Kalevala
Encyclopedia
The Kalevala (ˈkɑlɛvɑlɑ) is a 19th century work of epic poetry
compiled by Elias Lönnrot
from Finnish
and Karelian
oral folklore
and mythology
.
It is regarded as the national epic
of Finland and is one of the most significant works of Finnish literature
. The Kalevala played an instrumental role in the development of the Finnish national identity
, the intensification of Finland's language strife
and the growing sense of nationality that ultimately led to Finland's independence from Russia
in 1917.
The first version of The Kalevala (called The Old Kalevala) was published in 1835. The version most commonly known today was first published in 1849 and consists of 22,795 verses, divided into fifty songs (Finnish: runot). The title can be interpreted as "The land of Kaleva" or "Kalevia".
, botanist and linguist. During the time he was compiling The Kalevala he was the district health officer based in Kajaani
responsible for the whole Kainuu
region in the eastern part of what was then the Grand Duchy of Finland
. He was the son of Fredrik Johan Lönnrot, a tailor
and Ulrika Lönnrot; he was born in the village of Sammatti
, Uusimaa
.
At the age of 20, he entered the University in Turku and gained his masters degree in 1827. His thesis was entitled De Vainamoine priscorum fennorum numine (Väinämöinen, a Divinity of the Ancient Finns). This was destroyed in the Great Fire of Turku
.
In the spring of 1828, he set out with the aim of collecting folk songs and poetry. Rather than continue this work though, he decided to complete his studies and entered Helsinki University to study medicine. He earned his masters degree in the year of 1832. In January 1833, he started as the district health officer of Kainuu and began his work on collecting poetry and compiling The Kalevala. Throughout his career Lönnrot made a total of eleven field trip
s within a period of fifteen years.
Prior to the publication of The Kalevala Elias Lönnrot compiled several related works including the three-part Kantele (1829–1831) the Old Kalevala (1835) and the Kanteletar
(1840).
Lönnrot's field trips and endeavours not only helped him to compile The Kalevala but they also brought considerable enjoyment to the people he visited; he would spend much time retelling what he had collected as well as learning new poems.
Finnish born nationalist and linguist Kaarle Akseli Gottlund (1796–1875) expressed his desire for a Finnish epic in a similar vein to The Iliad, Beowulf
and the Nibelungenlied
compiled from the various poems and songs spread over most of Finland. He hoped that such an endeavour would incite a sense of nationality and independence in the native Finnish people. In 1820, Reinhold von Becker founded the journal Turun Wiikko-Sanomat (Turku Weekly News) and published three articles entitled Väinämöisestä (Concerning Väinämöinen). These works were an inspiration for Elias Lönnrot in creating his masters thesis at Turku University.
In the 19th century, collecting became more extensive, systematic and organised. Altogether, almost half a million pages of verse have been collected and archived by the Finnish Literature Society
and other collectors in Estonia
and the Republic of Karelia
. The publication Suomen Kansan Vanhat Runot (Ancient Poems of the Finns) published 33 volumes containing 85,000 items of poetry over a period of 40 years. They have also archived 65,000 items of poetry that remain unpublished. By the end of the 19th century this pastime of collecting material relating to Karelia and the developing orientation towards eastern lands had become a fashion called Karelianism
, a form of national romanticism.
The chronology
of this oral tradition
is uncertain. The oldest themes (the origin of Earth) have been interpreted to have their roots in distant, unrecorded history and could be as old as 3,000 years.
The newest events (e.g. the arrival of Christianity
) seem to be from the Iron Age
. Finnish folklorist Kaarle Krohn
proposes that 20 of the 45 poems of The Kalevala are of possible Ancient Estonia
n origin or they at least deal with a motif of Estonian origin (of the remainder, two are Ingrian and 23 are Western Finnish).
It is understood that during the Finnish reformation in the 16th century the clergy forbade all telling and singing of pagan
rites and stories. In conjunction with the arrival of European poetry and music this caused a significant reduction in the number of traditional folk songs and their singers. Thus the tradition faded somewhat but was never totally eradicated.
