's ]. They are mentioned in ] between 800-1500 AD, after which they were gradually integrated with the ].

		⚫	The term is also used to refer to a historical group of people that lived in the coastal areas around the ], part of today's ]. They are mentioned in ] between 800-1500 AD, after which they were gradually integrated with the ].
	Between the ] and the early ], a substantial immigration of Finns to northern ] came to have the distiction of Kvens. Although some customs and language are likely to have been common, no immediate heritage to the historical Kvens can be traced. These people have however been granted their own rights as a Norwegian minority people.

			Though there are likely historical and linguistic connections between the historical and contemporary Kvens, there is no clear continuity between the two.

		⚫	== Norwegian settlements ==

			In the modern usage the word ''Kven'' refers to the descendants of immigrants from ] who settled in ] before the ] and in several waves into the ].

		⚫	For example, such places by the '']'' (a vast bay of water, connected to the ] - ''Varangerfjorden'' in ] - in Northeastern ]) as ] (''Pykeija'' in ]), ] (''Vesisaari'' in ]), ] (''Kirkkoniemi'' in ]) and ] (''Vuoreija'' in ]) are perfect examples of today's remaining ''Kven'' centers in north-eastern Norway.

		⚫	Following the Norwegian ratification of the ]'s ] in 1998, the ''Kvens'' of Norway were granted a legal minority peoples' status in Norway. Their language, the ], or ''Kainu'', was granted an official and legalized minority language status in 2005. {{ref\|KvenLanguage}}

		⚫	==Kven migrations==

		⚫	Today researchers (] and others) agree that the Tornedalians who migrated in what is today the ] in ] originated from the Kvens in ], in Finland.

		⚫	After the Middle Ages and the migration of the so called Tornedalians the next larger migration wave up north - this time again reaching the coastal areas of today's Norway - happened in the early ]. The following ''Kven'' migration to ] - and to the areas that were a part of the ] up till ] - took place in the beginning of the ], reaching a peak during the famine in Finland in the ].

		⚫	The immigrants now were for the most part poor farmers looking for land in the Norwegian provinces of ] and ]. The first immigrants arrived to parishes such as ], ], ], ], ], ] and ]. The later arrivers settled in the eastern parts of Finnmark, along the Varanger Fjord. They integrated quickly into the Norwegian society to live along with the Norwegians and Sami people. For instance, in places like Vadsø - where they were the majority of the population - they soon considered the Norwegian cultural identity as a standard.

		⚫	The Norwegian government attempted to integrate the Kvens from the 1880s. The use of the Kven language became forbidden in schools and government officies, and Kven town names were replaced by Norwegian.

		⚫	However, the last few decades brought a significant change. The original Kven have been granted their old meanings. Such names include the Northern Norwegian community place names of ''Alattio'' (Alta in ]), ''Annijoki'' (Vestre Jakobselv), ''Kaarasjoki'' (Karasjok), ''Kallijoki'' (Skalvelv), ''Kirkkoniemi'' (Kirkenes), ''Lemmijoki'' - a Kven name in use at least since 1595 - (Lakselv), ''Naavuono'' (Kvænangen), ''Näätämö'' (Neiden), ''Paatsjoki'' (Pasvik), ''Porsanki'' (Porsanger), ''Pulmanki'' (Polmak), ''Punakakkanen'' (Bonakas), ''Pykeija'' (]), ''Pyssyjoki'' (Børselva), ''Raisi'' (Nordreisa), ''Vesisaari'' (Vadsø), ''Vuoreija'' (Vardø), ''Yekeä'' (Lyngen), etc.

		⚫	From 1970s on the ''Kvens'' and the ''Samis'' in Norway have openly been allowed to use the original mother tongue of the ''Kvens'', i.e. an old ''Kven'' dialect of ] and to teach it to their children at schools. This new policy was enforced via special language laws for minorities. In 2005, the ''Kven language'' - officially now known as ] - was given a legal minority language status in Norway.

