When KAJ beat Måns Zelmerlöw by eight points in Melodifestivalen 2025, it represented a seismic shift in Sweden’s trajectory. “Bara Bada Bastu”, a song about the joys of spending time in a sauna, marks the first Swedish Eurovision entry to be sung in its native tongue since the language rule requiring every country to do so was dropped in 1999.
For Sweden, a hub of pop music which prides itself on its deep musical education, “Bara Bada Bastu” is a contrast to the polished image other people expect of them. Sweden is the third largest exporter of pop music in the world, behind the U.S. and the U.K. Combined with Sweden’s high English proficiency and the small Swedish market, standard pop music became a Melodifestivalen staple. Despite the change in pace with their Eurovision entry, “Bara bada bastu” still has garnered its following, with over fifteen million streams on Spotify and topping the charts in both Sweden and Finland.
Sweden’s decision in choosing a Swedish-language song, however, is part of a larger trend in Eurovision, which has seen a revitalization of native-language songs over the last decade. While “Amar Pelos Dois” triggered this sea change after winning the 2017 contest, it was the 2021 contest’s top three, spearheaded by the winner in “Zitti e Buoni“, which led to a further increase of different languages in the contest. This year, over half of the 37 songs are partially in a language other than English, the highest proportion since Eurovision 2008.
Nordic Representation:
Sweden is not alone amongst the Nordics in terms of showcasing their native language. To their east, Finland once again features the Finnish language with the pop confection “Ich komme”, sung by fan favorite Erika Vikman. While in the past, the Finnish language was looked down upon for not being popular or musical; Käärijä’s success with “Cha Cha Cha” both in the contest and beyond has put a damper on such discussion. In addition to Finnish, the title and chorus is in German, adding a little more international flair. Will Erika take Finland to even higher heights?
Meanwhile, in Iceland, Væb are sailing over to Basel with their song “Róa”, reminiscent of the sea shanty craze in the early 2020s. It’s the first Icelandic-language song since Systur’s “Með Hækkandi Sól” three years prior, but if Iceland’s previous history is to be considered, Væb should have a bit of hope! All three of Iceland’s previous Icelandic language songs have made the final.
The Return of the Francophones:
Ever since the 2022 contest, when there were no French-language songs in the contest, the number of French-language songs steadily increased. While it will never hit the heights of early Eurovision, back when French was a lingua franca for most of the continent, five songs either fully or partially in the language is progress for the modern contest.
Along with France’s “Maman”, Zoë Më will represent the host nation with “Voyage”, a delicate song which is also Switzerland’s second French-language song in a five year period. Luxembourg’s return to Eurovision allowed for more French-language music to shine, this time with “La poupée monte la son“, a call-back to their 1965 winner “Poupée de cire, poupée de son”. But the most surprising is the Netherlands, in which Claude represents his country with the bilingual hit, “C’est la vie“.
A Bit of Italian:
With three songs either partially or fully in Italian, it has given French a run for their money for the most represented Romance language. Both of them showcase why their languages are some of the prettiest in the world, but this year, the Italian language songs have a bit more silliness than usual.
Estonia, the lone Baltic not showing their language, uses Italian in “Espresso Macchiato” to convey Italian stereotypes. People who are not familiar with the language will quickly pick up “mi amore”, “ciao bella”, and the title of course! Meanwhile, Gabry Ponte’s “Tutta L’Italia” celebrates Italy and started out life as the theme song for the 75th edition of Festival di Sanremo, before finding its way as the representative for San Marino.
As for Italy themselves? Lucio Corsi has taken the helm with the vintage-influenced “Volevo essere un duro”. A meditation about growing up and finding peace in not being what you’ve envisioned yourself, it contrasts with the other two in its introspectiveness and poetic lyrics.
Baltic Power:
With her song “Sentimentai” in 2022, Monika Liu set a new trend in Lithuanian Eurovision entries by incorporating their own language. The spooky disco song, which placed 14th overall, allowed for hits such as “Luktelk” to represent the country, along with this year’s song, “Tavo akys“.
Meanwhile, a three-way tie in Latvia allowed for Tautumeitas to squeak through Supernova, with their luck spell “Bur man laimi”. Infused with pretty vocals and influences from Latvian mythology, this marks the first time since 2004 where there was a fully Latvian-language song in the contest. Coincidentally, “Dziesma par laimi” translates to “A Song About Happiness”, which connects to “Bur man laimi”, a song seeking joy!
Southern European Sounds:
Albania has quickly become a fan favorite amongst the class of 2025, thanks to the folktronica duo Shkodra Elektronike and their experimental number, “Zjerm”. With lyrics contrasting an ideal world of peace with the chaos of modernity, it marks a return for the Albanian language after a year’s absence. When Albania keeps their songs in Albanian post-revamp, they usually qualify, but could Shkodra Elektronike set Basel on fire afterwards?
For the second year in a row, Greece has turned to their own language at Eurovision, but “Zari” and “Asteromata” are like day and night. Whereas Marina Satti used folk and urban music to showcase a new side to Greece; Klavdia’s “Asteromata” is more severe in terms of melody and content. The mix of haunting vocals and lyrics which alludes to the Pontic Genocide has resulted in comparisons to “Oniro Mou“, another serious ballad connecting the singer with their homeland.
Further along in the Balkans, Montenegro has come back in style with Nina Žižić’s “Dobrodošli”. A powerful ballad which Nina uses to showcase her vocals, it’s the first time since 2018 where Montenegro used Montenegrin for their Eurovision entry. On the other hand, with “Mila“, Serbia continues to use Serbian to some capacity, continuing a streak that has gone on since 2018.
The Iberian Peninsula has continued to be a staple for native language representation, which has been the course for their Eurovision entries with a few exceptions. Melody will take the helm for Spain with “Esa diva“, a vivacious and polished pop song infused with Spanish guitar about the story of a proud diva. In contrast, NAPA’s “Deslocado” is a lament about moving out of Madeira to the city (namely Lisbon), and wishing to go home. Curiously enough, in Festival da Canção, Henka’s “I Wanna Destroy You” won the televote, with “Deslocado” coming in second.
The Importance of Other Languages on Stage:
Admittedly, sometimes language isn’t the most important thing in music. The language rule, which was in place between 1966 and 1972 and again from 1977 to 1998, hindered creativity and allowed the same three countries to succeed in the 1990s. Around half of all Europeans can hold a conversation in English, with the proportion increasing to 70% of European youth ages 15-24. Combined, the little language from the British Isles still maintains a hold on the continent, and will continue to be a lingua franca for the near future.
However, language is an important part of one’s culture, and Eurovision’s window towards other parts of the country is a powerful weapon for that. Ukraine’s shift to singing Ukrainian language songs (occasionally mixed with English) in the 2020s after using mostly English during their Eurovision beginnings reflects a shift towards asserting their culture, especially after the Russian invasion in 2022. That way, Ukraine can simultaneously strengthen its European claim and use its culture to rally allies to help them out.
Even within more stable countries, languages can be a question of debate. In Germany, German-language music hardly made the charts in the 1980s and 1990s, with most of the popular songs being from international artists. While a quota has been considered, such as with France to protect their national language, the debate around it has been ambiguous about what it would entail. Over time, however, both sales and airplay increased–albeit with halting progress–of these native language songs.
Eurovision 2025 promises multiple languages amongst its class, some the audience is familiar with, and others that will make a welcome return. Through this, there’s more of the diversity Eurovision is based on, which has increased in the past decade. Which non-English songs are your favorites?