In total, Lönnrot made eleven field trips in search of poetry. His first trip was made in 1828 after his graduation from Turku University, but it was not until 1831 and his second field trip that the real work began. By that time he had already published three articles entitled Kantele and had significant notes to build upon. This second trip was not very successful and he was called back to Helsinki to attend to victims of the Second cholera pandemic
.
The third field trip was much more successful and led Elias Lönnrot to Viena in east Karelia
where he visited the town of Akonlahti, which proved most successful. This trip yielded over 3,000 verses and copious notes. In 1833, Lönnrot moved to Kajaani where he was to spend the next 20 years as the district health officer for the region. His fourth field trip was undertaken in conjunction with his work as a doctor; a 10-day jaunt into Viena. This trip resulted in 49 poems and almost 3,000 new lines of verse. It was during this trip that Lönnrot formulated the idea that the poems might represent a wider continuity when poem entities were performed to him along with comments in normal speech connecting them.
On the fifth field trip, Lönnrot met Arhippa Perttunen
who provided a large portion of the verses for The Kalevala. He also met a singer called Matiska in the hamlet of Lonkka on the Russian side of the border. While this singer had somewhat of a poor memory, he did help to fill in many gaps in the work Lönnrot had already catalogued. This trip resulted in the discovery of almost 300 poems at just over 13,000 verses.
In autumn of 1834, Lönnrot had written the vast majority of the work needed for what was to become The Old Kalevala; all that was required was to tie up some narrative loose ends and officially complete the work. His sixth field trip took him into Kuhmo, a municipality in Kainuu to the south of Viena. There he collected over 4,000 verses and completed the first draft of his work. He wrote the foreword and published in February of the following year.
With the Old Kalevala now well into its first publication, run Lönnrot decided to continue collecting poems to supplement his existing work and to understand the culture more completely. The seventh field trip took him on a long winding path through the southern and eastern parts of the Viena poem singing region. He was delayed significantly in Kuhmo because of bad skiing conditions. By the end of that trip, Lönnrot had collected another 100 poems consisting of over 4,000 verses. Lönnrot made his eighth field trip to the Russian border town of Lapukka where the great singer Arhippa Perttunen had learned his trade. In correspondence he notes that he has written down many new poems but is unclear on the quantity.
Elias Lönnrot departed on the first part of his ninth field trip on 16 September 1836. He was granted a 14-month leave of absence and a sum of travelling expenses from the Finnish Literary Society. His funds came with some stipulations: he must travel around the Kainuu border regions and then on to the north and finally from Kainuu to the south-east along the border. For the expedition into the north he was accompanied by Juhana Fredrik Cajan. The first part of the trip took Lönnrot all the way to Inari
in northern Lapland.
The second, southern part of the journey was more successful than the northern part, taking Lönnrot to the Russian town of Sortavala
on Lake Ladoga
then back up through Savo
and eventually back to Kajaani. Although these trips were long and arduous, they resulted in very little Kalevala material; only 1,000 verses were recovered from the southern half and an unknown quantity from the northern half.
The tenth field trip is a relative unknown. What is known however, is that Lönnrot intended to gather poems and songs to compile into the upcoming work Kanteletar. He was accompanied by his friend C. H. Ståhlberg for the majority of the trip. During that journey the pair met Mateli Kuivalatar in the small border town of Ilomantsi
. Kuivalatar was very important to the development of the Kanteletar.
The eleventh documented field trip was another undertaken in conjunction with his medical work. During the first part of the trip, Lönnrot returned to Akonlahti in Russian Karelia, where he gathered 80 poems and a total of 800 verses. The rest of the trip suffers from poor documentation.