		⚫	Today, most speakers of the so called ''Kven Finnish'' are found mostly in the extreme Northeastern parts of Norway, in such communities as ] and ] (a municipality of ], where the last centuries' main migration of Kven people took place from 1830 to 1860), ] and ] (Vadsø Municipality) and ] (Municipality of ]). A few older speakers may still be found also in the municipalities of ] and ]. Bugøynes - by ] - perhaps remains the most vital of all the remaining Kven communities in Norway.

	==Historical origin ==		==Historical origin ==
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	In the 16th century, the historical origin of the Kvens had already been surpassed and it was not certain if the Kvens and the historical Kvenland overlapped. The issue continued to be disputed for centuries. Additionally, ancient sources are generally unspecific as detailed maps did not exist.		In the 16th century, the historical origin of the Kvens had already been surpassed and it was not certain if the Kvens and the historical Kvenland overlapped. The issue continued to be disputed for centuries. Additionally, ancient sources are generally unspecific as detailed maps did not exist.

⚫	== Norwegian settlements ==

	In the modern terminology the word ''Kven'' usually refers to the ] people - and their descendants - who settled in ] at first in the ] and onward to the ], and who today inhabit the northernmost coastal areas of the ]n peninsula, by the ] and its ]. The areas mostly belong to ], but some also to ].

⚫	For example such places by the '']'' (a vast bay of water, connected to the ] - ''Varangerfjorden'' in ] - in Northeastern ]) as ] (''Pykeija'' in ]), ] (''Vesisaari'' in ]), ] (''Kirkkoniemi'' in ]) and ] (''Vuoreija'' in ]) are perfect examples of today's remaining ''Kven'' centers in north-eastern Norway.

	Due to the mixing of populations and cultures in the historical ''Kvenland'' territories, the descendants of ''Kvens'' e.g. in the ] and the ] areas are usually no longer referred to as ''Kvens'' by the local residents. Only the ''Kvens'' of ] by the ] and particularly its ] in Northeastern Scandinavia - who up till the latter part of the twentieth century have been rather isolated of the rest of the society around them - still today proudly and visibly carry the ''Kven'' title, traditions and heritage.

⚫	In ~~1996~~ the ''Kvens'' of Norway were granted a legal minority peoples' status in Norway. Their language, the ], or ''Kainu'', was granted an official and legalized minority language status in 2005. {{ref\|KvenLanguage}}

⚫	==Kven migrations==

⚫	Today researchers (] and others) agree that the Tornedalians who migrated in what is today the ] in ] originated from the Kvens in ], in Finland.

⚫	After the Middle Ages and the migration of the so called Tornedalians the next larger migration wave up north - this time again reaching the coastal areas of today's Norway - happened in the early ]. The following ''Kven'' migration to ] - and to the areas that were a part of the ] up till ] - took place in the beginning of the ], reaching a peak during the famine in Finland in the ].

⚫	The immigrants now were for the most part poor farmers looking for land in the Norwegian provinces of ] and ]. The first immigrants arrived to parishes such as ], ], ], ], ], ] and ]. The later arrivers settled in the eastern parts of Finnmark, along the Varanger Fjord. They integrated quickly into the Norwegian society to live along with the Norwegians and Sami people. For instance, in places like Vadsø - where they were the majority of the population - they soon considered the Norwegian cultural identity as a standard.

⚫	The Norwegian government attempted to integrate the Kvens from the 1880s. The use of the Kven language became forbidden in schools and government officies, and Kven town names were replaced by Norwegian.

⚫	However, the last few decades brought a significant change. The original Kven have been granted their old meanings. Such names include the Northern Norwegian community place names of ''Alattio'' (Alta in ]), ''Annijoki'' (Vestre Jakobselv), ''Kaarasjoki'' (Karasjok), ''Kallijoki'' (Skalvelv), ''Kirkkoniemi'' (Kirkenes), ''Lemmijoki'' - a Kven name in use at least since 1595 - (Lakselv), ''Naavuono'' (Kvænangen), ''Näätämö'' (Neiden), ''Paatsjoki'' (Pasvik), ''Porsanki'' (Porsanger), ''Pulmanki'' (Polmak), ''Punakakkanen'' (Bonakas), ''Pykeija'' (]), ''Pyssyjoki'' (Børselva), ''Raisi'' (Nordreisa), ''Vesisaari'' (Vadsø), ''Vuoreija'' (Vardø), ''Yekeä'' (Lyngen), etc.

