The work on standardizing written Elfdalian started in the 1980s. Since its founding in 1915, the Älvdalen newspaper Skansvakten had a long tradition of publishing Eldalian texts. They were written with the Swedish alphabet, posing no problem for local readers.Melerska, 2011. In 1982, the newspaper for the first time presented a proposal for a practical Elfdalian spelling, developed by the Swedish linguist Lars Steensland.Steensland, 1982. Using the same orthography, Steensland published the first Eldalian dictionary in 1986Steensland, 1986. and a translation of the Gospel of John in 1989.Steensland, 1989.
Melerska, D. (2011). Den muntliga dialekten och dess långa skrifthistoria. En överblick över älvdalskans skrifttraditioner [The oral dialect and its long writing history: An overview of the Elfdalian writing tradition]. In Folia Scandinavica Posnaniensia 12. Poznań. Retrieved 20 September 2026 from pressto.amu.edu.pl
Steensland, L. (1982). Hur skriver man älvdalsmål? [How do you write in Elfdalian?]. In Skansvakten, no. 67, pp. 9–11. Elfdalens hembygdsförenings.
Steensland, L. (1986). Liten älvdalsk-svensk och svensk-älvdalsk ordbok [Small Elfdalian–Swedish and Swedish–Elfdalian dictionary]. Ulum dalska.
Steensland, L. (1989). Juanneswaundsjila: Johannesevangeliet på älvdalska [The Gospel of John in Elfdalian]. Elfdalens Hembygdsförening.
Steensland, L. (1994). Älvdalska växtnamn förr och nu [Elfdalian plant names, then and now]. Dialekt- och folkminnesarkivet i Uppsala. Retrieved 20 September 2026 from isof.diva-portal.org