In his opening remarks for the Baltic Studies Summer Institute last June, Ambassador Toomas Ilves noted that it was fruitless, if not impossible to discuss any single Scandinavian country without reference to its neighbors. So, too, he added, "it is difficult to talk about Estonian culture or its post-war history without reference to Finland, [and] the history of either Latvia or Estonia without reference to their historical influences from Sweden or the Hanseatic League.

When the American State Department reorganized its bureaucratic structure to deal with the newly independent Baltic states, it moved those three states from the realm of the former Soviet Union and combined them with the Scandinavian desk to create a new Bureau of Nordic and Baltic Affairs. This change recognizes that the Baltic has become a regional hub in post-Cold War Europe, but also that the old terminology of "eastern" and "western" Europe was no longer adequate. The new paradigm suggested by the realignment had, in fact, already been anticipated at the University of Washington where the Scandinavian Department serves as the institutional home for the Baltic Studies Program.

In reality, although geography and political circumstances worked against the inclusion of the Baltic states in a broader Baltic community in the twentieth century, it has not always been the case. Historically, the Baltic countries have, in fact, been perceived as a part of the North. In Daniel Ernst Wagners' nine-volume Nordic history, published between 1778-1789, "Norden" included modern Scandinavia and the region encompassed today by the Baltic nations. Likewise, when travelers in the 1 8th and l9th centuries wrote of their "northern tours," they frequently included the Baltic states. Scholars published journals in Hamburg, Copenhagen, Oslo, Stockholm and St. Petersburg using the title "Nordisk" or "Nordische." The great German historian, Leopold von Ranke, considered Russia's Peter the Great, as well as Sweden's Karl X1I, as Nordic heroes." In short, the concept of "The North" was understood, and accepted, much more broadly historically than in our own century.

Since 1989, however, these traditional views have reemerged as many of the historical ties between the Baltic states and the Scandinavian countries, especially Finland and Sweden, have been renewed. Joining Denmark in the European Union, both Finland and Sweden have voiced support for the integration of the Baltic states into western Europe. The great song tradition of the Baltic states, furthermore, is a cultural feature shared with all the Scandinavian countries, and economic opportunities are only beginning to be realized.

The leading investors in Estonia today are Sweden and Finland. Sweden and Finland, in the past five years, have emerged as Estonia's largest trading partners. A recent Finnish tourism study has projected that more Finns (9.5 million) than live in Finland will visit Estonia in the next decade. Although technically impossible, statistically, it is possible and, indeed, quite probable. What it means, in effect, is that the Baltic has once again become a highway, and is no longer an ideological boundary.

The University of Washington, and the Baltic Studies Program in the Department of Scandinavian, is helping to facilitate the use of this ocean highway by educating student to navigate the reopened shipping lanes. Just as Scandinavian Vikings sailed from Reykjavik to Novgorod, today the cities of Tallin, Riga, Helsinki, Stockholm, Copenhagen and Oslo can be joined by students who study the region at the University of Washington. We may be an ocean and a continent away, but the 21st century world is much smaller and more interdependent than it has ever been before. Of course, we depend on you to make it happen. The University of Washington is a public university and, as such, subject to federal and state budgets and budget cuts. That the administration has given its support in money and faculty time has already been amply demonstrated. Without private, community support, however, the teaching of the Baltic languages and cultures cannot be sustained.

The visit of President Lennart Meri to the University of Washington is a significant demonstration of support for this effort from the government of Estonia and the University of Washington. If American interests, as well as Baltic interests, are to be served well--whether by government policy-makers or by private business interests--it is important that training in the Baltic languages and cultures continue to be available at American universities. The Russian, East European, and Central Asian Studies Center (REECAS) and the Scandinavian Department, with the support of the office of Dean, welcome the opportunity to work with the community to make Baltic Studies at the University of Washington a reality and a permanent feature of its curriculum. The fund-raising campaign now underway to raise $775,000. for Baltic Studies must be accomplished within two years. It is up to you! It can only happen with your support and your financial commitment. Good luck, and let's do it!

Speech of Dr.Terje I. Leiren, chair, Department of Scandinavian Dinner in honor of President Lennart Meri of Estonia, October 31, 1995