⚫	From 1970s on the ''Kvens'' and the ''Samis'' in Norway have openly been allowed to use the original mother tongue of the ''Kvens'', i.e. an old ''Kven'' dialect of ] and to teach it to their children at schools. This new policy was enforced via special language laws for minorities. In 2005, the ''Kven language'' - officially now known as ] - was given a legal minority language status in Norway.

⚫	Today, most speakers of the so called ''Kven Finnish'' are found mostly in the extreme Northeastern parts of Norway, in such communities as ] and ] (a municipality of ], where the last centuries' main migration of Kven people took place from 1830 to 1860), ] and ] (Vadsø Municipality) and ] (Municipality of ]). A few older speakers may still be found also in the municipalities of ] and ]. Bugøynes - by ] - perhaps remains the most vital of all the remaining Kven communities in Norway.

	Besides Norway, in the historical and traditional ''Kvenland'' territories of Northern Scandinavia and areas that today are part of Northwestern Russia, the descendants of the ''Kvens'' are no longer referred to as ''Kvens''.		Besides Norway, in the historical and traditional ''Kvenland'' territories of Northern Scandinavia and areas that today are part of Northwestern Russia, the descendants of the ''Kvens'' are no longer referred to as ''Kvens''.
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	* ] - the ] historian. ] AD.		* ] - the ] historian. ] AD.
	* ] - the ]ic chieftain and historian - '']''. ]-] AD.		* ] - the ]ic chieftain and historian - '']''. ]-] AD.

			===External links===
			*
			*

Revision as of 21:21, 26 April 2006

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Kvens (alternate spellings: Cwen, Kven, Kvæn, Kveeni, Quen) are a minority ethnic group in the far north of Norway, primarily in the counties of Troms and Finnmark. The number of Kvens is uncertain, but as many as 50,000 - 60,000 Norwegians claim Kven descent; though a minority of these speak the Kven language. The Kvens share a distinct language known as Kven, closely related to Finnish and in particular Meänkieli. The Kven minority in Norway was subject to discrimination in modern times, particularly in the early 20th century; but Kven culture and language is recently gaining interest and popularity.

The term is also used to refer to a historical group of people that lived in the coastal areas around the Gulf of Bothnia, part of today's Finland. They are mentioned in Norse literature between 800-1500 AD, after which they were gradually integrated with the Finn population.

Though there are likely historical and linguistic connections between the historical and contemporary Kvens, there is no clear continuity between the two.

Norwegian settlements

In the modern usage the word Kven refers to the descendants of immigrants from Finland who settled in Northern Norway before the 15th century and in several waves into the 20th century.

For example, such places by the Varanger Fjord (a vast bay of water, connected to the Arctic Ocean - Varangerfjorden in Norwegian - in Northeastern Norway) as Bugoynes (Pykeija in Finnish), Vadsø (Vesisaari in Finnish), Kirkenes (Kirkkoniemi in Finnish) and Vardo (Vuoreija in Finnish) are perfect examples of today's remaining Kven centers in north-eastern Norway.

Following the Norwegian ratification of the Council of Europe's Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities in 1998, the Kvens of Norway were granted a legal minority peoples' status in Norway. Their language, the Kven language, or Kainu, was granted an official and legalized minority language status in 2005.

Kven migrations

Today researchers (Jouko Vahtola and others) agree that the Tornedalians who migrated in what is today the Torne Valley in Sweden originated from the Kvens in Tavastland, in Finland.

After the Middle Ages and the migration of the so called Tornedalians the next larger migration wave up north - this time again reaching the coastal areas of today's Norway - happened in the early 18th century. The following Kven migration to Northern Norway - and to the areas that were a part of the Republic of Finland up till 1944 - took place in the beginning of the 19th century, reaching a peak during the famine in Finland in the 1860s.

