Governor orders umlauts' return to Lindström

KARE-TV, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.

ST. PAUL, Minn. — A city that wears Swedish pride on its sleeve is celebrating after Minnesota's governor stepped in to rescue its umlaut.

Gov. Mark Dayton signed an executive order Wednesday mandating that the Minnesota Department of Transportation return umlauts to city-limit signs in Lindström, a community that refers to itself as America's little Sweden. Dayton signed the order upon learning that department had discontinued the use of umlauts on signs at the boundary of the city of 4,400 residents about 40 miles northeast of Minneapolis.

Umlauts had been used on city-limit signs in Lindström for more than 20 years until they were replaced following the most recent U.S. Census. When the population count was updated, the transportation department omitted the umlaut on the city's name because of the Federal Highway Administration's 52-page document of regulations known as "Standard Alphabets for Traffic Control Devices."

"Nonsensical rules like this are exactly why people get frustrated with government," Dayton said. "Even if I have to drive to Lindström, and paint the umlauts on the city limit signs myself, I'll do it."

The difference? You pronounce the city as LIND-strum with the umlaut and LIND-stroom without.

The governor has instructed the state transportation department to work with the City of Lindström to replace the signs as soon as possible.