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SCIENTIFIC
- "I'm a holiday Finn." Hybrid Finnish German Identities
Center of attention in this study are persons having a Finnish-speaking and a German-Speaking parent. 32 persons living in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Finland have been interviewed (semi-structured, manual-oriented in-depth interviews) and asked eight questions about their identity and their attitudes towards the German (untranslatable) word Heimat, the closest translated into English being homeland, in Finnish kotimaa or kotiseutu. The participants own a wide variety of linguistic knowledge: from monolingual speakers of German to different forms of multilinguality up to balanced forms of bilinguality. The interviewees have also been asked about their self-assessed language knowledge - does it correlate with their identity? And does the fact of knowing Finnish influence the way they think about Heimat?
This study is conducted in connection with a doctoral thesis at the department of Modern Languages at the University of Helsinki. - Finland’s / Germany’s history
Finland: From early settlement 10.000 years ago until today. From fur trading to Nokia.
Germany: There is more to know about Germany than the second world war... - Estonia’s history
Did you know that the Estonians are the people in Europe who have lived longest on the same territory in the whole of Europe? When Germans and English did not even know where Germany or England was, they already lived in the same area as they do today. This and more about this little country. - The Baltic way – History of the three Baltic countries Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania
Estonia’s, Latvia’s and Lithuania’s way out of the Soviet Union. - Why Finns don’t talk and Germans don’t have humour? About cultural differences in Europe.
Cultural diversity in Europe: what differences can be found in Europe and how they can be defined. Helps to understand Europe and helps to make better business in Europe! - Europe’s languages – Special focus: the languages around the Baltic/Mediterranean sea
Get to know what languages are used in Europe: Indo-European and Finno-Ugrian languages, how they developed, how their relationship to each other can be defined and how you can identify them. Languages you will get to know: English, German, Danish, Swedish, Sámi, Finnish, Carelian, Russian, Estonian, Lithuanian, Latvian, and Polish. What languages have your ancestors talked before they came to the States? - How does the EU function (or not)?
Europe’s way from war to „United States of Europe“. An overview about the European Union’s history, institutions, places (Brussels and others) and future. - Learn basic German / French / Finnish.
With fun! - Shopping in Europe.
What specialities do the European countries offer?
TOURISTIC
PLUS: when we approach e.g. Helsinki, St. Petersburg, Tallinn or Stockholm (approx. 2 hours before we arrive until the arrival), I usually stand on the bridge, commenting and explaining what can be seen.