The immigrants now were for the most part poor farmers looking for land in the Norwegian provinces of Troms and Finnmark. The first immigrants arrived to parishes such as Alta, Balsfjord, Børselv, Lyngen, Nordreisa, Skibotn and Tana. The later arrivers settled in the eastern parts of Finnmark, along the Varanger Fjord. They integrated quickly into the Norwegian society to live along with the Norwegians and Sami people. For instance, in places like Vadsø - where they were the majority of the population - they soon considered the Norwegian cultural identity as a standard.

The Norwegian government attempted to integrate the Kvens from the 1880s. The use of the Kven language became forbidden in schools and government officies, and Kven town names were replaced by Norwegian.

However, the last few decades brought a significant change. The original Kven have been granted their old meanings. Such names include the Northern Norwegian community place names of Alattio (Alta in Norwegian), Annijoki (Vestre Jakobselv), Kaarasjoki (Karasjok), Kallijoki (Skalvelv), Kirkkoniemi (Kirkenes), Lemmijoki - a Kven name in use at least since 1595 - (Lakselv), Naavuono (Kvænangen), Näätämö (Neiden), Paatsjoki (Pasvik), Porsanki (Porsanger), Pulmanki (Polmak), Punakakkanen (Bonakas), Pykeija (Bugoynes), Pyssyjoki (Børselva), Raisi (Nordreisa), Vesisaari (Vadsø), Vuoreija (Vardø), Yekeä (Lyngen), etc.

From 1970s on the Kvens and the Samis in Norway have openly been allowed to use the original mother tongue of the Kvens, i.e. an old Kven dialect of Finnish language and to teach it to their children at schools. This new policy was enforced via special language laws for minorities. In 2005, the Kven language - officially now known as Kainu - was given a legal minority language status in Norway.

Today, most speakers of the so called Kven Finnish are found mostly in the extreme Northeastern parts of Norway, in such communities as Bugoynes and Neiden (a municipality of Sør-Varanger, where the last centuries' main migration of Kven people took place from 1830 to 1860), Vestre Jakobselv and Vadso (Vadsø Municipality) and Børselv (Municipality of Porsanger). A few older speakers may still be found also in the municipalities of Nordreisa and Storfjord. Bugøynes - by Varanger Fjord - perhaps remains the most vital of all the remaining Kven communities in Norway.

Historical origin

The land inhabited by the Kvens was historically referred to as Kvenland -- Kainuu or Kainuunmaa in Finnish. Its exact whereabout are uncertain, but was likely around the coastal areas of the Gulf of Bothnia. It is uncertain how much of the inland was considered Kven territory. Possibly, Kvens referred to all Finnish people. (Suomen historia (History of Finland), page 27, Jouko Vahtola, Professor of Finnish and Scandinavian history. ). According to for instance history professors Seppo Zetterberg and Allan Tiitta (Suomi kautta aikojen - Finland Through All Times - 1997) , the Karelians themselves began to call the Kvens by the Finnish language term kainulainen, based on the area they lived on, Kainuu. However, that Kven is equal to the Finnish kainulaiset (or kainuulaiset) and Kvenland to the Finnish Kainuu has not found full etymological acceptance among researchers.

In literature, the first known occurance of the Kven in the Account of the Viking Othere, a chronicle in the time of King Alfred the Great in the 9th century AD. It is later found in in writings of Adam of Bremen in the 11th century, and in Egils saga from around 1240.

It is possible that some early historians who mentioned the Kvens, such as Muhammad al-Idrisi, confused the Samis with the Kvens. The relationships between the historical Samis, Finns and Kvens are in any case unclear.

Archeologically the Kvens are obscure. Many prehistoric burials are known from the Finnish side of Gulf Of Bothnia to the 8th century, but afterwards only a handful of burials are known. It is so far unclear if the area had a permanent inhabitation of farmers until the 12th century, when settlers from Southwestern Finland were present in the northern riverine valleys.

Before the 8th century there are scarsely any remains of the Kvens. A possible explanation is that "Kvenland" was inhabitated only by hunter-gatherers (with possible Sami affiliation), whose archeological remains are notoriously elusive. Possibly the later were called the Kvens at that time. The hunter-gatherers were apparently called Finns in many contemporary sources, although this name was later transferred to the predominantly farming groups from Southern Finland.

