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From 1918 to 1940, when Estonia was independent, the small Swedish community was well treated. Municipalities with a Swedish majority, mainly found along the coast, used Swedish as the administrative language and Swedish-Estonian culture saw an upswing. However, most Swedish-speaking people fled to Sweden before the end of World War II, that is, before the invasion of Estonia by the Soviet army in 1944. Only a handful of older speakers remain. Apart from many other areas the influence of Swedish is especially distinct in the ''Noarootsi'' Parish in ''Lääne'' County where there are many villages with bilingual Estonian and/or Swedish names and street signs. | From 1918 to 1940, when Estonia was independent, the small Swedish community was well treated. Municipalities with a Swedish majority, mainly found along the coast, used Swedish as the administrative language and Swedish-Estonian culture saw an upswing. However, most Swedish-speaking people fled to Sweden before the end of World War II, that is, before the invasion of Estonia by the Soviet army in 1944. Only a handful of older speakers remain. Apart from many other areas the influence of Swedish is especially distinct in the ''Noarootsi'' Parish in ''Lääne'' County where there are many villages with bilingual Estonian and/or Swedish names and street signs. | ||
The most common foreign languages learned by Estonian students are English, Russian, German and French. | The most common foreign languages learned by Estonian students are English, Russian, German and French. Other popular languages include Finnish, Spanish, and Swedish. <ref>Wikipedia contributors, "Estonia," in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'', https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estonia#Languages, accessed 15 March 2021.</ref> | ||
Historical records are written mostly in German but also in Russian, Swedish, Estonian, and Latin. | Historical records are written mostly in German but also in Russian, Swedish, Estonian, and Latin. | ||