, Anders Johan Sjögren
and David Emmanuel Daniel Europaeus) collected most of the poem variants (one poem could easily have countless variants) scattered across rural areas of Karelia and Ingria
. Lönnrot was not really interested in, and rarely wrote down the name of the singer except for some of the more prolific cases. His primary purpose in the region was that of a physician and of an editor, not of a biographer or counsellor. He rarely knew anything in-depth about the singer himself and primarily only catalogued verse that could be relevant or of some use in his work.
The student David Emmanuel Daniel Europaeus is credited with discovering and cataloguing the majority of the Kullervo story.
Of the dozens of poem singers who contributed to the Kalevala, significant ones are:
, sometimes assisted by a kantele
player. The rhythm could vary but the music was arranged in either two or four lines consisting of five beats each. The poems were often performed by a duo, each person singing alternative verses or groups of verses. This method of performance is called an antiphon
ic performance, it is a kind of "singing match".
Despite the vast geographical distance and customary spheres separating individual singers, The Kalevala, as well as the folk poetry it is based on were always sung in the same metre.
The Kalevala's metre is a form of trochaic tetrameter
that is known as the Kalevala metre. The metre is thought to have originated during the Proto-Finnic
period. Its syllable
s fall into three types: strong, weak, and neutral. Its main rules are as follows:
There are two main types of line:
Traditional poetry in the Kalevala metre uses both types with approximately the same frequency. The alteration of normal and broken tetrameters is a characteristic difference between the Kalevala metre and other forms of trochaic tetrameter.
There are also four additional rules:
There are two main schemes featured in The Kalevala:
Repetition is useful when a piece has to be rendered into memory as was the case with The Kalevala and its origin poems.
The verses are also sometimes inverted into chiasmus
.
Verses 221 to 232 of song forty.
The Finnish historian
Väinö Kaukonen suggests that 3% of The Kalevala's lines are Lönnrot's own composition, as well as 14% being Lönnrot compositions from variants, 50% verses which Lönnrot kept mostly unchanged except for some minor alterations and 33% original unedited oral poetry. It is fruitless, however, to attempt to extrapolate concrete percentages of how much of The Kalevala is genuine word-for-word oral tradition and how much is fabricated by the compiler. A loose collection of mixed and varied poems all with many possible versions cannot be combined into a single and solid epic without some editing, otherwise The Kalevala would be an anthology and not a national epic.
Even after the publication of the Old Kalevala Lönnrot continued to collect new material for several years. He later integrated this additional material with significant edits of the existing material into a second version, The Kalevala, this version was published in 1849. This new Kalevala contains fifty poems, and is the standard text of The Kalevala read and translated to this day.
The name Kalevala rarely appears in the original folk poetry of the time and was coined by Lönnrot for the official name of his project sometime at the end of 1834.
The first appearance of Kalevala in collected poetry was recorded in the April of 1836.
The choice of Kalevala as the name for his work was not a random choice however. The name Kalev appears in Finnic and Baltic folklore in many locations and the Sons of Kalev
are known throughout Finnish and Estonian folklore.
(1888) and William Forsell Kirby
(1907) which attempt to strictly follow the original rhythm (Kalevala meter) of the poems.
Eino Friberg
's 1988 translation uses it selectively but in general is more tuned to pleasing the ear than being an exact metrical translation also often reducing the length of songs for aesthetic reasons.
A notable partial translation of Franz Anton Schiefner
's German translation was made by Prof. John Addison Porter
in 1868 and published by Leypoldt & Holt
.
Edward Taylor Fletcher, a British-born Canadian literature enthusiast, also translated selections of The Kalevala in 1869. He read them before the Literary and Historical Society of Quebec
on 17 March 1869.
Francis Peabody Magoun
published a scholarly translation of the Kalevala in 1963 written entirely in prose. The appendices of this version contain notes on the history of the poem, comparisons between the original Old Kalevala and the current version, and a detailed glossary of terms and names used in the poem. Magoun also translated The Old Kalevala which was published six years later entitled The Old Kalevala and Certain Antecedents.
The two most recent translations were both published in 1989 by Keith Bosley
(Oxford University Press
) and Eino Friberg
(Otava).
