Editing Swedish language (section)

==Geographic distribution==
Swedish is the sole official national language of [[Sweden]], and one of two in Finland (alongside [[Finnish language|Finnish]]). As of 2006, it was the sole native language of 83% of Swedish residents.{{sfn|Parkvall|2009|p=24}} In 2007, around 5.5% (c. 290,000) of the population of Finland were native speakers of Swedish,<ref name="StatsFinland">[http://www.stat.fi/tup/suoluk/suoluk_vaesto_en.html#structure Population structure] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200611010801/https://www.stat.fi/tup/suoluk/suoluk_vaesto_en.html#structure |date=11 June 2020 }}. [[Statistics Finland]] (29 March 2007). Retrieved on 27 November 2007.</ref> partially due to a decline following the Russian annexation of Finland after the [[Finnish War]] 1808–1809.<ref>[http://finland.fi/public/default.aspx?contentid=160058&contentlan=2&culture=en-US Main outlines of Finnish History – thisisFINLAND] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150426220712/http://finland.fi/public/default.aspx?contentid=160058&contentlan=2&culture=en-US |date=26 April 2015 }}.</ref> The [[Finland Swedish|Fenno-Swedish]]-[[Swedish-speaking population of Finland|speaking minority]] is concentrated in the coastal areas and [[archipelago]]s of southern and western Finland. In some of these areas, Swedish is the predominant language; in 19 [[municipality|municipalities]], 16 of which are located [[Åland dialects|in Åland]], Swedish is the sole official language. [[Åland]] county is an autonomous region of Finland.<ref>{{citation|url=http://www.kommunerna.net/sv/kommuner/svensk-tvasprakiga/Sidor/default.aspx|title=Svensk- och tvåspråkiga kommuner|work=kommunerna.net|date=February 2007|access-date=3 December 2007|language=sv|archive-date=19 June 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160619124123/http://www.kommunerna.net/sv/kommuner/svensk-tvasprakiga/Sidor/default.aspx|url-status=live}}</ref>

According to a rough estimation, as of 2010 there were up to 300,000 Swedish-speakers living outside Sweden and Finland. The largest populations were in the United States (up to 100,000), the UK, Spain and Germany (c. 30,000 each) and a large proportion of the remaining 100,000 in the Scandinavian countries, France, Switzerland, Belgium, the Netherlands, Canada and Australia.<ref>Mikael Parkvall & Gunvor Flodell, "Sveriges språk ute i världen" in {{harvnb|Dahl|Edlund|2010|p=154}}</ref> Over three million people speak Swedish as a second language, with about 2,410,000 of those in Finland.<ref name=e25/> According to a survey by the [[European Commission]], 44% of respondents from Finland who did not have Swedish as a native language considered themselves to be proficient enough in Swedish to hold a conversation.<ref>''[http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_386_en.pdf Europeans and their languages] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160106183351/http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_386_en.pdf |date=6 January 2016 }}'', Special Eurobarometer 386, 2012.</ref> Due to the close relation between the Scandinavian languages, a considerable proportion of speakers of Danish and especially Norwegian are able to understand Swedish.<ref>{{citation|last=Gooskens|first=Charlotte|year=2007|url=http://www.let.rug.nl/gooskens/pdf/publ_JMMD_2007.pdf|title=The Contribution of Linguistic Factors to the Intelligibility of Closely Related Languages|journal=Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development|volume=28|issue=6|pages=445–467|doi=10.2167/jmmd511.0|citeseerx=10.1.1.414.7645|s2cid=18875358|access-date=19 July 2014|archive-date=11 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411075554/http://www.let.rug.nl/gooskens/pdf/publ_JMMD_2007.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

There is considerable migration between the [[Nordic countries]], but owing to the similarity between the cultures and languages (with the exception of [[Finnish language|Finnish]]), expatriates generally [[Assimilation (sociology)|assimilate]] quickly and do not stand out as a group. According to the 2000 [[United States Census]], some 67,000 people over the age of five were reported as Swedish speakers, though without any information on the degree of language proficiency.<ref>[http://www.usefoundation.org/userdata/file/Research/Languages/swedish.pdf Swedish] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304203311/http://www.usefoundation.org/userdata/file/Research/Languages/swedish.pdf |date=4 March 2016 }}. [http://www.usefoundation.org/view/29 Many Languages, One America] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090525112805/http://www.usefoundation.org/view/29 |date=25 May 2009 }}. U.S. English Foundation (2005). Retrieved on 27 February 2015.</ref> Similarly, there were 16,915 reported Swedish speakers in Canada from the 2001 census.<ref>{{citation |url=http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census06/data/highlights/index.cfm |title=2006 Census: Highlight tables |publisher=2.statcan.ca |access-date=28 September 2008 |archive-date=7 February 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090207063452/http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census06/data/highlights/index.cfm |url-status=live }}</ref> Although there are no certain numbers, some 40,000 Swedes are estimated to live in the London area in the United Kingdom.<ref>{{citation |url=https://www.dn.se/nyheter/varlden/krisberedskap-pa-svenska-ambassaden-i-london/ |title=Krisberedskap på svenska ambassaden |newspaper={{Lang|sv|[[Dagens Nyheter]]}} |date=22 July 2005 |access-date=4 January 2012 |archive-date=21 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181121112239/https://www.dn.se/nyheter/varlden/krisberedskap-pa-svenska-ambassaden-i-london/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Outside Sweden and Finland, there are about 40,000 active learners enrolled in Swedish language courses.<ref>[http://www.studyinsweden.se/Learn-Swedish/University-courses-outside-Sweden/ Learn Swedish] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110218043337/http://www.studyinsweden.se/Learn-Swedish/University-courses-outside-Sweden/ |date=18 February 2011 }}. [http://www.studyinsweden.se/ Studyinsweden.se] . Retrieved on 27 January 2011.</ref>

