Hello!
The international exchange students at RAMK in the spring term 2011 have co-created this "guide" for future exchange students coming to RAMK, LUC, Lapland or anywhere in Finland. This team task was part of the course "Intercultural Communication in Finland".
The blog posts contain information and students' own experiences in living, studying and working in Finland. There's also useful information about communicating with the Finns and cultural backgrounds of the Finns.
I hope this blog will help you to prepare for your exchange period.
Apr 11, 2011
Communication, small talk and affect to communication
Finland has 2 official languages Finnish and Swedish. Most people think that Finnish is similar like Swedish but it’s not true. Finnish belongs to Finno-Ugrian languages. The latter also includes Hungarian, Estonian, and Sámi (spoken by the indigenous people of northern Finland, Sweden, Norway and north-western Russia). The Finno-Ugrian languages share enough common lexical and grammatical features to prove a common origin. Also Finnish language can affect communication in many cases:
- Absence of gender (instead of he and she – they use pronoun hän)
- Absence of articles (a and the in English)
- No equivalent of the verb to have
- Absence of word please
The conception that Finns are a reserved and taciturn lot is the past, certainly not with the younger generations. It is fair to say that Finns have a special attitude to words and speech: words are taken seriously and people are held to what they say. Finns tend to speak openly and without decoration. Yes means "yes!" and no means no! ".
Finns rarely enter into conversation with strangers, unless a particularly strong impulse prompts it. Finns are curiously silent in the metro, the bus or the tram. However, a visitor clutching a map will have no trouble in getting advice on a street corner or in any other public place. Finns are better at listening than at talking, and interrupting another speaker is considered impolite. Finns usually speak unhurriedly.
"Small Talk" is harmless and even helpful. Initial content of a harmless conversation are weather conditions, Finnish sauna, holidays and trips and of course activities in different seasons. Shared hobbies are topic for conversation and exchange of opinions as elsewhere and it can be easy to strike up a lively conversation with a Finn about culture and the arts and also about sports (especially ice-hockey). But sometimes Ice-hockey like good content of conversation can be bad choice. Most Finns are fanatical ice-hockey fans and if you bring the subject up, you will be bored to death; rest of Finns hate ice-hockey. One subject to avoid when you are talking to Finnish men is the army. Other topic which is better to avoid are salary, taxes, religion, political views, marriage and alcohol problems or personal issues.
Resources:
http://www.finland.fi/Public/default.aspx?contentid=160036&nodeid=41797&culture=en-US
http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/finland-country-profile.html
Apr 7, 2011
Chef Evaluating Finnish Food
Hi,
I would like to share this video with you. It shows world famous chef Gordon Ramsay tasting typical Finnish dishes.
But please, don't take him too seriously... :)
Bon Appetite!
Tomas
Typical Finnish Objects
Hi,
here you can find some information about some typical Finnish objects you can find in Finland.
Sami knife
When you are in Finland, you can notice, that there are some typical objects that you can’t find anywhere else. One of them is the typical Sami Knife (Leuku in Finnish, stuorniibi ("big knife") in Sami).
The blade of the Sami knife is straight, strong and 25 to 40 cm long. Some of them may be considered to be more like a machete
than a knife. But there is a reason for it. Sami knife is not only for cutting, but also for chopping wood and crashing bones of animals. Therefore is necessary for the knife to be as strong and sharp as possible. The handle is usually made of birch wood in order to provide better grip in the snowy conditions.
There is also small Sami knife, which is used mostly for carving, marking the reindeer, opening small animals… Sami people usually use both of the knives.
But before you storm in the shop to buy a big knife, please remember, that carrying knife in public is prohibited. You need to get permission for that or have a job related reason to do so. But they make a great souvenir, there is no doubt about that.
Guksi
Guksi (or Finnish: kuksa; Swedish: kåsa), is a traditional work of Sami duodji, it is a type of drinking cup made by the Sami people of northern Scandinavia from carved birch burl.
The burl is contoured to a rough shape, carefully dried to prevent the wood from cracking, and then formed in accordance with the local traditions. Originally guksi were widely used in Arctic areas as a personal drinking cup; a well-made guksi would last a lifetime.
Today, a traditional guksi is difficult to find outside northern Scandinavia, partly because burls are seldom harvested in modern mechanized forestry. With the introduction of glass, ceramic and metal drinking ware, the skill of making such duodji artwork has become a pastime skill rather than the essential one as it was in the past.
The kuksa as a duodji artwork has also been a target of cultural appropriation as non-Sami artists replicate the work as a souvenir item.
