Haltijas are the main and most common mythological creatures in finnish mythology. Even in this condition the girl refused and fled back into the water. The kalevala is the great finnish epic, which like the iliad and the odyssey, grew out of a rich oral tradition with prehistoric roots. The book also includes a stepbystep process for one of the paintings from start to finish. Godchecker guide to vainamoinen also known as vainamoinen, the finnish hero god from finnish mythology.
Mythical creature, the ajatar, a finnish, female disease. Pages in category finnish legendary creatures the following pages are in this category, out of total. List of finnish deities and nature spirits fairychamber. It has many features shared with estonian and other finnic mythologies, but also shares some similarities with neighbouring baltic, slavic and, to a lesser extent, norse. Published as a mininovel by skyhook press, 2007, and in an earlier version as the picture book the maiden of northland. The character of vainamoinen has multiple layers as is so typical of the many mythical heroes of the ancient north. Norse mythology by neil gaiman, the sword of summer by rick riordan, the hammer of thor by rick riordan, the gospel of.
Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. Vainamoinen, in finnish folklore, a central figure of many ancient mythological songs and a culture hero to whom everything miraculous and wonderful is attributed. He went to wake antero vipunen, who knew the spell and, in some variations of the story, saved the spell in his abdomen. Godcheckers az names list of finnish gods and spirits.
Finnish mythwhats the name of the weapons that vainamoinen uses. Louhi possesses the power of magic and at one point she steals the sun and moon and locks them away. Jan 27, 2017 although tom bombadil didnt appear in peter jacksons movie adaptations of tolkiens books, he is one of most readers favorite characters. Discover with us the magic belief of ancient finns. The key to the kalevala was originally published in finland in 1916. Jan 23, 2015 not mine originally found it on fullchans k. Its been a while so i may have just gotten all that wrong. Vainamoinen is an important figure in finnish folklore, and has been variously referred to as a hero, a wizard, a shaman, and a god. Most of the myths date from prechristian times and were passed from generation to generation by storytellers.
Louhi is described as an evil witch and its very likely she an alterego of the goddess loviatar who was a blind daughter of tuoni, the god of death in finnish mythology and tuonetar, the underworld queen. Finnish mythology is a commonly applied description of the folklore of finnish paganism, of which a modern revival is practiced by a small percentage of the finnish people. Finnish mythology article about finnish mythology by the. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading vainamoinens kalevala. She drowned herself to avoid marrying the old culture hero. Finnish mythology from godchecker the legendary mythology encyclopedia. This zine features 33 ink illustrations, each accompanied by a written introduction to finnish mythology and folklore related to the animals. Finns have been telling each other stories of their gods and guardians for centuries. Our unique mythology dictionary includes original articles, pictures, facts and information from finnish mythology. Now this insightful and detailed exploration of the ancient origins of finnish mythology is available in english. If youve found this site to be helpful, please consider making a secure paypal donation via the button below. List of books and articles about finnish history online. In finnish epic kalevala kullervo kalervonpoika son of kalervo was a beautiful man with hair of golden colour and tragic life. Haltija haltia is a spirit or creature in finnish mythology, that guards, helps or protects something or somebody.
Finnish mythology and folk tales include countless amount of elementals, nature spirits and deities. There is no better way to get to know a country than to read its finest literary treasures. He thinks aino wouldnt marry vainamoinen because she was lazy and didnt want the responsibilities of being a wife. The concise list can be found on our pantheon page of finnish gods and spirits this list is frequently updated we are constantly discovering more. Finnish mythology is the mythology that went with finnish paganism which was practised by the finnish people prior to christianisation. Vainamoinen sage, sorcerer, adventurer and friend of. In the finnish epic poem the kalevala, a culture hero, son of luonnotar, daughter of the air, who brought about creation. Public domain the story describes kalevas son and ilmarinens brother. Some thoughts on the finnish origins of tom bombadil and treebeard. It is also called tuonela, the realm of tuoni, and pohjola, derived from the word pohja, meaning bottom and also north. Apr 06, 2012 ive read a little bit about the finnish myths, i think in the kalevala, doesnt the main character fall in love with his sister, and then they both end up killing themselves. In this lesson you will learn about finnish mythology and some of the god and goddesses the finns revered. As has been often noted, much of what tom says is, in fact, sung.
