FINLAND
Northern Europe
Capital: Helsinki
Language(s): Finnish, Swedish, Sami (regional)
Predominant Religion(s): Christianity (predominantly Lutheran)
Family
- A typical Finnish family is a nuclear family where both parents are equal.
- It is common for both parents to work and be away from home during the day – municipal day care centers allow mothers to work full time.
- Young people in Finland have a lot of freedom from their family to socialize and date.
Education
- In Finland children start school at age 7 and follow 9 years of basic education. At 16 they may choose to continue their secondary education in either an academic track or a vocational track. The academic year starts in September and ends in May.
- Education in Finland is free with no tuition fees and with fully subsidized meals served to full-time students until secondary school.
- Tertiary education is divided into university and polytechnic. Universities and polytechnics have entrance exams and not all applicants are accepted.
COMMON CHARACTERISTICS: 
- Finns describe themselves as honest, hardworking, reliable and independent but also shy and quiet when first meeting people.
- Finns love sports. Many Finnish children play football, ice-hockey or floorball after school.
- Nature is really important to Finnish people. Nature is the place where Finns go to spend time with their friends and families and just to enjoy the views and the silence.
FUN FACTS:
- It is a normal to have a sauna in your house, even in apartments. There are about 2.2 million saunas in Finland, 1 for every 2.5 people.
- Finland is a country with thousands of lakes (about 188,000 lakes).
- In the summer there are days when the sun never sets and Finland is known as “the land of the midnight sun.”
USEFUL PHRASES:
- How are you? Mitä kuuluu?
- Fine, thanks. Hyvää, kiitos.
- My name is… Minun nimeni on…
- Nice to meet you. Mukava tavata.
- Thank you. Kiitos.
Photos by: Michael Ranzau {flickr}, Dave Grubb {flickr}, Greenland Travel {flickr}