Guksi was traditionally only rinsed with clean water and dried with a cloth after use. No detergents are used, since many people believe that it will damage a guksi
Nokia
Nokia Corporation is a Finnish multinational communications corporation that is headquartered in Keilaniemi, Espoo, a city neighbouring Finland's capital Helsinki. Nokia is engaged in the manufacturing of mobile devices (приборы) and in converging Internet and communications industries. It is the world's largest manufacturer of mobile phones.
Nokia has sites for research and development, manufacture and sales in many countries throughout the world.
In 1865 Frederic Idesman in Tampere founded a small paper factory.
In 1898, Eduard Polón founded Finnish Rubber Works, manufacturer of galoshes and other rubber products, which later became Nokia's rubber business.
In 1912, Arvid Wickström founded Finnish Cable Works, producer of telephone, telegraph and electrical cables and the foundation of Nokia's cable and electronics businesses.
In 1967 was official merger of companies to form a new industrial conglomerate. And today
Nokia plays a very large role in the economy of Finland.
In 1992 was created a slogan of the company “Connecting people”
References
Eating at school cafeteria
Hi,
Traditional Finnish food may seem a bit awkward for most of the people, but there is no need to worry. The food you will probably be eating most of the time is not that strange. I am talking about the food in school cafeteria. The restaurants are located in every campus.
Food at the Amica restaurants is more similar to traditional European cuisine than to the Finnish national cuisine.
Most of the meals are consisting of sauce, minced meat accompanied by potatoes or rice. Popular kinds of meat are pork, beef and chicken. The sauces are most likely to be pepper or curry flavored.
Food at Amica felt a bit tasteless for me at first. Maybe it is because Czech food has very strong tastes most of the time. Therefore it took me some time to get used to it. And now I can’t complain… the food is great. I would like to point out that this is my opinion, you might be used to some other set of tastes.
Since most of the students have a budget to stick to, the price of the lunch in Amica is very good opportunity to get fed for a reasonable price. With the student card, the price of the meal is 2.50 € and includes bread with spreads, side salad, drink and either main dish, salad or soup. All of the restaurants are self-service, so you can take as much as you want.
As an additional service, the restaurants sell candy, desserts, salads, cold drinks, tea and coffee.
I hope that you will enjoy the school cafeterias as much as I do.
Bon Appetite!
Tomas
Traditional Finnish Food
Hello future exchange students.
We are Tomas from Czech Republic, Olga from Russia and Rita from Spain and we would like to introduce you to some examples of Finnish food and some typical Finnish objects.
We hope that you will find this information very usefull for living in Finland. So, let's start with the traditional dishes !
Karelian pastries
One of the typical Finnish dishes is the Karelian pie. As the name suggests, it originates from the south-eastern part of Finland, kn
own as Karelia. It is widely spread all over Finland these days.
The crust is made of wheat or rye. The typical fillings are potatoes, rice and barley. On the top you can find basically everything. The most popular ingredients are eggs, ham, cheese, reindeer meat, shrimp…
And the most important thing: It tastes great :)
Fazer
I think that everyone has already heard this name. And if not, then you clearly are not a chocolate fan.
But little bit about the company first. The Fazer Company was founded in 1891 by Karl Fazer. More than a company it was French-Russian sweet-shop in central Helsinki. These days it has thousands of employees in Finland, Sweden, Norway, UK and Russia. And the products are famous all around the world.
The most famous product is of course the chocolate in the blue wrap. The other products are Candyking candy, bread and Fazer Cafés. And you might be surprised, but Fazer also runs the chain of Amica restaurants in various schools and workplaces, so you will probably visit them very soon after your departure to Finland. You can find more about Amica in the separate article.
Minttu
Minttu liqueur is a crystal clear peppermint liqueur produced in Turku by Vin & Sprit.
The product is marketed for the Finnish market and as such bears a noticeably Finnish name, but it is also popular in Norway, Sweden and other Nordic countries. It has a strong, crisp taste and scent of peppermint. Taste is quite similar to Crème de menthe, but appearance is more like vodka. Minttu is in 40% and 50% alcohol by volume.
Most common ways to enjoy Minttu are to drink it on the rocks, mixed with tonic or on a hot drink. Hot chocolate with Minttu is a common treat in Scandinavian ski bistros.