After all, any school child can tell you of the myths of the greeks, romans or germanic peoples, yet the mythology and heroes of finland have remained largely unknown. Finnish mythology and language is much older than vikings. Religion has always been the mirror of a society, and the finnish ancient religion perfectly reflects the needs and the daily life of such a magic people. Finland is no exception, and mythical creatures remained very much part of finnish folklore until the countrys rapid urbanisation during the 20th century. In finnish mythology the heavenly sign orion is called the scythe of vainamoinen.
Vainamoinen, the old sage, and louhi, mistress of the north have a rivalry that involves everyone. There is, however, a general plot that can be identified in each of the myths different versions. Vainamoinen shares some properties with the norse god odin, regarding magic and poetry, but the finnish hero can also sing and play kantele, and therefore, he is often compared to orpheus, a hero from greek mythology, who like vainamoinen was able to. Nature has its own haltijas, for example the haltijas of water and haltijas of the forest. I think the swan is a symbol of death in finnish mythology too, like they. Our holy database currently contains 105 finnish deity names and 50 unique articles. The fact that the finnish people know their werewolves by the name of vironsusi is odd, seeing as how this translates into estonian wolf. Ikuturso is a malevolent sea monster in the finnish mythology.
The 10 best norse mythology books norse mythology for smart. Oct 14, 2016 he is a handsome young man, a hero, but also a frivolous, ostentatious character with liking for women and battles. His production is not limited only to novels he wrote poetry, short stories, criminal novels, plays, essays, travel stories, film scripts and rhymed texts for comic strips. World view of the ancient finnougric tribes was animistic and they believed that every single tree, stream, river, stone, person, animal, lake and flower had a spirit inside them. Vainamoinen rate how difficult to pronounce this word. Connections between norse, saami, and finnish mythology. At one point there was a trade relationship with viking and the finns and during that time lots of finnish young men joined vikings on their trips, for money and adventure. The songs of power a northern tale of magic retold by aaron shepard from the kalevala. The following translation was undertaken from a desire to lay before the englishspeaking people the full treasury of epical beauty, folklore, and mythology comprised in the kalevala, the national epic of the finns. During the first millennium of our era, speakers of uralic languages those outside the indoeuropean group who had settled in the baltic region of karelia, that straddles the border of eastern finland and northwest russia, developed an oral poetry that was. The name bestowed on the storm by twc is shared with the god of sky and weather in finnish mythology, who like the norse counterpart thor wielded a hammer or axe, in some stories that could strike lightning.
Finnish mythologyfinnish mythology in contextfinnish mythology, like that of many other cultures, tells the stories of gods and legendary heroes. His name comes from the finnish word vaina, meaning stream pool. Trying to decide where to start or where to go next from your current position, continue reading the 10 best norse mythology books. Finnish mythology myth encyclopedia god, story, tree. It has many features shared with estonian and other finnic mythologies, but also shares some similarities with neighbouring baltic, slavic and, to a lesser extent, norse mythologies. Vainamoinen m finnish mythology derived from finnish vaina meaning wide and slowflowing river.
An entertaining introduction to the rich, fascinating world of finnish mythology with gorgeous illustrations. Being a retelling of finnish myth kindle edition by farrell, james. Kalevala mythology is a multifaceted work that looks both at elias lonnrots compilation of mainly karelian folk songs and stories, both in its final form and in the old kalevala, and at the shamanic tradition from which the stories first sprang forth. It says that there was only water and sky at the beginning of the world. Mika waltari 19 september 1908 26 august 1979 is one of the best known and most productive finnish writers. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Like most civilizations, they had a story for how the earth was created, and they believed. The traditional view of finns as taciturn introverts probably doesnt help raise the profile of these tales typical joke.
The book of thoth is a legendary book containing powerful spells and knowledge, said to have been buried with the prince neferkaptah in necropolis. This is a fair book, but marred with farrells opinions about lots of different topics. Shouting failed to awaken the enormous, as did shaking him. Manala, in finnish mythology, the realm of the dead. The word is possibly derived from the compound maanala, the space or area under the earth. Vainamoinen the finnish hero god finnish mythology. More importantly, this benevolent character is the primary protagonist in the kalevala. The story of lemminkainen exists in several versions. Kantele is a string music instrument, native to finland. Your guide to the finnish gods, spirits, demons and legendary monsters. Myths, culture and feelings from the ancient finland. Vainamoinen was described as an old and wise man, and he possessed a potent, magical voice. Thats not what the kalevala says and that particular story is a very important part of finnish culture.
