"How does language affect the relationship between landlord and tenant?"

Sandra Hellstrand, postdoctoral fellow in economic history

Tenant or leaseholder? How we name phenomena can say something about the relationship and power balance between different actors. Sandra Hellstrand examines how this is expressed in language.

The rental market has undergone major changes over the past hundred years. It concerns everything from who rents out and to whom, to how the market itself has been organised and regulated. This is what Sandra Hellstrand is interested in through her work. As a postdoctoral fellow in economic history at IBF, she has chosen to focus on a specific niche within the field. She is investigating how the relationship between tenant and landlord has changed in line with developments in the rental market – and how this is reflected in language.
– I have not yet progressed far enough in my research to see an academic shift, but what drew me to the field was that there is a linguistic struggle here. For instance, there are movements today questioning why it is called 'tenant' and not 'tenant-right holder', in the same way as one says 'leaseholder'. And why is it called 'landlord'?, says Sandra Hellstrand.

An important change that has occurred concerns precisely who acts as landlord and how this may reflect the spirit of the times.
– In the early 20th century, the person renting out a flat was often a private individual known to the tenant. By the mid-20th century, one might have been renting from a municipal housing authority, and today the landlord might just as easily be an international venture capital firm, says Sandra Hellstrand.

The questions that inform Sandra Hellstrand’s research are whether the concepts used are linked to the balance of power between guest and host – and, by extension, how society views tenants’ rights to their homes.
– Different groups are pulling in different directions. Should renting be something widely accessible to the general population, or should it be seen as a stepping stone towards home ownership? There are many conflicts in this area.

One such conflict is the high-profile cases in recent years where tenants have been forced to move because rents were sharply increased following renovation.
– The conflicts surrounding renovations and rent increases are fundamentally about whether you have the right to remain in your home at an affordable rent – and today, you do not. You must be prepared to move, says Sandra Hellstrand.

She is personally driven by curiosity and a desire to generate new knowledge through her research.
– Perhaps not to produce concrete advice or recommendations, but rather to contribute to society’s understanding of itself by examining what has happened historically and what is happening today. Both to provide a better foundation for decision-making and to offer a general understanding of the different processes and the situation tenants, for example, find themselves in, she says.

The research work itself largely involves reading old inquiries and parliamentary debates, and tracing linguistic – and possibly power-related – changes within them. This is a challenge in itself, as certain words have historically been used differently compared to today’s usage. Additionally, new politically charged terms are being coined, such as “renovräkning” (being forced to move due to a rent rise after renovation).
– I use the method of conceptual history to assist me, but I am also interested in other qualitative methods used to analyse meanings in language. In any case, it is important to have discussions about methodology. It is a way of understanding something and understanding one’s own process.

At present, Sandra Hellstrand is not collaborating with any external actors, but she definitely sees potential for this in the future.
– There are actors for whom this could be of interest, such as the Tenants' Association or other social movements.

Text: Anna Hedlund