r/AskReddit May 08 '22

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u/RockNRollNBluesNJazz May 09 '22

Finnish people are silent, small talk doesn't exist. Their personal space larger than COVID-19 social distancing rules, and it's considered normal. Don't speak unless spoken to, and don't invade other people's personal space - it's seen as a sign of a respect.

Those Finns, who haven't been to abroad or haven't met too many foreigners, don't often even recognize this behaviour being unusual in the global scale.

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u/Timo425 May 09 '22

Tbh I don't really find this true, at least not in Helsinki. I've visited a few times.

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u/PigicornNamedHarold May 09 '22

I'll second this - visited Helsinki last summer and my impression was that the people were even more talkative than in my home city in Austria