°µÍø½ûÇø

Menu
°µÍø½ûÇø
Search
Magazine
Search

Can I survive without Finnish language

mal

Hello friends, It seems your official language is Finnish and Swedish is the second language. I want to know whether it is difficult to survive in Helsinki for a foreigner who is speaking only English? we are planning a trip to your beautiful country soon.

See also

Living in Helsinki: the °µÍø½ûÇø guideSecond hand baby strollerMoving to Finland as a non-skilled workerWants to make New friends!can carta di soggiorno work in finland
mars2012hk

Hi. I don't live there but have been visiting many times. Everybody speaks English in Finland, you will have absolutely not problem. Enjoy!

kikori

i have lived in helsinki for 3.5 year. to generalize that 'everyone' speaks english is false.
not 'everyone' understands it or is able/willing to communicate in english.
however if you are just traveling here you should be able to get by depending on the area you visit... such as the bigger cities.

mal

If there will be one person from each place can speak well is enough. Here I can get the idea that speaking in English in Finland is better than Thailand;)
Thank you friends!

kikori

in the bigger cities yes, you are bound to find someone who can help you in just about any situation! :)
enjoy your travels!

annikka

In Finland everybody can speak english:)

kikori

³ó³¾³¾³¾³¾Ìý :unsure
i can give you so many daily examples of situations when a finn could not communicate in english with me: encounters with medical situations, countless times in stores, the maintenance person in charge of our building, elderly people, asking for directions,
the further north i have traveled out of helsinki the more communication issues i've faced.

mal

Thanks everybody. I know after coming and living sometimes, I can be catch some basics soon. :D

sabakamran

can some one truly guide me that is , in finland english language can speakes or not

hoganfinland

I live in Finland and have just 2 or 3 words of Finnish. I can speak better Swedish which is more common where I live.
I only speak English and small words of Finnish when I'm in Helsinki. A lot of Finns speak good English in the city, especially young people. I think it's courteous to ask if English is okay first though.

kikori

exactly hogan! my favorite phrase... 'puhutko englantia?' (do you speak english) and cross my fingers that they do!!!

cecilia21

:) Hi tracie,

If you've already travelled down here then you probably have found out that NO, it's not necessary to speak Finnish to get along here, as long as you speak English/German or some other "universal" language. Finns  study many languages as nobody (or very few) can speak Finnish in the world. So welcome and hopefully you'll get a lot out of your trip and will decide to come here again to get to know us "reserved" people better!
Enjoy our beautiful lakes, woods and northern fells and Lappish scenery (if you happened to go up north)!

kikori

hi, not really sure why you addressed me in this, i did not ask the question. i have lived in helsinki now for 4 yrs.

cecilia21

Hi Tracie,

Sorry, I didn't realize it was an outdate message!! Sorry about it and hopefully you have enjoyed your time in Finland, all the best for you in future as well.

citizen1

Cecilia, Tracie wasn't the one presenting the question in the first place. But I'm sure she appreciates your well-wishing.