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|
 Flag of Ingrians | |
 Ingrian Finns of Estonia at the Estonian Song and Dance Festival | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| c. 50,000 | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Finland,Russia | |
 Finland | 25,000[1] |
 Russia | 20,300(2010)[2] |
 Sweden | 4,500(2008)[3] |
 Ukraine | 768(2001)[4] |
 Kazakhstan | 373(2009)[5] |
 Estonia | 369(2011)[6] |
 Belarus | 151(2009)[7] |
| Languages | |
| Finnish (Ingrian dialects),Ingrian,Votic,Estonian,Russian | |
| Religion | |
| Lutheranism,Orthodox Christianity | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| OtherBaltic Finns EspeciallyIzhorians,Votes,Estonians, and otherFinns (particularlySiberian Finns andKorlaks) | |
Ingrian Finns[a] are theFinnish population native toIngria, a historical region corresponding to the central part of today'sLeningrad Oblast in Russia. They originated fromLutheran Finnish settlers who moved to Ingria in the 17th century, when both Finland and Ingria were parts of theSwedish Empire. During the Soviet era, particularly before and afterWorld War II, most of them were relocated to other parts of theSoviet Union or killed, in campaigns directed towards their forced deportation andgenocide. Today, the Ingrian Finns constitute the largest part of the Finnish population of theRussian Federation. According to some records, some 25,000 Ingrian Finns have returned or still reside in the region ofSaint Petersburg.
The termIngrians is sometimes used as a synonym for Ingrian Finns, though it can also refer to theIzhorians[8] or the Baltic Finnic residents of Ingria in general.[9]
During the period ofSwedish rule over Ingria in 1617–1703, the region underwent a drastic demographic change that led to the emergence of the Ingrian Finns.[10] Following theTreaty of Stolbovo in 1617, and especially after theWar of Rupture in 1656–1658, a significant portion of the area's Orthodox population fled to Russia. This was largely a response to the Swedish crown's heavy taxation, and its policy of promoting Lutheranism and pressurizing the Orthodox population to convert.[11][12]
The depopulated lands were subsequently settled by an influx ofLutheran migrants fromFinland. These settlers consisted of two main groups: theÄyrämöiset from theKarelian Isthmus (especially fromÄyräpää) and theSavakot fromSavo and other parts of Finland. For many, Ingria represented a "wild east" of the Swedish empire, a frontier offering an escape from taxes and military service. The movement was mostly voluntary, but for example someForest Finns fromNärke were forced to move.[11]
This migration led to a rapid shift in the region's ethnoreligious composition. The Lutheran Finnish population grew substantially, becoming the majority by the 1670s. By the end of the 17th century, Finns constituted approximately three-quarters of Ingria's rural population of about 60,000 people.[11] Finns made up 41.1 percent of the population of Ingria in 1656, 53.2 percent in 1661, 55.2 percent in 1666, 56.9 percent in 1671 and 73.8 percent in 1695.[13]
Russia conquered Ingria in 1702–1703 during theGreat Northern War and founded the city of Saint Petersburg (1703) in its center. TheTreaty of Nystad in 1721 confirmed Ingria's incorporation into the Russian Empire. Under Russian rule, the Ingrian Finns becameserfs: they no longer owned the land they cultivated and were forbidden to move elsewhere. Russian population grew rapidly in the region, and Orthodox Christianity became the dominant religion, while the Ingrian Finns were permitted to continue practicing Lutheranism.[14]
Serfdom in Russia wasabolished in 1861, granting the peasants the opportunity to buy their land and freeing them from extra taxes and labor obligations. The wealth of the Ingrian rural population grew, and by the end of the 19th century, many Ingrian Finns were independent peasants.[14] In the latter half of the 19th century, theFinnish national movement gained momentum in theGrand Duchy of Finland, and Finnish national consciousness rose in Ingria as well. Various educational and cultural initiatives were established, including sports clubs, choirs and temperance associations. Lutheran parsonages served as the main cultural centers for Ingrian Finns and also housed the region's first libraries.[14]
The Kolppana teachers' and cantors' seminary was founded in 1863. It trained teachers for Finnish-language schools and it was overseen by the Evangelical Church of Russia. The seminary educated the Ingrian intelligentsia, who spread the enlightenment to the population. Following the establishment of the seminary, Finnish-language public schools were also founded. The schools and seminary operated freely until the 1890s, when the school system began to beRussified. Compared to the Russian average, literacy remained high among the Ingrian Finns.[14]
The first Finnish-language newspaper in Ingria,Pietarin Sanomat, began publication in 1870. Prior to that, Ingria received newspapers primarily fromVyborg. The first public library opened in Tyrö in 1850. The largest library, located in Skuoritsa, had over 2,000 books in the latter half of the 19th century. The first song festival in Ingria was held in Puutosti (Skuoritsa) in 1899.[10]
By 1897, the number of Ingrian Finns had grown to 130,413, and by 1917 it exceeded 140,000 (45,000 in Northern Ingria, 52,000 in Central (Eastern) Ingria and 30,000 in Western Ingria, the rest inPetrograd).[10]
Soviet rule, and theGerman occupation (1941–1944) duringWorld War II, were as disastrous for the Ingrian Finns as for other small ethnic groups. Many Ingrian Finns were either executed, deported to Siberia, or forced to relocate to other parts of the Soviet Union. There were also refugees to Finland, where they assimilated.[citation needed]
After the 1917Bolshevik revolution, Ingrian Finns inhabiting the southern part of theKarelian Isthmus seceded fromSoviet Russia and formed the independentRepublic of North Ingria, which was backed by Finland. The short-lived republic was reintegrated with Soviet Russia according to the 14 October 1920 Russian-FinnishTreaty of Tartu, and for several years thereafter it retained some degree of autonomy. From 1928 to 1939, Ingrian Finns in North Ingria constituted the Kuivaisi National District with its center inToksova andFinnish as its official language.