In the [[United States]], particularly during the 19th and early 20th centuries, there was a significant Swedish-speaking immigrant population. This was notably true in states like [[Minnesota]], where many Swedish immigrants settled. By 1940, approximately 6% of Minnesota's population spoke Swedish.<ref name="Census 1940 languages">{{cite web| title=1940 Census of Population: Mother Tongue, by Nativity, Parentage, Country of Origin, and Age, for States and Large Cities| website=Census.gov| date=1943| url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1940/population-nativity/41272165_ch5.pdf| access-date=29 March 2023| archive-date=29 March 2023| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230329231546/https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1940/population-nativity/41272165_ch5.pdf| url-status=live}}</ref> Although the use of Swedish has significantly declined, it is not uncommon to find older generations and communities that still retain some use and knowledge of the language, particularly in rural communities like [[Lindström, Minnesota|Lindström]] and [[Scandia, Minnesota|Scandia]].<ref name="College of Liberal Arts q544">{{cite web | title=Swedish | website=College of Liberal Arts | url=https://cla.umn.edu/gnsd/languages/swedish | access-date=3 July 2023 | archive-date=3 July 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230703085108/https://cla.umn.edu/gnsd/languages/swedish | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Lindstrom, MN f027">{{cite web | title=About | website=Lindstrom, MN | url=https://www.cityoflindstrom.us/about | access-date=3 July 2023 | archive-date=3 July 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230703085106/https://www.cityoflindstrom.us/about | url-status=live }}</ref>

===Official status===
[[File:Oikokatu.JPG|thumb|A [[Finnish language|Finnish]]/Swedish street sign in [[Helsinki]], [[Finland]]]]
Swedish is the official main language of Sweden.<ref>{{citation|url=http://www.sprakforsvaret.se/sf/fileadmin/PDF/spraklagen_200509.pdf|title=Språklagen|date=1 July 2009|work=Språkförsvaret|language=sv|access-date=15 July 2009|archive-date=19 August 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100819232243/http://www.sprakforsvaret.se/sf/fileadmin/PDF/spraklagen_200509.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{citation|url=http://www.thelocal.se/20090701/20404/|title=Swedish becomes official 'main language'|last=Landes|first=David|date=1 July 2009|work=[[The Local]]|publisher=thelocal.se|access-date=15 July 2009|archive-date=10 December 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131210004646/http://www.thelocal.se/20090701/20404|url-status=live}}</ref> Swedish is also one of two official languages of Finland. In Sweden, it has long been used in local and state government, and most of the educational system, but remained only a ''de facto'' primary language with no official status in law until 2009. A bill was proposed in 2005 that would have made Swedish an official language, but failed to pass by the narrowest possible margin (145–147) due to a [[Pair (parliamentary convention)|pairing-off]] failure.<ref>{{citation|url=http://www.svt.se/nyheter/inrikes/svenskan-blir-inte-officiellt-sprak|title=Svenskan blir inte officiellt språk|work=[[Sveriges Television]]|date=7 December 2005|access-date=23 June 2006|language=sv|archive-date=17 November 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151117023821/http://www.svt.se/nyheter/inrikes/svenskan-blir-inte-officiellt-sprak|url-status=live}}</ref> A proposal for a broader language law, designating Swedish as the main language of the country and bolstering the status of the minority languages, was submitted by an expert committee to the Swedish Ministry of Culture in March 2008. It was subsequently enacted by the [[Riksdag]], and entered into effect on 1 July 2009.<ref>{{citation|url=http://www.regeringen.se/sb/d/10016/a/100959|title=Värna språken – förslag till språklag|work=[[Government Offices of Sweden]]|date=18 March 2008|access-date=19 June 2008|language=sv|archive-date=15 May 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090515161922/http://www.regeringen.se/sb/d/10016/a/100959|url-status=live}}</ref>

Swedish is the sole official language of [[Åland]] (an [[Autonomous entity|autonomous]] province under the [[sovereignty]] of Finland), where the vast majority of the 26,000 inhabitants speak Swedish as a first language. In Finland as a whole, Swedish is one of the two "national" languages, with the same official status as [[Finnish language|Finnish]] (spoken by the majority) at the state level and an official language in some [[municipalities of Finland|municipalities]].

