In Viena Karelia (White Sea Karelia) people still use the Viena dialect of the Karelian language. However, it is not the main language of the area. Mostly elderly people and those beyond their middle age are able to use it. In 1970’s it was a shame to speak Karelian in Karelia. Even in schools young people using their own language were bullied. The main language in homes is nowadays Russian.

Recently the head of village Vuokkiniemi (Voknavolok in Russian) Jelena Plyuyko told in an interview that young people are moving to towns as their own home villages do not have work places for them. In towns it is difficult to maintain the mother tongue as everything happens in Russian.

What will happen with the Karelian language when people capable to use it will pass away? Are we able to hear Karelian even in Viena Karelia then? However, Karelian is very close and most often understandable for Finnish speaking people.

In Viena karelian Kostamus (Kostomuksha in RU) or Uhtua (today named Kalevala) it is seldom you are served in Karelian language when in shops and restaurants etc. In Uhtua there are in some places street name signs or maps in Finnish or Karelian because of the Finnish tourists, thanks to active people in the local Uhut Society (Uhut-seura). The street names are in Russian in Cyrillic alphabet. In Vuokkiniemi not a name of its streets or any maps on the village are in Viena Karelian language. We thus may task how many Russian speaking tourists are visiting the village!

In Vuokkiniemi through all the times most visitors outside Viena Karelia have been Finnish or the descendants of Viena Karelian refugees. Now the tourists from the villages there have vanished.

When the language nest (kielipesä) activity was started in Uhtua some years ago, the people interested in that were also interested in gaining further education for their children in Karelian. Now no language nest is working according to the original way it was set up, but children have half of the education in Russian and an other half in Karelian. In Vuokkiniemi no language nest does exist, but in the school a little part of teaching is given on the Karelian language.

A course on the Viena dialect of Karelian language and the culture was organized recently In Oulu, Finland. The teacher there was professor Pekka Zaikov. He stated that the Karelian associations in Finland are unnecessarily afraid that their activity in Karelian language and culture will be interpreted as involving too much in other country’s affairs. He also said that both in Finland and Russia it is the topic for all Karelians in both countries to work together for their own heritage in language and culture.

One of the main topics to maintain and to refresh the tourism in Karelia is to maintain, and if needed to revitalize, the Karelian language.

In this, to encourage those working in leading positions within tourism to take the Karelian language in full use is important. Now it is time to support Karelians to feel pride of their own Karelian roots as it is especially what tourists most often want to see and feel. To hear and to be served in the language they understand, the Karelian language, inRussia where it might be unexpected. This could be pleasant surprise and have a positive influence on tourism inKarelia. 

 Sari Heimonen, Muhos Finland