TheFirst All-Union Census of the Soviet Union in 1926 recorded 114,831 "LeningradFinns", as Ingrian Finns were then called.[10]
In 1928,collectivization of agriculture started in Ingria. To facilitate it, in 1929–1931, 18,000 people (4,320 families) from North Ingria were deported toEast Karelia or theKola Peninsula, as well as toKazakhstan and other parts ofCentral Asia. The situation for the Ingrian Finns deteriorated further because of the Soviet plan to createrestricted security zones along the borders with Finland andEstonia, free of the Finnic peoples, who were considered politically unreliable.[15][16] In April 1935 7,000 people (2,000 families) were deported from Ingria to Kazakhstan, elsewhere in Central Asia, and theUral region. In May and June 1936 20,000 people, the entire Finnish population of the parishes ofValkeasaari,Lempaala,Vuole andMiikkulainen near the Finnish border, were transferred to the area aroundCherepovets. In Ingria they were replaced by people from other parts of theSoviet Union.[10]
In 1937 Lutheran churches and Finnish-language schools in Ingria were closed down, and publications and radio broadcasting in Finnish were suspended.[citation needed]
In March 1939 the Kuivaisi National District was liquidated.[citation needed]
Initially during theWinter War, the Soviet policy was mixed. On the one hand, Stalin's government largely destroyed Ingrian Finnish culture, but on the other hand, the maintenance of a Finnish-speaking population was desired as a way to legitimize the planned occupation of Finland. The failure of the puppetTerijoki government led to the ultimate result that in 1941, Moscow officially decided that Ingrian Finns were unreliable, and in 1942 most of the Ingrian Finns remaining in Ingria were forcibly relocated to Siberia. During the Finnish and German occupation of the area, Ingrian Finns were evacuated to Finland. However, after theContinuation War, most of these Ingrian Finns, who were still Soviet citizens, were forcibly returned to the Soviet Union, where they were dispersed into Central Russia. However, some Ingrian Finns were able to flee to Sweden, and nearly 4,000 were able to remain in Finland. Ingrian Finns were largely forgotten during the presidencies ofJuho Kusti Paasikivi andUrho Kekkonen.[17]
After the war many Ingrian Finns settled in Soviet-controlledEstonia.[citation needed]
From thedissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 until 2010, about 25,000 Ingrian Finns moved fromRussia andEstonia toFinland,[18] where they were eligible for automatic residence permits under the FinnishLaw of Return. In 2010, however, the Finnish government decided to stop the remigration, so Ingrian Finns seeking residence are now treated in the same way as any other foreigners. There are still about 15,000 people in the remigration queue.[18]
The number of people who declared their nationality as Finnish in the 2010 Russian census was 20,000, down from 47,000 in 1989.
Many Ingrian Finns, including mixed families, who moved to Finland did not speak any language other than Russian and in many cases still identify as Russians.[19]There are social integration problems similar to those of any other migrant group in Europe, to such an extent that there is a political debate in Finland over the retention of theFinnish Law of Return. In contrast, native Finnish-speakers have been easily assimilated into mainstream Finnish culture, leaving little trace of Ingrian Finnish traditions.
In Estonia, the Ingrian Finns have enjoyedcultural autonomy since 2004, being the first minority to organize and use such a right after Estonia's restoration of independence. The 2011 census counted 369 Ingrian Finns in Estonia, a large majority of whom are also citizens of Estonia.[citation needed]
In Russia, many Ingrian Finns are members of theEvangelical Lutheran Church of Ingria.[citation needed]
In terms ofautosomal DNA, Ingrian Finns are close to Finns from Finland and other Baltic Finnic groups.[20][21] About 10 percent of their admixture is Siberian.[21]
The majority of Ingrian Finnish men belong to the paternal haplogroupN1c, which is typical for Finns and other Finno-Ugric peoples. Their second most common Y-haplogroup isI1. In terms of Y-DNA, Ingrian Finns are closest to Finns from Finland (especially Eastern Finns) and Karelians fromWhite Karelia.[21]
Half of Ingrian Finns belong to thematernalhaplogroup H and 19.4 percent carryU5. Their other mtDNA haplogroups includeT (11.1 %),V (5.6 %) andW (5.6 %).[20]
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