Origin of the name Kven

The origin of the name "Kven" is unclear. The name appears for the first time in a 9th century Old English version, written by King Alfred of Wessex, of a work by the Roman author Orosius, in the plural form "Cwenas". It is still in use today, indicating a Finnish speaking Kven minority in northern Norway.

Norwegian background

Main article: Kvens of the past

All ancient references to Kvenland and Kvens seem to be from Old English and Icelandic sources (9th to 13th centuries). Furthermore, most of them seem to have been connected to a certain geographical area in Norway in one way or another:

This might indicate that the term "Kven" was originally used in Norwegian dialects around a rather compact area ranging from Trondheim to Hålogaland.

Theory one: "Swampy land"

Widely accepted is the view first presented by Jouko Vahtola[1][2] that "kven" etymologically originates from Old Norse "hvein," meaning "swampy land".[3] If Kvenland was the same as Finland and since Finland of the past was largely nothing more than swamps, the theory would fit.

A problem with this approach is that Kvenland does not seem to have been used that much as a geographical term, but rather as the "land of the Kvens". It is also only known to have been used by Norwegians. Had it been a geographical term, wider acceptance would have been expected. Especially noteworthy is the complete ignorance of all "Kven" related names among the Swedes. A decent explanation for this could be that also "Finland" is derived from "hvein land". Thus "Kvenland" would have been a local form of the name Finland used exclusively in some Norwegian dialects.

Theory two: "Woman"

Whatever the origin of the name "kven" is, it effortlessly translates to "woman" in Old Norse. Proto-Germanic "*kwinōn, *kunōn; *kwēni-z, *kwēnō" for "woman" had developed into "kona; kvǟn, kvān, kvɔ̄n; kvendi; kvenna, kvinna" in Old Norse.[4] An example of this is that Kvenland was most likely translated to Terra Feminarum ("Woman Land") in a Latin text from 1075 CE. Finland is not mentioned. Another reference to a north-bound land of women is from an Icelandic manuscript from the 14th century that describes a kuenna land ("Woman Land") north of India that would only have women with both reproduction organs.[5] As the name appears in a geographical list of countries and Finland is nowhere to be found, it may also be a misunderstanding from an era that no longer recognized Kvenland any more.

The reason why Finland would have been called as "Woman Land" is not immediately explained. However, there was a rumour already in the 1st century CE, written down by Tacitus himself, that a tribe called Sitones possibly living somewhere in the present-day Finland were ruled by a woman.[6] This could have led into some Germanic tribes calling Finland as the "woman land", placing a slightly deragotary meaning on the name (at least Tacitus was appalled by the rumour). Swedes living closer to Finns would have restrained using such a name, which would explain absence of "Kvenland" in Swedish contexts.

All in all, there was a persistent tradition of various contents about a land controlled by women in the north which might have generated the name "Kvenland" in a somewhat similar manner than later times invented the name for the River Amazon.

Theory three: Sami background

Similar sounding words to "kainuu" also exist in the Sami languages. In North Samic, Gáidnu is a rope made of roots for boats or fishing nets. Gáidnulaŝ refers to a clumsy person and Geaidnu stands for a road or a way.[7] In the early saami dictionaries Kainolats/Kainahaljo had the meaning Norwegian or Swedish man while Kainahalja had the meaning Norwegian or Swedish women, it could also have the meaning peasant. Helsing-byn close Torneå was referred to as Cainho.[8]

Other theories

One possibility is that "kven" is not originally a Germanic word at all, but lifted from Finnish. However, no fitting etymology has been presented for this theory.

Related to the discussion around the origin of the name Kven is also the origin of the name Kainuu.

References

  1. ↑ Vahtola, J. (1994), Kvenerne – vem var de ursprungligen? In: Torekoven Strøm (eed.), Report from the seminar ”Kvenene – en glemt minoritet?” 14.11.94 at the University of Tromsø/Tromsø Museum.
  2. ↑ Vahtola, J. (2001), Folk och folkgrupper inom det nordliga rummet över tid. In: Tedebrand, L.-G. & Edlund, L.-E. (ed.), Tre kulturer i möte. Kulturens frontlinjer. Papers from the research program Kulturgräns norr, 27. Published by Johan Nordlander-sällskapet, 23. Umeå.
  3. ↑ Etymology of hvein.
  4. ↑ Etymology of kwen.
  5. ↑ Manuscript "AM 764 4to". See also entire text in Icelandic.
  6. ↑ Tacitus' Germania.
  7. ↑ Álgu-database
  8. ↑ Lexicon lapponicum, Erik Lindahl, Johann Öhrling, Typis Joh. Georg. Lange, 1780"
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