Details of old sources

The chronicle of Alfred the Great writes that Scandinavia was inhabited by Suiones of Svealand, the Lapps in Lapland, the Norse in Norway and the Kvens in Kvenland. The old passages have been interpreted differently. It is mentioned that Kvenland was located around big bodies of waters; large fjords, lakes and rivers.

Ottar met the English King Alfred the Great in England in the end of the 9th century and made a thorough account to him of the life in Northern Norway and the Kvens, and about his exploration trip to the White Sea area. This account was included to the omissions and additions included to the Universal History of Orosius republished by Alfred the Great (the book is partially work of Orosius and partially of Alfred the Great). This was the first genuine and comprenensive account of the North, and thus it is a principle source in the exploration of the Nordic history. According to this source, the Kvens sometimes raided Northern Norways. The later Egil's Saga mention an alliance between the Norse the Kvens against Finnish Karelian raiders from the south-east, pparently during the 12th century, when the Karelians were expansing towards Kvenland.

Ancient writings include the account by the Northern Norwegian Viking leader Ottar from Björkoy in Hålogaland (Haalogaland), near Troms (Tromsa) (a.k.a. Ottar from Hålogaland); the Icelandic sagas, in particular Egil's saga by Snorri Sturluson. In 1230 AD, in the introduction to the Orkneyinga Saga, Fundinn Noregr discusses the mythological kings of Finland and Kvenland and their fictitious conquest of Norway.

In 1251 AD the Karelians fought against the Norwegians and in 1271 AD the Kvens and the Karelians cooperated in battles against the Norwegians in Haalogaland. These battles had a lasting effect in life in the entire Northern Scandinavia.

In the Finnish national epos Kalevala, Kvenland has always been known as Kainuu, Kainu or Kainuunmaa. Compared with the modern day Finnish province of Kainuu the traditional, historic territories of Kainuu - i.e. Kvenland - reached much further up northwest, north and northeast than at the present time.

During several following centuries a gradual and slow process of a Swedish expansion in today's Finland and the formation of Sweden-Finland took place. This was mainly done through scirmishes between the Finns themselves: Those in the west symphatizing with the catholic Swedes and those in the east symphatizing with the orthodox Russians. This period saw many tendencies and attempts to autonomy for the eastern half of Sweden-Finland, that came to form the borders of Finland of today.

In the 16th century, the historical origin of the Kvens had already been surpassed and it was not certain if the Kvens and the historical Kvenland overlapped. The issue continued to be disputed for centuries. Additionally, ancient sources are generally unspecific as detailed maps did not exist.

Besides Norway, in the historical and traditional Kvenland territories of Northern Scandinavia and areas that today are part of Northwestern Russia, the descendants of the Kvens are no longer referred to as Kvens.

Notes

Ethnologue report: Finnish, Kven

References

Anttonen, Marjut - Finnish migrants to North Norway - supporting or threatening the Kven identifications of today ?. 2000.
Anttonen, Marjut - The politicization of Kven identities in Northern Norway. 2001.
Julku, Kyösti - Kvenland - Kainuunmaa. 1986.
Jutikkala, Eino, with Kauko Pirinen - A History of Finland. Amer-Yhtymä Oy, Espoo, 1979.
Kuussaari, Eero - Suomen suvun tiet. F. Tilgmann Oy, Helsinki, 1935.
Patoharju, Taavi - Suomi tahtoi elää. Sanoma, Pitäjänmäki, 1958.
Shore, Thomas William - Origin of the Anglo-Saxon Race. 1906. Reissued in 1971 by Kennikat Press.
Pokorny, Julius - 1936.
Vahtola, Jouko - Suomen historia / Jääkaudesta Euroopan unioniin. 2003.
Wessel, A.B. – Optegnelser fra Sør-Varanger. 1938, reprinted 1979.
Zetterberg, Seppo / Tiita, Allan - Suomi kautta aikojen. Otava, 1997.

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