Suomalaisten maastamuutto 2000-luvulla

This thesis is about the Finnish emigration. The aim is to find out who the emigrants are and from which areas of the country they move from, which countries they move to, and why. Is the emigration different today in comparison to how it was before. Have the reasons for emigration changed? The thesis focuses on the emigration in the 21st century but also compares it to the emigration of earlier periods of time. Data for this study is obtained from statistics and literature. Theories of migration are examined to explain the reasons behind the emigration. The theories chosen for this study are Ravenstein's theory of migration, the push and pull factors and the theory of motivation. Data from Statistics Finland is used to investigate the numbers of emigrants, their demographics, the regions of departure in Finland and the destination countries of the emigrants. Today the main reason for permanent emigration of Finns is marriage. However the move abroad is often meant to be only temporary. The common reasons for emigration are studying, career development, learning a new language or a craving for adventure and new life experiences. The emigrants are typically young adults and the majority of them are women. The largest age group is the 25-34-year-olds. A new group of emigrants are retired emigrants who move south to a warmer climate. The most popular destinations for the Finnish emigrants in the 21st century have been Sweden, the United Kingdom, the United States, Norway, Germany, Spain, Denmark, Switzerland, France and Estonia. The largest numbers of people emigrate from the capital region and other large cities. In relation to the population the emigration is the strongest from the Åland Islands. The Finnish emigration differs from that of earlier times. During the great migration to North America and later to Sweden many people moved in order to find work and to get an income. The emigrants had typically only a low level of education and the majority of them were men. The greatest numbers of emigrants moved from Ostrobothnia. Although Sweden is still the most popular destination for Finnish emigrants, the numbers of people moving there have declined almost every year during the current century while other countries have increased their popularity. The emigrants are not anymore uneducated or low-skilled, and the majority of them are women. Many move to gain new experiences. People do not need to move in order to find work and to make a living anymore. Instead, the reasons for the move are more individual nowadays. Ostrobothnia is not the most important area of out-migration anymore. The greatest numbers of emigrants come from the region of Uusimaa.