Swedish is one of the official languages of the [[European Union]], and one of the working languages of the [[Nordic Council]]. Under the [[Nordic Language Convention]], citizens of the [[Nordic countries]] speaking Swedish have the opportunity to use their native language when interacting with official bodies in other Nordic countries without being liable for interpretation or translation costs.<ref>{{citation|url=http://www.norden.org/avtal/sprak/sk/sprak_sprak.asp?lang=|title=Konvention mellan Sverige, Danmark, Finland, Island, och Norge om nordiska medborgares rätt att använda sitt eget språk i annat nordiskt land|work=[[Nordic Council]]|date=2 May 2007|access-date=25 April 2007|language=sv|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070418154217/http://www.norden.org/avtal/sprak/sk/sprak_sprak.asp?lang=|archive-date=18 April 2007}}</ref><ref>{{citation|url=http://www.norden.org/webb/news/news.asp?id=6777&lang=6|title=20th anniversary of the Nordic Language Convention|work=Nordic news|date=22 February 2007|access-date=25 April 2007|language=sv|archive-date=27 February 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070227013320/http://www.norden.org/webb/news/news.asp?id=6777&lang=6|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Regulatory bodies===
[[File:Estonian archipelago (Saaremaa and Hiiumaa).jpg|thumb|right|Map of the [[West Estonian archipelago|Estonian islands]], which formerly housed "''Coastal Swede''" populations]]
The [[Swedish Language Council]] (''Språkrådet'') is the regulator of Swedish in Sweden but does not attempt to enforce control of the language, as for instance the {{Lang|fr|[[Académie française]]|italic=no}} does for [[French language|French]]. However, many organizations and agencies require the use of the council's publication ''Svenska skrivregler'' in official contexts, with it otherwise being regarded as a ''de facto'' orthographic standard. Among the many organizations that make up the Swedish Language Council, the [[Swedish Academy]] (established 1786) is arguably the most influential. Its primary instruments are the [[Spelling#Spelling standards and conventions|spelling dictionary]] ''[[Svenska Akademiens ordlista]]'' (''SAOL'', currently in its 14th edition) and the dictionary ''[[Svenska Akademiens Ordbok]]'', in addition to various books on grammar, spelling and manuals of style. Although the dictionaries have a [[Linguistic prescription|prescriptive]] element, they mainly describe current usage.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Gellerstam |first1=Martin |title=Norm och bruk i SAOL |url=https://gupea.ub.gu.se/handle/2077/24007 |publisher=Nordisk forening for leksikografi i samarbeit med Nordisk språksekretariat |access-date=2 March 2018 |language=sv |date=2002 |archive-date=3 March 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180303105713/https://gupea.ub.gu.se/handle/2077/24007 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In Finland, a special branch of the [[Research Institute for the Languages of Finland]] has official status as the regulatory body for Swedish in Finland. Among its highest priorities is to maintain intelligibility with the language spoken in Sweden. It has published ''Finlandssvensk ordbok'', a dictionary about the differences between Swedish in Finland and Sweden.<ref>{{Cite journal|url = http://ojs.statsbiblioteket.dk/index.php/lexn/article/view/18709/16362|title = Normeringen i Finlandssvensk ordbok|last = af Hällström|first = Charlotta|date = 2002|journal = LexicoNordica 9, 2002, S. 51–62|issue = 9| doi=10.7146/ln.v0i9.18709 |access-date = 9 February 2016|archive-date = 16 February 2016|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160216172730/http://ojs.statsbiblioteket.dk/index.php/lexn/article/view/18709/16362|url-status = live|url-access = subscription}}</ref>

===Language minorities in Estonia and Ukraine===
From the 13th to 20th century, there were [[Estonian Swedes|Swedish-speaking communities in Estonia]], particularly on the islands (e. g., [[Hiiumaa]], [[Vormsi]], [[Ruhnu]]; in Swedish, known as ''Dagö'', ''Ormsö'', ''Runö'', respectively) along the coast of the [[Baltic Sea|Baltic]], communities that today have all disappeared. The Swedish-speaking minority was represented in [[parliament]], and entitled to use their native language in parliamentary debates. After the loss of Estonia to the [[Russian Empire]] in the early 18th century, around 1,000 [[Estonian Swedish]] speakers were forced to march to southern [[Ukraine]], where they founded a village, ''[[Gammalsvenskby]]'' ("Old Swedish Village"). A few elderly people in the village still speak a [[Gammalsvenska|Swedish dialect]] and observe the holidays of the Swedish calendar, although their dialect is most likely facing extinction.<ref>The number of registered Swedes in Zmeyovka (the modern Ukrainian name of ''Gammalsvenskby'') in 1994 was 116 according to [[Nationalencyklopedin]], article ''svenskbyborna''.</ref>

From 1918 to 1940, when Estonia was independent, the small Swedish community was well treated. Municipalities with a Swedish majority, mainly found along the coast, used Swedish as the administrative language and Swedish-Estonian culture saw an upswing. However, most Swedish-speaking people fled to Sweden before the end of [[World War II]], that is before the invasion of Estonia by the Soviet army in 1944. Only a handful of speakers remain.<ref>''Nationalencyklopedin'', ''estlandssvenskar''.</ref>