Does Having A Finnish Passport Make You A Finn?

Does having a Finnish passport make you a Finn? Certainly, this is not an easy question for some, as there are many factors in place that will determine an individual’s response. Hence, why it has become a controversial debate topic or a highly debatable question.

That being said, let’s examine this more closely.

What does it mean to become a citizen of a country?

According to the Oxford Dictionary, a citizen is a legally recognized subject or a national of a state or commonwealth, either native or naturalized.

In other words, both the natives of Finland and the people who have gained the Finnish citizenship are considered citizens.

A person can have more than one citizenship, thus allowing them to carry multiple international passports. Though, not every country allows dual citizenship.

See the article: Which countries allow dual citizenship in 2019?

Citizenship vs. Nationality

Many of us often confuse nationality for citizenship and the other way around. Technically, they are two sides of the same coin.

[ads_custom_box title=”” color_border=”#023578″]Nationality defines the birthplace — the origin of a person. Citizenship, on the other hand, defines the position or status granted to a person by the government of a country. [/ads_custom_box]

Questions

What is Cheng’s nationality?

Cheng was born in the US to Chinese parents but spent 99% of his life in Finland.

Nationality can be a messy situation for some people.

Chenge

Types of Finns

There are two types of Finns: Ethnic or Native Finns and Generation-type Finns.

Native Finns

A native Finn is a Finn that is part of a Baltic Finnic ethnic group native to Finland. In total, there are about 7 million Finns worldwide, of which the biggest part resides in Finland.

Generations-type Finns

These are Finns who either moved to Finland and settled, Finns who were born in Finland to immigrant parents, Finns who were born in Finland to either (Native and Immigrant parent).

Does having a Finnish passport make you a Finn

What makes you a Finn?

Someone once quoted:

What makes you a Finn is living in a home filled with IKEA products, an introvert who welcomes people into their home, a strong but softhearted person.

The truth is that Nationality and Citizenship are not the only yardsticks with which to measure what makes one a FINN. Sure, you might earn the title to be called a “Finn” by virtue of lineage, birth or naturalization. However, if your cultural values are not “Finnic or Finnish-like”, then you are merely a Finn by name.

Questions to ask:

Are your customs and traditional values Finnish?

Would you take a bullet for Finland?

Would you be willing to fight for Finland?

See the article on The Finnish Ten Commandments.

So, does having a Finnish passport make you a Finn?

YES and NO.

Yes, if you fulfill the conditions under “What makes you a Finn” explained above. No, if you don’t identify yourself as a Finn, or if you don’t exhibit the customs and cultural values of Finnish people.

False notion

Color, Race, and Continent have nothing to do with whether or not you deserve the right to be called a Finn. If you think otherwise, please let me know in the comment below.