Dr.Mika Roinila
Assistant
Professor of Geography
Department of History & Contemporary Society
Bethel
College Division of Social Sciences
1001 West McKinley Avenue,
Mishawaka, IN 46545
574-257-2658
574-257-7617
(fax)
e-mail: roinilm@bethelcollege.edu
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Welcome to my home page (Tervetuloa kotisivulleni)
As a human/cultural geographer, I am interested in ethnicity, migration, settlements, material-and popular- culture. I am especially interested in the Finnish ethnic group in North America, ethnic identity, assimilation, and the inter-ethnic relations that exist between the Finnish-speaking and Swedish-speaking Finns. I am also very keen on traveling and visiting new locations. All this, after all, comes from my childhood and travels and life lived in countries such as Finland, Australia, Sweden, Canada and now the United States. At present, I am involved in a major collaborative project with colleagues in Finland and the US. The project Finnish North-Americans Today is being written by the authors and is hoped to be completed and published in the next few years. I am also interested in the transfer and diffusion of material culture and the popularization of phenomena such as the sauna (along with hot tubs, water slides, etc) in today's North American society. Most recently, I published a collection of my articles in the book The Finnish Immigrant Experience in North America, 1880-2000: Studies in Cultural Geography (Edwin Mellen Press, 2006).
In January, 2008 Bethel Pilot Radio introduced a radio program entitled Geography Trivia Today which brings fascinating information about geography to the listening audience. If interested in hearing this show, look for it around 12:30 daily on Bethel Pilot Radio.
Below please see my family, which includes Grace, son Ari (19), and daughters Marita (17), Sinikka (15) and Laura (11). For some family history and material on the many moves the Roinila family has experienced, check the Ulkosuomalaisen Tarina (Story of an Expatriate Finn). There you will find an article in English (previously there were some photos and statistics as well), which are of interest to Filmihally OY, a documentary film studio located in Pori, Finland.
Updated: August 21, 2008
