Finnish Surname Change in Northern Minnesota

Abstract

N NORTHERN MINNESOTA there are several rural Finnish communities which have not yet been completely assimilated into the dominant culture, although the process is in some cases nearly complete, especially in towns near urban areas. The slow pace of the assimilative process is due not to rural isolation alone but to an unusual awareness of tradition. Most of the people in these communities have sought employment in the wood and mining industries, which forces them into direct and continued contact with the dominant