Easy language also exists in other languages, but for now, I speak about Easy Finnish. Easy Finnish is for people who find plain language difficult. People with disabilities, immigrants and the elderly can all benefit from easy language. And to be honest, in my opinion, plain language benefits us all. Just like accessibility does.
It has been estimated that around every seventh Finnish person would benefit from easy language. That is not a small number.
Selkokeskus defines Easy Finnish as follows:
Easy Finnish is a form of Finnish where the language has been adapted so that it is easier to read and understand in terms of content, vocabulary and structure. It is targeted at people who have difficulties with reading or understanding standard language.
Easy Finnish improves overall accessibility because it makes the content easier to understand. However, writing or speaking Easy Finnish might not be easy. On the website for Selkokeskus, they have instructions for writing in Easy Finnish and speaking or interacting in Easy Finnish.
When it’s time to evaluate the content for Easy Finnish, learn more about the Easy Finnish Indicator tool provided by Selkokeskus. The tool is available in both Finnish and English.
Selkokeskus grants the SELKO symbol to publications that meet the criteria of Easy Language. The publication can be in either Finnish or Swedish. The Selko symbol is not granted for English content. Read more about the SELKO symbol