Salmiakki
Salty liquorices, salmiak or salmiakki is a variety of liquorices that contains a relatively large amount of ammonium chloride ("salmiac") in addition to the liquorices root extract, sugar and starch or gum Arabic that constitute regular liquorices. Ammonium chloride has a spicy taste that vaguely resembles that of sodium chloride (table salt). However, salty liquorices do not necessarily contain any sodium. Although some types of regular liquorices can also contain a small amount of ammonium chloride, salty liquorices can contain up to about 8 percent of ammonium chloride. Moreover, the salty taste is typically less masked by a high sugar content compared to regular liquorices.
Salty liquorices candies are almost always black or very dark brown and can range from very soft to very hard and may be brittle. The other colors used are white and variants of grey. Carbon black is used as a food coloring agent in these candies.
The Latin term for ammonium chloride is salt ammoniac, a term that has also been used in English. In Finnish, the candies are usually called salmiakki, although this can also refer to other products containing ammonium chloride. The terms salmiakkimakeinen (salmiac candy) or salmiakkilakritsi (salmiac liquorices) are also sometimes used. For pure ammonium chloride, the term raakasalmiakki (raaka = raw) can be used, if necessary.
Salmiakki was once a trade name of Fazer, but quickly became a generalized trademark like nylon. The canonical shape for Finnish salmiakki candies is a black diamond-shaped lozenge. This diamond shape is so typical that in Finnish, the word "salmiakki" can sometimes refer to this shape instead of the candy. For example, Finnish Defense Forces reserve officer students rank insignia are known as "salmiakki"s for their distinctive shape. However, especially in other countries, different shapes are used.
Mämmi
Is a traditional Finnish Easter dessert. The Swedish language name for it is memma. Mämmi is made from water, rye flour and powdered rye malt, seasoned with dark molasses, salt and dried, powdered Seville orange peel. The mixture is then allowed to go through a slow, natural sweetening process before being baked in an oven until set. Preparation takes many hours, and after baking the mämmi is stored chilled for 3 to 4 days before being ready to eat. Mämmi was traditionally stored in small bowls made of birch bark called tuokkonen or rove. Finnish packaging still prints birch bark-like texture on the carton boxes.
Generally mämmi is eaten cold with cream and sugar, vanilla sauce or vanilla ice-cream. It is also eaten spread on top of a slice of bread. There is a Finnish society for mämmi founded by Ahmed Ladarsi, the former chef at the Italian Embassy in Helsinki, who claims that there are around fifty recipes containing mämmi. There are a number of websites with recipes using mämmi most of which are in Finnish. Mämmi is also used as minor ingredient in a mämmi-beer by Laitilan Wirvoitusjuomatehdas.
Mustamakkara
(literally black sausage) is a type of Finnish blood sausage traditionally eaten with lingo berry jam. It is nowadays available in many stores across Finland, but is held in the position of local delicacy and specialty of Tampere. Mustamakkara is at its best when bought and eaten fresh at market stalls, to which it is delivered hot in Styrofoam boxes from the factories directly after baking. A typical practice of reheating the sausage is to just fry it in a pan.
Mustamakkara is known to have been eaten as early as in the 16th century and was generally cooked over a small fire, in a hot cauldron or in an oven. Mustamakkara is made by mixing pork, pig blood, crushed rye and flour, after which it is stuffed into the intestines of an animal like most sausages. The two major producers of this food are Tapola and Savupojat.
When buying mustamakkara in the Tampere region it is customary to specify the amount of money to spend instead of weight, length or number of pieces. Often people also choose by simply pointing at the preferred piece. The shape and moisture of mustamakkara varies and by this means the buyer can get the piece best suiting his or her taste.
References
Apr 5, 2011
emotions
Hello new exchanges!!!
The topic of this post is EMOTIONS. And especially how Finnish people show them (because we are able to assure you that they feel)
· First and more important thing that you need to remember when you meet a Finn is, that they are a really private people. So don’t expect to find Finns jumping in the streets or making party in the streets because they are really happy. This isn’t going to happen.
These aren’t Finns after win the lottery:
These are Finns after win the lottery (Simulation, not real situation) :
ADVICE: Don’t worry if your new Finnish friend don’t show very happy (or sad) if you just tell him/her a joke (or a sad history). Be sure that they are “laughing” inside, if not they will tell you.
· If we talk about facial emotions is less complicated than the first point. They just don’t like to show it. In other hand, for Finns is easy to show their “bad” emotions (sadness, etc) than happy ones.
Non-Finnish happy girl:
Finnish happy boy:
ADVICE: Finns usually just use two “faces”: normal (includes: all it’s ok. I’m really happy, Nothing is bad, etc) and sad (includes: I’m nostalgic, I miss you, I’m really sad, etc). Don’t worry if you can differentiate between them, they are quite similar.
