What Do You Call Someone From Finland? (Explained!)

Someone from Finland is called a Finn or Finnish. This is the simple word for someone of Finnish nationality, though the question of ethnicity becomes a bit more complicated. There are multiple different Finnish subgroups. You also have indigenous peoples such as the Sámi, Kerlians, and Russians living in Finland. All, in some sense, are Finns.

So, the short and simple answer relates purely to our modern notions of the nation-state.

This is a very recent invention, as indeed is the modern sense of the word “nationality”.

Many people who are not ethnically Finnish are Finnish in nationality, which makes the real answer to the question more complex.

Let’s find out more.

In This Article

What is someone from Finland called?

Someone from Finland is called a Finn, or Finnish.

This is the simplest answer, and encompasses all kinds of people who live in Finland in the broadest sense.

Again, it’s important to make a distinction between this modern notion of a nation-state and the more historically and culturally significant ideas of ethnicity and background.

Furthermore, Finnish people of one kind or another can be found throughout northern Europe, in Norway, Sweden, and other places.

These people may prefer to think of themselves as Finns, though nationally speaking they are not.

Finn, then, is an ethnicity as well as a nationality.

Finns represent around 91% of the Finnish population, though this can be subcategorized into multiple groups, some of which may be classified as distinct ethnicities.

Most Finns are Balto-Finnic people, representing most of all Finns found in northern Europe.

For the most part, all Finns living in Finland are considered Balto-Finnic people.

There are multiple distinct Balto-Finnic peoples living outside of Finland, include the Kvens of Norway, the Tornedelians of Sweden, and in Russia the Ingrian Finns.

There are also Sweden Finns, though, with an estimated 450,000 ethnic Finns living in Sweden.

This, though, is just a national distinction, and not really an Ethnic one. Finns, then, are spread all over the north of Europe and Scandinavia—crucially, though, Finland itself is not Scandinavian.

Another separate ethnic indigenous group in Finland are the Sámi people, as mentioned.

There are an estimated 9,300 Sámi people living in Finland, so while they represent a small proportion of the population, it’s important to mention them.

Legally speaking these people are Finns, but ethnically that it is not at all how they see themselves.

They, too, are spread throughout northern Europe and Russia.

Where does the name “Finland” come from in the first place, then?

Where does the name “Finland” come from?

It’s not entirely clear where the name Finland originally came from.

Of course, again, the region has been inhabited since deep prehistorical times, and Finland as the nation we know today was not founded until 1917.

But the region had gone by this name since long before that.

One theory is that the name is based on the word finnr, which is how the Norse people referred to the native tribes living in modern day Finland.

But who exactly these people would have been is also not entirely clear—Sámi people doubtless lived there at this time, but Finnic people would also have lived there.

The word finna in Old English referred to anyone from Scandinavia, and so the Finns got lumped in with this—though others think that this instead derived from the Swedish Finlonti.

Finns themselves today, and even for long in the past, referred to their own nation as Suomi.

It’s thought that this could relate to the word suomaa which means swampland in Finnish.

Ultimately, we just don’t know, and we may never know.

What we can say with some certainty, though, is that the name “Finland” probably derives ultimately from one group or another’s name for the Finnish people.

Are Finns Scandinavian?

It’s important to note that though many of us tend to think it is, Finland is not a Scandinavian country.

Traditionally, Scandinavia refers to Sweden, Denmark, and Norway.

Many of us tend to conflate Scandinavian with Nordic, but these are two distinct things. Finland is Nordic, but it is not Scandinavian.

Finns are ethnically, linguistically, and culturally distinct from Scandinavia.

By some loose geographical definitions, you could argue Finland is Scandinavian, but you would be fighting a losing battle.

Finland is not a Scandinavian country and the Finns are not in any sense Scandinavian.

Where do Finns live?

In contemplating what we call Finns, it’s also important to recognize the wide Finnish diaspora around the world.

There is an estimated total population of around 7 million Finns in the world; around 5 million of those live in Finland itself.

In the United States, you can also find a very large population of Finnish people—around 650,000.

There are up to 700,000 Finns living in Sweden, too, and around 127,000 living in Russia.

You can find reasonable populations of Finns in a great many different nations.

The point is that while all these people may feel themselves to be Finns, they may also feel kinship with the country to which they have moved.

So, again, it’s not always a simple and clear-cut question.

It’s a fascinating region of the world where, for millennia, many different ethnic groups have comingled.

Modern Finland is unsurprisingly dominated by ethnic Finns, and yet the population is at the same time far more complex than just this.

Ethnicity is always far more complex than nationality, so again the simple answer is that if someone is a Finnish national for one reason or another, they are a Finn.

More in Demonyms

Founder - @PollyWebster

Polly Webster is the founder of Foreign Lingo and a seasoned traveler with a decade of exploration under her belt.

Over the past 10 years, she has journeyed to numerous countries around the globe, immersing herself in diverse cultures, traditions, and languages.

Drawing from her rich experiences, Polly now writes insightful articles about travel, languages, traditions, and cultures, sharing her unique perspectives and invaluable tips with her readers.

Was this article helpful?

Thanks for your feedback!