So far The Kalevala has been translated into sixty-one languages and is Finland's most translated work of literature.
As well as magical spell casting and singing, there are many stories of lust, romance, kidnapping and seduction. The protagonists of the stories often have to accomplish feats that are unreasonable or impossible which they often fail to achieve leading to tragedy and humiliation.
The Sampo
is a pivotal element of the whole work. Many actions and their consequences are caused by the Sampo itself or a character's interaction with the Sampo. It is described as a magical talisman or device that brings its possessor great fortune and prosperity.
There are also similarities with mythology and folklore from other cultures, for example the Kullervo character and his story bearing some likeness to the Greek Oedipus
. The similarity of the virginal maiden Marjatta to the Christian Virgin Mary is also striking. The arrival of Marjatta's son in the final song spelling the end of Väinämöinen's reign over Kalevala is similar to the arrival of Christianity bringing about the end of Paganism in Finland and Europe at large.
Songs 3 to 5: Väinämöinen encounters the jealous Joukahainen and they do battle. Joukahainen loses and pledges his sister's hand in return for his life, the sister (Aino) drowns herself in the sea.
Songs 6 to 10: Väinämöinen heads to Pohjola to propose the maiden of the north. Joukahainen attacks Väinämöinen again, he floats for days on the sea until he is carried by an eagle to Pohjola. He makes a deal with Louhi to get Ilmarinen to create the Sampo. Ilmarinen refuses to go to Pohjola so Väinämöinen forces him against his will. The Sampo is forged. Väinämöinen returns without a bride.
is made. The heroes arrive in Pohjola and demand a share of the Sampo's wealth or they will take the whole Sampo by force. Louhi musters her army however Väinämöinen lulls to sleep everyone in Pohjola with his music. The Sampo is taken from its vault of stone and the heroes set out for home. Louhi conjures a great army, turns herself into an eagle and fights for the Sampo. In the battle the Sampo is lost to the sea and destroyed.
The poem ends and the singers sing a farewell and thank you to their audience.
is the central character of The Kalevala, a shamanistic hero with a magical power of song and music, similar to that of Orpheus
. He is born of Ilmatar
and contributes to the creation of Earth as it is today. Many of his travels resemble shamanistic journeys, most notably one where he visits the belly of a ground-giant, Antero Vipunen
, to find the songs of boat building.
Väinämöinen created and plays the kantele
, a Finnish stringed instrument that resembles and is played like a zither
.
Väinämöinen's search for a wife is a central element in many stories; although he never finds one. One of his potential brides, Joukahainen's sister Aino, drowns herself instead of marrying him. He is the leading member of the group which steals the Sampo
from the people of Pohjola
.
, is a heroic artificer (comparable to the Germanic Weyland and the Greek Daedalus
). He crafted the dome of the sky, the Sampo and various other magical devices featured in The Kalevala. Ilmarinen is the second member of the group who steal the Sampo.
Ilmarinen, like Väinämöinen, also has many stories told of his search for a wife, reaching the point where he forges one of gold.
is a handsome, arrogant and reckless ladies-man, he is the son of Lempi (English: lust or favourite). He shares a very close relationship with his mother who revives him after he has been drowned in the river of Tuonela
while pursuing the object of his romantic desires. This section of The Kalevala echoes the myth of Osiris
. Lemminkäinen is the third member of the group which steals the Sampo from Pohjola.
(English: Old man) is the leading deity mentioned within The Kalevala. His character corresponds to Thor
and Zeus
. John Martin Crawford wrote that the name may be related the obsolete Hungarian
word for an old man (agg).
is a base, unintelligent young man who arrogantly challenges Väinämöinen to a singing contest which he loses. In exchange for his life Joukahainen promises his young sister Aino
to Väinämöinen. Joukahainen attempts to gain his revenge on Väinämöinen by killing him with a crossbow but only succeeds in killing Väinämöinen's horse. Joukahainen's actions lead to Väinämöinen promising to build a Sampo in return for Louhi rescuing him.
the Mistress of the North, is the shamanistic matriarch of the people of Pohjola
, a people rivalling those of Kalevala. She is the cause of much trouble for Kalevala and its people.