· We won’t see a Finn moving their hands while they are talking to you. For them gesticulate just show that you are nervous. So try to not do it.
FINAL ADVICE: Your Finnish friends like you, if not- they will tell you. So don’t worry if they don’t look that they are happy with you, I can assure you that they love to be your friend (they will tell you if they don’t)
(Pictures used in this post are not real Finns, they just help us to show easily the differences. Especially because some of the people in the pictures are famous)
References:
Kevin Gore, Networking Cultural Knowledge: An interactive and experiential strategy to apply intercultural communication in business, WSOY Oppimateriaalit OY, Helsinki, 2007/
Apr 4, 2011
Work in Finland
Every one of us in life will certainly face or have needs to find a job. Perhaps no one ever manages to do at once. Regardless of whether you are looking for any job in the short term or is it your dream home, the chances of finding a job will increase if we approach this matter seriously. We want to give you some practical and relatively universal advices. They do not change the world and will most likely not even new for you.
Our advises DURING INTERVIEW:
1. One is the most important thing for Finns- Be on time!
2. Wear right clothes!
3. Prepare short CV only with main points!( shouldn't be longer than 1 page). The covering letter should be concise - preferably 1 page Customise the letter to address the interests of the employer .The CV / résumé should be 1 - 2 pages including: personal and contact information relevant employment history and educational background in reverse chronological order computer and/or programming and language skills (if applicable) special skills & positions of responsibility hobbies (not always necessary) reference contacts.
REMEMBER: Your qualifications and documents should be translated into Finnish!!!
4. Don't lie! Don't exaggerate!
5.Get basic knowledge about company before! Do not volunteer information that the interviewer doesn't ask for.
6. Be concise!
7. Do not volunteer information that the interviewer doesn't ask for!
8. To be serious with a little bit sense of humour!
9. Maintain eye contact !
10. Use finnish language! One of the most important issue is learning Finnish or Swedish, if You want to find a good job. It is good to find out about the local opportunities to study Finnish or Swedish.
When you have an interview don't forget about the courtesy and respect to the interlocutor. Answer the questions honestly and disclosures show that you really want to get to this place. However, it should also be aware of your rights. Remember that the law of Finland on Human Rights (2001), your rights include:
- Information about you can only learn from you or from other people, but with permission from you
- You have the right to get all the results of psychological testing, to the last word
- The employer is responsible for the validity of its methods of testing.
How to find a job?
Job search should begin even before arrival in Finland, for example, getting acquainted with the available on the internet of general information. The website of Employment and Economic Development of Finland, has information about jobs, employment services, the necessary permits and various employment opportunities. The portal migration / movement of labour EURES European Commission gathered information on job vacancies in Finland and other EU / EEA, working and living conditions and regional labour markets. The portal provides access to the data bank competitors, where you can leave employers with a statement of employment and his track record. Foreigners who is looking for job with a residence permit or come from EU countries to Finland must register at the employment service and economic development. Service Employment and Economic Development operates in most of the Finnish settlements. Citizen who gets to register as job searcher has the right to personal service to find work and all associated privileges. Unemployment person is entitled to a personal job search plan, a plan of social integration and unemployment benefits.
Culture in work or work in culture?
Also in working environment Finnish used to follow their culture. Especially when we are talking about SAUNA. Many companies organise for employees an integration trips ,where they can knew each other better in SAUNA ,of course. That helps to built relations.They are known from very discreet and hardly never not show their emotions at work.. As we mentioned before in education, that Fins are well organised ,it touch also working environment. Usually working hours in Finland are eight hours a day and approximately forty hours a week and Fins are very restrict to this hours. They treat their responsibilities very serious and try their best to be on time.Finns are known for their punctuality, so if for any reason you are late, you must notify the Finnish partner as soon as possible. The Finnish working culture is based on equality. Everyone is at the same level of law. They plan things ahead and stick to agreed schedules. They keep their promises and expect others to do the same. Finns are transactional and do not need long-standing personal relationships in order to conduct business. Finns prefer people to speak succinctly and to focus purely on business. That is the main point of their business etiquette. Moreover, they feel very comfortable using e-mail instead of talking face-to-face. This way is better for them, because they used to think a lot before they want to say something. For them is very important what other colleagues think about them.
REMEMBER! Never turn down an invitation to use the sauna, as it is an entrenched part of the Finnish culture.
