Saami loanwords in the Finnish language
Saami loanwords in the Finnish language

Summary/Abstract: Saami loanwords in Finnish have been the subject of several studies and research has been continuing for a hundred years already. In general, it is assumed that the Saami loanwords occur only in the northernmost Finnish dialects and suggestions of earlier Saami influence on the Finnish language have often been treated with doubt. The Saami settlement of Finland had previously stretched much further south than today. Historical documents from 14th to 17th century contain references to Saami settlements in Central and Southern Finland. Toponyms of Saami origin are attested almost everywhere in Finland and Eastern Karelia, but loanwords from Saami languages in southern Finnish dialects have not been a popular object of research. However, there is no reason why the southern Finnish dialect could not adopt Saami loanwords. As the speakers of Finnish have borrowed place names from the original Saami inhabitants, it is expected that they have also borrowed some words. However, the Saami loanwords are attested only in several Finnish dialects and occur rarely [Aikio 2001]. About forty Saami loanwords have penetrated into standard Finnish lexicon.

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