Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

A History Of The Use Of Swedish Language In New Sweden, Maine, Kaitlyn Anderson

Honors College

Swedish has a significant role in the history of Aroostook County. In the 1870s, a group of Swedish immigrants settled in the then newly-formed Maine’s Swedish Colony. They brought traditional Swedish customs, dress, food and language. Meanwhile in Sweden, a change was occurring in the Swedish language that led to the development of modern Swedish into the contemporary Swedish that continues to be spoken in Sweden today. While many of the oldest generation of Swedes in New Sweden know this older style of Swedish, the language was not readily passed down to their children or their children’s children. Despite the …