Peräpohjola dialects are forms of Finnish language

Finnish language

Finnish is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland Primarily for use by restaurant menus and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of the two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a...

 spoken in Lapland in Finland

Finland

Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...

, Sweden

Sweden

Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

 and Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

. The dialect group belongs to the Western Finnish dialects and it is divided to five more specific dialect groups.

Tornio dialects

Tornio

Tornio

Tornio is a town and municipality in Lapland, Finland. The municipality covers an area of of which is water. The population density is , with a total population of . It borders to the Swedish municipality of Haparanda...

 dialects are spoken in the area surrounding Torne River

Torne River

The Torne River , is a river in northern Sweden and Finland. Approximately half of the river's length is a part of the border between these two countries. It rises at Lake Torne near the border with Norway and flows generally southeast for a distance of into the Gulf of Bothnia...

 in Finnish Peräpohjola (North Bothnia) and in Swedish side of the river (Norrbotten

Norrbotten

Norrbotten is a Swedish province in northernmost Sweden. It borders south to Västerbotten, west to Swedish Lapland, and east to Finland.- Administration :...

). In Finland Tornio dialects are spoken in the municipalities of Enontekiö

Enontekiö

Enontekiö is a municipality in the Finnish part of Lapland with approx. inhabitants. It is situated in the outermost northwest of the country and occupies a large and very sparsely populated area of about between the Swedish and Norwegian border...

, Kolari

Kolari

Kolari is a municipality of Finland at the Swedish border, which follows the Torne River, the longest free-flowing river in Europe.It is located in the province of Lapland. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is...

, Muonio

Muonio

Muonio is a municipality of Finland.It is located in the province of Lapland. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is...

, Pello

Pello

Pello is a municipality of Finland.It is located approximately north of the Arctic Circle in the western partprovince of Lapland and is part of the Lapland region. The municipality is at the national border with Sweden by the Tornionjoki-river. The municipality has a population of and covers an...

 and Ylitornio

Ylitornio

Ylitornio is a municipality of Finland.It is located in the province of Lapland at the shore of the Torne River, opposite to Övertorneå. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is ....

. In Sweden the dialect is spoken in Alatornio, Hietaniemi

Hedenäset

Hedenäset is a locality situated in Övertorneå Municipality, Norrbotten County, Sweden with 285 inhabitants in 2005....

, Jukkasjärvi

Jukkasjärvi

Jukkasjärvi is a locality situated in Kiruna Municipality, Norrbotten County, Sweden with 519 inhabitants in 2005. It is situated at 321 meters elevation....

, Junosuvanto

Junosuando

Junosuando is a locality situated in Pajala Municipality, Norrbotten County, Sweden with 345 inhabitants in 2005. It was founded in 1637....

, Kaaresuvanto, Kainulasjärvi, Karunki

Karungi

Karungi is a locality situated in Haparanda Municipality, Norrbotten County, Sweden with 232 inhabitants in 2005. The language most spoken in the village is tornedalsfinska, which the first of April 2000 officially was declared as a minority language in Sweden....

, Korpilompolo

Korpilombolo

Korpilombolo is a locality situated in Pajala Municipality, Norrbotten County, Sweden with 548 inhabitants in 2005....

, Pajalo

Pajala

Pajala is a locality and the seat of Pajala Municipality in Norrbotten County, Sweden with 1,985 inhabitants in 2005.-History:Lars Levi Læstadius lived and worked in Pajala Municipality in the middle of the 19th century...

, Täräntö

Tärendö

Tärendö is a small locality in Norrbotten County, Sweden with 208 inhabitants in 2000. It is located at the Kalix River and the bifurcation Tärendö River.The village was probably founded around year 1620. The largest employer today is the saw mill...

, Vittanki

Vittangi

Vittangi is a locality situated in Kiruna Municipality, Norrbotten County, Sweden with 789 inhabitants in 2005.The locality is very notable because it houses a cluster of people suffering from congenital analgesia, an otherwise extremely rare illness....

 and Ylitornio

Övertorneå

Övertorneå is a locality and the seat of Övertorneå Municipality in Norrbotten County, Sweden with 1,965 inhabitants in 2005.It is located at the shore of the Torne River, opposite to Ylitornio...

.

In Sweden the Tornio dialects together with Jällivaara dialects are also called meänkieli

Meänkieli

Meänkieli is the name used in Sweden for Finnish dialects spoken in the northernmost parts of the country, around the valley of the Torne River....

. It has an official minority language status.