Louhi at one point saves Väinämöinen's life. She has many daughters whom the heroes of Kalevala make many attempts (some successful) at seducing. Louhi plays a major part in the battle to prevent the heroes of Kalevala from stealing back the Sampo which as a result is ultimately destroyed. She is a powerful witch with a skill almost on a par with that of Väinämöinen's.
is the vengeful, mentally ill and tragic son of Kalervo. He was abused as a child and sold into slavery to Ilmarinen. He is put to work and treated badly by Ilmarinen's wife whom he later kills. Kullervo is a misguided and troubled youth often at odds with himself and his situation. He often goes into berserk
rage and in the end commits suicide.
. When her labour begins she is expelled from her parents' home and leaves to find a place where she can sauna and give birth. She is turned away from numerous places but finally finds a place in the forest and gives birth to a son.
Marjatta's nature, impregnation and searching for a place to give birth are in allegory to the Virgin Mary and the Christianisation of Finland.
Marjatta's son is later condemned to death by Väinämöinen for being born out of wedlock, the boy in turn chastises Väinämöinen and is later crowned King of Karelia. This angers Väinämöinen who leaves Kalevala leaving his songs and kantele to the people as his legacy.
There are several places within Finland with Kalevala related names, for example: the district of Tapiola
in the city of Espoo
; the district of Pohjola
in the city of Turku
, the district of Metsola in the city of Vantaa
and the district of Kaleva
in the city of Tampere
; the historic provinces of Savo
and Karjala
and the Russian town of Hiitola
are all mentioned within the songs of The Kalevala. In addition the Russian town of Ukhta was in 1963 renamed Kalevala and in the United States a small community founded in 1900 by Finnish immigrants is named Kaleva, Michigan
and many of the street names are taken from the Kalevala.
The banking sector of Finland has at least three Kalevala related brands: Sampo
, Pohjola
and Tapiola
.
The jewellery
company Kalevala Koru was founded in 1935 on the 100th anniversary of the publication of The Old Kalevala. It specialises in the production of unique and culturally important items of jewellery. It is co-owned by the Kalevala Women's League and offers artistic scholarship
s to a certain number of organisations and individuals every year.
The Finnish dairy
company Valio
has a brand of ice-cream named Aino, specialising in more exotic flavours than their normal brand.
The construction
group Lemminkäinen
was formed in 1910 as a roofing and asphalt
company, the name was chosen specifically to emphasise that they were a wholly Finnish company. They now operate internationally.
Several of the names in The Kalevala are also celebrated as Finnish name day
s. The name days themselves and the dates they fall upon have no direct relationship with The Kalevala itself however the adoption of the names became commonplace after the release of The Kalevala.
who has painted many pieces relating to The Kalevala.
Iittala
group's Arabia brand kilned a series of Kalevala commemorative plates, designed by the late Raija Uosikkinen. The series ran from 1976 to 1999 and are highly sought after collectables.
One of the earliest artists to depict a scene from The Kalevala is Robert Wilhelm Ekman
. One of his drawings from 1886 depicts Väinämöinen playing his kantele.
Aarno Karimo was a Finnish artist who illustrated the Kuva Kalevala (Published by Pellervo-Seura in 1953). He died before completing it. Hugo Otava finished it using original sketches as a guide.
In 1989, the fourth full translation of Kalevala into English was published, richly illustrated by Björn Landström
.
Franz Anton Schiefner's translation of The Kalevala was one inspiration for Longfellow
's 1855 poem, The Song of Hiawatha
, which is written in a similar trochaic tetrameter
.
Friedrich Reinhold Kreutzwald
's Estonia
n national epic Kalevipoeg
was inspired by The Kalevala. Both Väinämöinen and Ilmarinen are mentioned in the work and the overall story of Kalevipoeg (Kalev's son) bears similarities with the Kullervo story.
