Defines himself as a local from Akureyri and is researching how young people use language on social media
Finnur Friðriksson is an associate professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Akureyri. His research is focused primarily on sociolinguistics the interplay of language use and social aspects.
Studied modern Icelandic
In his doctoral research, Finnur examined the various changes within modern language use, such as the tendency to overuse the dative case and the evolving variation of the passive voice (I was told). He also examined how these changes have evolved over time. His research suggests that these changes have not advanced in the way we would expect, and that there is a clear correlation between, a person’s attitude towards language changes and the use of newer variants of the language.
A vested interest in young people´s language use on social media
Recently, Finnur has been examining the language environment which is rapidly evolving as a result of social media. His focus has been on the gendered use of the language and the ways in which young people use language on social media. “During a previous research, myself and a colleague from The University of Iceland, wrote an article on Icelandic-English code switching revealed through Facebook posts and Messenger, which is due to be published in the publication Ritið,” says Finnur. The research revealed that English is observed in ‘teenager’ speech through exclamations, jokes, relation building or when they are at loss for certain words. Overall, English use is not as prevalent as many would imagine and accounts for only 2-3,5% of the vocabulary used. The volume of English is generally determined by the type of platform used and the amount of privacy available. Thus, English is not as prominent in public status updates but is more visible in personal two-way conversations in a closed space such as Messenger.
What are you doing these days?
“As usual I am preparing for the term which has just started. As it happens I have no teaching obligations this term, so I do not need to create study plans, lectures and assignments for the first time since I started working here. On the other hand, I will be overseeing more BA and MA student dissertations and will be meeting with these students over the coming days,” says Finnur. He is also working on a broad research project where he will be examining the type of language used by the Icelandic youth. For the last 2-3 years the research group has been collecting material on how young people use language in different situations.
“Now we need to review and analyze this material, which means writing articles and even books. Furthermore, myself and a colleague have applied for a research grant. If the grant is approved, the research part of my work over the next few years will be focused on the development, status and viability of Icelandic dialects (the Northern dialect, intonation, etc.),” says Finnur.
Who is Finnur?
“I was born in Reykjavík in 1972 where I lived until I was six years old, but as a child of doctors, we moved houses a lot. I lived in Siglufjörður from 1978-1980, in Eskilstuna, Sweden until 1984 and then again in Siglufjörður for a year until the family moved to Akureyri in 1985. Here I spent my formative years so to speak. So, I think of myself as a local of Akureyri as I have lived here for more than 25 years and have climbed the Súlur mountain more often than I can remember.” After graduating from Akureyri Junior College in 1992 I continued my studies at various universities in Reykjavík, Edinburgh and Gothenburg, taking two years off to teach at the elementary school in Patreksfjörður between 1966-1988. I received my BA in English and History from The University of Iceland in 1966 and my doctorate in general linguistics from the University of Gothenburg in 2010, I got tenure at The University of Akureyri in 2002. During the winter of 2011-2012, I accepted a temporary position at the University of Gothenburg where I used to teach part time while studying there 1980-2002.”
