Hannah Rane started posting videos about her minority heritage on Instagram in January 2025 to combat a lack of online information. Today, about 18,000 people follow her digital storytelling on the account @tievaki, Ruijan Kaiku reported.
Growing up in Stockholm far from her family roots in Norrbotten, Rane initially found little material about Tornedalians, Kvens, and Lantalaiset. A course at Tornedalens folkhögskola prompted her to dig deeper into the history of Swedish assimilation policies.
“I thought: Why is nobody talking about this online? Why is nobody telling what has happened? Why is it sort of forgotten?” Rane told Ruijan Kaiku.
Fear of judgment gives way to massive response
Rane filmed her first English-language video outdoors in Björkliden near Abisko in January 2025. She worried friends would think she had lost her mind by acting like a Gen Z creator in her thirties.
“I was super stressed about posting it. I thought that if my friends see this, they are going to think I’ve gone completely crazy,” Rane told Ruijan Kaiku.
The name @tievaki combines her family’s old surname, Tieva, with the word vakituinen, meaning permanent. “We have always lived here, and we will always live here,” she told Ruijan Kaiku regarding the title.
Generational trauma from Swedish labor schools
The history carries personal weight for Rane, as her grandfather’s sister spent time in northern Sweden’s labor schools. Originally built to house and school poor children, the facilities also enforced Swedish language and cultural assimilation.
Rane’s great-aunt later moved away from Norrbotten and never fully returned, shaped by the experience. Family stories tell of an occasion when the sister hid her visiting mother in a Stockholm bedroom to avoid letting friends hear her speak poor Swedish.
“I think it was because of the shame after what had happened at the labor school. She didn’t want her friends to see where she came from,” Rane told Ruijan Kaiku.
Balancing academic research with minority advocacy
Alongside her digital outreach, Rane maintains an academic background in environmental science, working in carbon capture, geophysics, and climate modeling. She recently completed a research stint in England before returning to Stockholm.
Met Nuoret, the Tornedalian youth organization, brought her on board for part-time communications work after discovering her Instagram presence. Rane now splits her time between research projects and minority history education.
“The most dangerous thing, if we were to disappear, is that we become completely invisible and forgotten. Therefore it is important that we also show up in today’s world, with social media,” Rane told Ruijan Kaiku.
Frequently asked questions about the @tievaki account
What topics does Hannah Rane cover on Instagram?
She discusses the history of Tornedalians, Kvens, and Lantalaiset, focusing on the historical assimilation policies enforced by the Swedish state.
How did the account get its name?
The handle @tievaki merges her family’s ancestral surname Tieva with the term vakituinen, symbolizing permanent residency in the region.
What are the Swedish labor schools mentioned in the research?
Originally established to support impoverished children with food and schooling, these institutions also functioned as tools for Swedish cultural assimilation.
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