J.R.R. Tolkien claimed The Kalevala as one of his sources for The Silmarillion
. For example, Kullervo's story is the basis of Túrin Turambar
in Narn i Chîn Húrin
, including the sword that speaks when the anti-hero
uses it to commit suicide. Echoes of The Kalevala's characters, Väinämöinen in particular, can be found in Tom Bombadil of The Lord of the Rings
.
Finnish cartoonist Kristian Huitula illustrated the comic book adaptation of the Kalevala. The Kalevala Graphic Novel contains the storyline of all the 50 chapters in original text form.
Finnish cartoonist and children's writer Mauri Kunnas
wrote and illustrated Koirien Kalevala (The Canine Kalevala). The story is that of The Kalevala with the characters presented as anthropomorphized dogs, wolves and cats. The story deviates from the full Kalevala, presumably, to make the story more appropriate for children.
The Kalevala also inspired the American Disney cartoonist Don Rosa
to draw a Donald Duck
story based on The Kalevala, called The Quest for Kalevala
. The comic was released in the year of the 150th anniversary of The Kalevalas publication.
The Neustadt Prize-winning poet and playwright Paavo Haavikko
who is regarded as one of Finland's finest writers, has also taken influence from The Kalevala.
Emil Petaja
was an American science fiction
and fantasy author of Finnish descent. His best known works known as the Otava Series make up a series of novels based on The Kalevala. The series brought Petaja readers from around the world; while his mythological approach to science fiction was discussed in scholarly papers presented at academic conferences. He has a further Kalevala based work which is not part of the series, entitled The Time Twister.
The British science fiction
writer Ian Watson
's Books of Mana duology: Lucky's Harvest and The Fallen Moon both contain references to places and names from the Kalevala.
British fantasy
author Michael Moorcock
's sword and sorcery anti-hero, Elric of Melniboné
is influenced by the character Kullervo.
The first recorded example of a musician influenced by The Kalevala is Filip von Schantz, in 1860 he composed the Kullervo Overture. The piece premièred on the opening of a new theatre building in Helsinki on November of the same year. Von Schantz's work was followed by Robert Kajanus
' Kullervo's death and the symphonic poem Aino in 1881 and 1885 respectively. Aino is credited with inspiring Jean Sibelius to investigate the richness of The Kalevala.
Jean Sibelius
is the best known Kalevala influenced classical composer. Twelve of Sibelius' best known works are based upon and influenced by The Kalevala, including his Kullervo
, a symphony for soprano, baritone, chorus and orchestra that he composed in 1892. Sibelius also composed the music of Jääkärimarssi (The Jäger March) to words written by Finnish soldier and writer Heikki Nurmio
. The march features the line Me nousemme kostona Kullervon ("We shall rise in vengeance like that of Kullervo's").
Other classical composers influenced by The Kalevala:
Classical composers are not the only musicians who have delved into The Kalevala for inspiration. In the mid 1960s the progressive rock
band Kalevala was active within Finland and in 1974 the now prolific singer-songwriter Jukka Kuoppamäki
released the song Väinämöinen. These were some of the first pieces of modern music inspired by The Kalevala.
In 1994, the Finnish metal band Amorphis
released their concept album
Tales from the Thousand Lakes
. This was a departure from their original death metal
roots and into a more melodic style. This album was the first of many that have been Kalevala themed.
In 1998 Ruth MacKenzie recorded the album Kalevala: Dream of the Salmon Maiden, a song cycle covering the part of the story concerning Aino
and her choice to refuse the hand of the sorcerer Väinämöinen and instead transform herself into a salmon. MacKenzie has continued to perform the piece live.
