April 28 - Åland Islands' Flag Day

nPosted on April 28, 2019

Key Points

n

n(Last Sunday of April)

The Åland Islands are the only region of Finland in which the vast majority of the people speak Swedish as their first language.

nUnlike the rest of Finland, which provide schooling in just Finnish, or in both Swedish and Finnish, schools on these islands are taught only in Swedish.

nSince 94% of all Finns speak at least two languages, and since many Europeans are quite casual about being able to speak in multiple languages, I don’t want to guess how many Åland Islanders speak Finnish as well as Swedish. I will say that several sources referred to the islands as the only province of Finland that are mono-linguistically or uni-lingually Swedish.

nWhile contemplating these facts, I decided to check out the islands to see where they were located.

nHmm… They’re about halfway between Sweden and Finland.

nYou probably know my next question: why do the Åland Islands belong to Finland instead of Sweden?

nIt turns out that, back in the early 1800s, Finland was a part of the Kingdom of Sweden. When the Kingdom of Sweden and the Russian Empire fought a war in 1808 and 1809, Russia won. Finland then became a part of Russia – and the Åland Islands were part of the spoils of war, because they were of “strategic use” to Russia.

nBecause of that 1809 land transfer, the islands were bundled together politically with was called the autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland within the Russian Empire. And when Russia went through a revolution, in 1917, Finland declared its independence. Of course the islands were a part of the new nation, as they had been separated from Sweden at that point longer than a century.

Apparently, being autonomous includes
having their own postage stamps.

nSince the 1920s, the Åland Islands are considered an autonomous province of Finland. That means that, unlike most Finnish provinces, there is little or no representation by national office-holders on the Åland Islands. Unlike other Finnish men, the islanders do not have to serve from six months to a year in the Finnish Defense Forces. The islands have no military facilities and are considered neutral.

nNotice that the flag of Sweden:

n…is the basis of the flag of the Åland Islands:

nThe red Nordic cross placed on top of the blue-and-yellow Swedish flag, on the Åland Islands flag, represents Finland. Red was used because the old-time colors of Finland are yellow and red.