References:
Working in Finland. http://www.mol.fi/mol/fi/99_pdf/fi/06_tyoministerio/06_julkaisut/05_esitteet/tme7601e_workinginfinland.pdf .Accessed: 04.04.2011 EXPAT.http://www.expat-finland.com/employment/finding_work.html Accessed: 11.03.2011 Employment and Economic Development Office. http://www.esr.fi/mol/en/02_working/05_foreigners/04_general_workinglife/01_working_culture/index.jsp Accessed: 04.04.2011 PICTURE: SEFE .http://www.sefe.fi/portal/en/working_in_finland/ Accessed 04.04.2011
Mar 23, 2011
Touch
“The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn't said.” (Peter F. Drucker)
Touch is widely used to Express fillings, build the impression of closeness, support, protection or even opposite- irritation, anger, disapprove. How do Finns use that non-verbal tool?
Finland belongs to group of countries with high emotional restraint concepts, what results in little- touch culture. Finns avoid to touch each other, especially in public. Despite of equality, it is easier to accept touch in public for women, than for men. Touch is usually reserved for intimate relations (family, partners) and for communication between close friends. Especially not a lot during the first meeting touching is not welcome. For example in Spain, when you met a new person, is common to give two kisses in cheeks. In Finland such a behaviour could make the person feel uncomfortable, the handshake is enough. Handshake should be firm and quick and is repeated ‘up’ and ‘down’ several times.
Each culture has an own concept of what parts of the body can be touched. In Finland- only hands and eventually arms are accepted to be touched. In can be confusing for Finn, if you will use Polish or Russian habit to give his/her mate a pat on the back or arm to show the approval for well-done work...
The duration, frequency and location of the touch are mostly culturally based, but be should not forget that people communicate, basing on their own experiences. We met the Finnish tutors, who didn’t behave “typically Finnish”- probably because of the impact of foreign students’ cultures.
References:
http://www.leehopkins.com
http://html.rincondelvago.com
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com
http://www.daniellesaintemarie.com
Kevin Gore, Networking Cultural Knowledge: An interactive and experiential strategy to apply intercultural communication in business, WSOY Oppimateriaalit OY, Helsinki, 2007/
Time
Many cultures have radically different concepts of time. Of course, Finns have their own attitude to time. They have monochromic view of time and this affects their behavior greatly. They can do only one thing at any one time, but they concentrate at this thing and don’t waste their time for doing something else. This deep concentration is written on the Finns’ faces, so, don’t be surprised by their expression. And also don’t be surprised if a Finn does not react immediately on what you say him, he needs time! Finns concentrate on what you are saying, and a decent period of silence after you have stopped shows respect for what you said. (Lewis, Richard D., 2006, p.32) Finns are the world’s best listeners, they rarely initiate action or discussion, preferring to listen to and establish the other’s position first, then react to it and formulate their own. That’s why they rarely interrupt a speaker while the presentation is on-going.
And we want to give you an example how you shouldn’t act while communicating with Finns. In Poland it’s also inpolite, when you interrupt, only in some breaks in speech you are supposed to ask, or help with “missing” word. In Russia when you interrupt another person it means that you are interested in what he tells you. So, we tried to show our interest in what our Finnish friends were telling us by asking them a lot of questions and by putting their words into his speech. And we couldn’t understand why they were annoyed with us. But now we realize that we shouldn’t interrupt Finnish people before they don’t finish their speech; and we recommend you to remember this fact while communicating with Finns.
Finns are also concerned about not disturbing others and following rules of privacy. And we were really surprised to see that there are no fences near private houses in Finland. Yes, Finns really respect their own privacy and privacy of other people; they are also very honest that fences are not necessary for them. Finn will never enter private territory without invitation; and we, as foreigners in Finland should also respect private property and private space.
For Finns time is a scarce resource which must be rationed and controlled through the use of schedules and appointments; they measure their efficiency according to their ability to meet deadlines; they are future-oriented and value more what is going to come. Maybe because of this Finns are very punctual and don’t like when other people are late. Finns will never say you that they don’t like that you are late, but all their appearance will show that they are disappointed with you. So, the last advice is: Be in time and do your assignments in time. It is important that you follow the schedules and respect deadlines.
Larry A. Samovar, Richard E. Porter, Edwin R. McDaniel, Communication Between Cultures, 7th edition, Wadsworth, Cengage Learning, 2010, 464 pp.
Kevin Gore, Networking Cultural Knowledge: An interactive and experiential strategy to apply intercultural communication in business, WSOY Oppimateriaalit OY, Helsinki, 2007, 183 pp.
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