To a casual reader of the old finnish poems he appears as an old hero doing many brave. Theres a deep vein of genre books that borrow from, or are outright based on, norse myth. Our alphabetical list of finnish gods and goddesses names. Students of the ancient traditions and mystical teachings will find no better introduction to the profound esoteric meaning of the kalevala, the finnish national epic, than ervasts book. The epic poems 50 or so songsalso known as cantos or runesrecount the story of legendary finnish heroes and of gods and goddesses and describe mythical events such as the creation of the world. This book, perhaps the only real direct source of finnish mythology and religion, explores an oft neglected culture. This is a quickly readable english translation in free verse of vainamoinen s and ilmarinens wooing of louhis. Many fabulous finnish figures appear in the runic poems of the kalevala the. Jan 04, 2018 lemminkainen is a hero who features prominently in the traditional mythology of finland. First you will learn how the finns viewed their gods, and then how we came to know about. The kalevala by elias lonnrot, il figlio del dio del tuono by arto paasilinna, pakanuuden aikakausi by julius krohn. He could sang his enemies into a swamp and rule the wind and weather with his play. Vainamoinen was a shaman in finnish national epic, kalevala. Jul 07, 2012 vikings referred finland as land of the giants and finnish people was highly respected by vikings.
There are so many books on norse mythology out there, especially at the beginner level, that if you were to make a pile with one copy of each it would probably reach all the way up to asgard itself. In finnish mythology vainamoinen was a wise old magician, the son of the primal goddess ilmatar. Ive been doing a little bit of research into elements of norse influence on saami and finnish culture and vice versa and i d like to briefly share some of interesting things ive discovered. Our picks for ten of the best finnish books will take you through the countrys history in the care of writers and characters who will guide you in a way that history books or mere pictures never could. It borders on the gulf of bothnia and sweden in the west, on norway in the north, on russia in the east, and on the gulf of finland and the baltic sea in the south. Lemminkainen is one of the heroes of the kalevala, a 19thcentury national epic compiled by elias lonnrot, a finnish physician, philologist and collector. It includes all the spectrum of motifs and many characteristics of norse mythology and finnish folklore. Im super happy with how this turned out and so proud that i was able to bring this project to life.
This is the northern myths podcast, an archetypal exploration of the myths and legends of northern europe, including norse mythology, the finnish kalevala, and more. The 10 books and series listed below are just the tip of the iceberg. Actually the core of his character may be very hard to define. Herman hofberg, lapparnas hednatro uno holmberg, lapparnas religion rafael karsten, samefolkets religion.
A finnish tale of magic, retold from the kalevala ancient fantasy as want to read. Hannunvaakuna finnish good luck symbol from the book finnish proverbs by inkeri vaananenjensen. The wizard vainamoinen was constructing a magic boat and lacked a necessary binding spell. The tales of this hero are recorded in the kalevala, the finnish national epic. Introduction to major characters of the kalevala such as. In finnish folk religion, the divine mother is the virgin mary or maaria in finnish and she is remembered in songs and spells as a spiritual mother, healer, helper and protector of motherhood. Finnish mythology, like that of many other cultures, tells the stories of gods and legendary heroes. Ilmarinen was one of many important heroes within the epic of finnish mythology, the kalevala. How to say mythology in finnish whats the finnish word for mythology. In finnish mythology a mysterious virgin by the name of iro is said to have given birth to the three divine brothers at the beginning of times. Finns have the power of darkness, finns are wizards. Most of the myths date from prechristian times and were passed from. In the second cantos in the kalevala, he rises from the sea and burns a stack of hay.
Obviously the finnish mythology has much more in common with the russians and the other baltic countries, particularly estonia. Ilmarinen was a wonderworking smith and the trusted pal of the wizard vainamoinen. To a casual reader of the old finnish poems he appears as an old hero doing many brave tasks like bringing back sampo from the north. The story begins with the heros journey to an otherworldly place. Vainamoinen, one of the heroes in the kalevala, and is a wise old seer who can work magic through the songs that he sings. Every country and every region around the world seems to have its own werewolf legends it seems. This is a 19th century work of epic poetry that has since been regarded as the national epic of finland. Vainamoinen was the inventor of the harp, forger of the runes or poems, and a great magician. Vainamoinen is variously described as a deity who existed in the mythic past before the worlds creation in which he took part, as an extraordinary shaman who was a master of magic songs and incantations, and as the. Vainamoinen then went to pohjola, the northland, in search of a wife. Ive read a little bit about the finnish myths, i think in the kalevala, doesnt the main character fall in love with his sister, and then they both end up killing themselves. Thats not what the kalevala says and that particular story is a very important part of finnish.
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