Pimsleur Finnish Level 1 Lesson 1

Summary

About the Finnish Language

• Finnish belongs to the Finnic branch of the Finno-Ugric family of languages. 


• Its closest relative is Estonian; Hungarian is a distant cousin. 


• It is spoken by approximately 5.2 million people, mostly in Finland, and by some in Sweden and Russia as well.


• There are three varieties of standard Finnish which are spoken throughout the country:

1. 
   kirjakieli ("book language") - used in official documents, official speeches and the daily news,


2. 
   yleiskieli - the standard language used in schools; it is formal and correct, though more relaxed than the "book language," and


3. 
   puhekieli ("spoken language") - more casual variety used in everyday conversation, which changes frequently.    




This course teaches the Finnish language, yleiskieli.