Kemi dialects

Kemi dialects are spoken in Finland in the municipalities of Inari

Inari, Finland

Inari is Finland's largest, sparsely populated municipality with four official languages, more than any other in the country. Its major sources of income are lumber industry and nature maintenance. With the museum Siida in the village of Inari, it is a center of Sami culture...

, Kemi

Kemi

Kemi is a town and municipality of Finland. It is located very near the city of Tornio. It was founded in 1869 by royal decree, because of its proximity to a deep water harbour....

, Kittilä

Kittilä

Kittilä is a municipality of Finland and a popular holiday resort.It is located in the province of Lapland, Finland. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is ....

, Rovaniemi

Rovaniemi

Rovaniemi is a city and municipality of Finland. It is the administrative capital and commercial centre of Finland's northernmost province, Lapland. It is situated close to the Arctic Circle and is between the hills of Ounasvaara and Korkalovaara, at the confluence of the Kemijoki River and its...

, Simo

Simo, Finland

Simo is a municipality located in the province of Lapland, Finland, about from the Swedish border.The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . In 2001, Simo's debt per capita was 946.39 Euros....

, Sodankylä

Sodankylä

-Twin towns: Kola, Russia, since 1968 Berlevåg, Norway, since 1971 Norsjö, Sweden, since 1977 Heiligenblut, Austria, since 1979-External links:* – Official website* * * * * *...

, Tervola

Tervola

Tervola is a municipality of Finland.It is located in the province of Lapland, Finland. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of ofwhich is water. The population density is.The municipality is unilingually Finnish.-External links:...

 and Utsjoki

Utsjoki

Utsjoki is a municipality in Finland. It is located in Lapland and borders Norway as well as the municipality of Inari. The municipality was founded in 1876. It has a population of and covers an area of ofwhich is water. The population density is....

.

Kemijärvi dialects

Kemijärvi dialects are spoken in Kemijärvi

Kemijärvi

Kemijärvi is a municipality of Finland and the northern-most town in Finland. It is located in the province of Lapland. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water...

, Pelkosenniemi

Pelkosenniemi

Pelkosenniemi is a municipality of Finland.It is located in the province of Lapland. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of ofwhich is water. The population density is....

, Salla

Salla

Salla is a municipality of Finland, located in Lapland. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of ofwhich is water. The population density is....

 and Savukoski

Savukoski

Savukoski is a municipality of Finland.It is located in the province of Lapland, Finland. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . The municipality is unilingually Finnish....

.

Jällivaara dialects

Jällivaara dialects are spoken in Sweden in Jällivaara, Killivaara and Nattavaara. The first people living in Jällivaara area were Sami people

Sami people

The Sami people, also spelled Sámi, or Saami, are the arctic indigenous people inhabiting Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of far northern Sweden, Norway, Finland, the Kola Peninsula of Russia, and the border area between south and middle Sweden and Norway. The Sámi are Europe’s northernmost...

. The first mention of Birkarls

Birkarls

Birkarls were a small, unofficially organized Finnish group that controlled taxing and commerce in central Lappmarken in Sweden during the 13th to 17th centuries.-Background:The most probable assumption is that Birkarls were originally...

 trading with Sami people is from 1328. Some Birkarls settled to live there in the early ages, but mainly the Finnish settlers came to the area in the end of 17th and in early 18th century. The Swedish colony started about one hundred years after that. Finnish language has been a common language spoken at home in the area but the dialects differ quite much from those spoke in the Finnish side of the border.

Together with Tornio dialects Jällivaara dialects are also called meänkieli in Sweden. Meänkieli has an official minority language status in Sweden

Ruija dialects

Ruija dialects are spoken in Northern Norwey in Alta

Alta, Norway

-Birdlife:For those interested in bird watching, the river outlet, known locally as Altaosen is well worth a visit. This tidal area is used as a stopover for many wetland species.-Transportation:...

, Lyngen

Lyngen

Lyngen is a municipality and a fjord in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Lyngseidet.- General information :...

, Lakselv, Kvaenangen, Nordreisa

Nordreisa

Nordreisa is a municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Storslett.The municipality consists of the valley of Reisadalen, with the Reisa river and deep pine forests, surrounded by mountains and high plateaus. Most people live in...

 and Vadsø

Vadsø

is a city and municipality in Finnmark county, Norway. The city is the administrative centre of the municipality and the county of Finnmark....

. This dialect is called Kven language

Kven language

The Kven language is a Finnic language spoken in Northern Norway by the Kven people. For political and historical reasons it received the status of a minority language in 2005 within the framework of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 in Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

for political and historical reasons.