Estonians in Finland
{{Short description|Ethnic group in Finland}}
{{expand Finnish|date=June 2023}}
{{Infobox ethnic group
| flag = {{flagicon|Estonia}} {{flagicon|Finland}}
| group = Estonians in Finland
| native_name = Eestlased Soomes / Soome eestlased
Virolaiset Suomessa / Suomenvirolaiset
| image =
| population = 50,444 Estonian citizens;
49,563 Estonian speakers (2024){{cite web |url= https://stat.fi/en/publication/cm1jg8tr20lco07vwvoif9s6i |title= Number of foreign-language speakers exceeded 600,000 during 2024 |date= 2025-04-04 |series= Population structure |publisher= Statistics Finland |issn= 1797-5395 |access-date=2025-04-14 }}
| popplace = Helsinki, Turku and Tampere regions & Lahti
| rels = Lutheranism, Orthodoxy
| related = Finns, Estonians, Baltic Finns, Finnic people
}}
Estonians in Finland or Finnish Estonians ({{Langx|et|Eestlased Soomes}}; {{Langx|fi|Suomen virolaiset}}) are people who originate from Estonia and who live in Finland. People can be born in Estonia, have Estonian ancestry and/or be citizens of Estonia. {{As of|2024}}, there were 46,675 people born in Estonia living in Finland. Similarly, the number of people with Estonian citizenship was 50,444. The number of people who spoke Estonian as their mother tongue was 49,563.
Finland has the largest Estonian community outside Estonia.https://dspace.ut.ee/server/api/core/bitstreams/da063abf-8a43-4d02-908a-d0871e46158b/content {{Bare URL inline|date=August 2024}}
History
Immigration from Estonia to Finland was low before 1990. After the collapse of the Soviet Union and Estonia's accession to the EU in 2004, emigration from Estonia to Finland increased rapidly.{{cite web|url=https://helda.helsinki.fi/bitstream/handle/10138/29753/MastersThesis_SaarikoskiElina.pdf?sequence=2|format=PDF|title=BETWEEN TWO COUNTRIES : Estonian Immigrants" Identity Construction in Finland|website=Helda.helsinki.fi|accessdate=4 October 2018}}
The migration of Estonians peaked in 2012, when more than 6,000 Estonians emigrated to Finland. In 2017, however, net migration from Estonia was negative, as Estonians returned to their country. The reasons for this are rising salaries in Estonia and family ties. Nevertheless, the Estonian population is still growing, although at a much slower rate than before.{{Cite web|url=https://yle.fi/uutiset/3-10679446|title=Historiallinen käänne: Virolainen työvoima on alkanut valua pois Suomesta – "Moni on ryhtynyt ajattelemaan jatkuvan reissaamisen aiheuttamia ongelmia"|date=11 March 2019 }}
Population by municipalities
{{Historical populations
| percentages = pagr
|1990|1394
|1995|8710
|2000|10176
|2005|15336
|2010|28493
|2015|48087
|2020|49551
|2024|49563
|footnote=Estonian speakers. Source: Statistics Finland
}}
People born in Estonia and living in Finland, according to Statistics Finland.
People with Estonian citizenship living in Finland according to Statistics Finland.
People with Estonian as mother tongue living in Finland according to Statistics Finland.
Notable Estonians in Finland
{{Category see also|Finnish people of Estonian descent}}
- Hans Kalm, soldier
- Hella Wuolijoki, writer
- Imbi Paju, journalist, writer and filmmaker
- Kalevi Kotkas, athlete
- Mikael Gabriel, rapper
- Mäkki, rapper
- Siim Liivik, ice hockey player
- Sofi Oksanen, writer
- Tiina Lillak, athlete
==See also==
{{Portal|Estonia|Finland}}
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Immigration to Finland}}
{{Estonian diaspora}}
{{Portal bar|Estonia|Finland}}
Category:Ethnic groups in Finland