The Finnish Folk metal
band Ensiferum
have released songs, such as "Old Man" and "Little Dreamer" which are influenced by The Kalevala. The third track of their Dragonheads
EP is entitled "Kalevala Melody". It is an instrumental piece following the rhythm of the Kalevala metre. Another Finnish folk metal band, Turisas
, adapted several verses from song nine of The Kalevala "The Origin of Iron" for the lyrics of their song "Cursed Be Iron" which is track three of the album The Varangian Way
. Finnish metal band Amberian Dawn
used lyrics inspired by The Kalevala in their album River Of Tuoni, as well as in its successor.
The Karelian Finnish folk music group Värttinä
has based some of its lyrics on motifs from The Kalevala and the Vantaa Chamber Choir
have songs influenced by The Kalevala. Their Kalevala themed third album, Marian virsi (2005), combines contemporary folk with traditionally performed folk poetry.
In 2003, the Finnish progressive rock quarterly Colossus and French Musea Records
commissioned 30 progressive rock groups from around the world to compose songs based on parts of The Kalevala. The publication assigned each band with a particular song from The Kalevala which the band was free to interpret as they saw fit. The result was a three-disc, multilingual, four-hour epic telling the entirety of The Kalevala. For more information, please see: Kalevala (project)
In the beginning of 2009, in celebration of the 160th anniversary of The Kalevala's first published edition the Finnish Literature Society the Kalevala Society premièred ten new and original works inspired by The Kalevala. The works included poems, classical and contemporary music and artwork. A book was published by the Finnish Literature Society in conjunction with the event and a large exhibition of Kalevala artwork and cultural artefacts were put on display at the Ateneum museum
in Helsinki.
(aka The Day the Earth Froze) was released, inspired by the story of the Sampo from the Kalevala.
In 1982, the Finnish Broadcasting Company (YLE) produced a television mini-series called Rauta-aika (The Age of Iron). With music composed by Aulis Sallinen
and the book by Paavo Haavikko
. The series was set "during the Kalevala times" and based upon events which take place in The Kalevala. The series' part 3/4 won Prix Italia
in 1983.
The martial arts film Jadesoturi (aka Jade Warrior), released in Finland on October 13, 2006, is based upon the Kalevala and set in Finland and China.
. In this context, the country of Kalevala could be understood as Southern Finland and Pohjola
as Lapland.
However, the place names in Kalevala seem to transfer the Kalevala further south, which has been interpreted as reflecting the Finnic settlement expansion from the South that came to push the Samis further to the north. Some scholars locate the lands of Kalevala to East Karelia
, where most of the Kalevala stories were written down. In 1961 a small town of Uhtua in the then Soviet
Republic of Karelia
was renamed Kalevala, perhaps to promote that theory.
Finnish politician and linguist Eemil Nestor Setälä
rejected the idea that the heroes of Kalevala are historical in nature and suggested they are personifications of natural phænomena. He interprets Pohjola as the northern heavens and the Sampo as the pillar of the world. Setälä suggests that the journey to regain the Sampo is a purely imaginary one with the heroes riding a mythological boat or magical steed to the heavens.
The practice of bear-worship, arctolatry
, was once very common in Finland and there are strong echoes of this in The Kalevala.
The old Finnish word väinä (a strait of deep water with a slow current) appears to be the origin of the name Väinämöinen; one of Väinämöinen's other names is Suvantolainen, suvanto being the modern word for väinä. Consequently it is possible that the Saari (Island) might be the island of Saaremaa
in Estonia and Kalevala the Estonian mainland.
Finnish folklorists Matti Kuusi and Pertti Anttonen state that terms such as the people of Kalevala or the tribe of Kalevala are created of the whole cloth by Elias Lönnrot. Moreover, they contend that the word Kalevala is very rare in traditional poetry and that by emphasizing dualism (Kalevala vs. Pohjola) Elias Lönnrot created the required tension that made The Kalevala dramatically successful and thus fit for a national epic of the time.
Epic poetry
An epic is a lengthy narrative poem, ordinarily concerning a serious subject containing details of heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation. Oral poetry may qualify as an epic, and Albert Lord and Milman Parry have argued that classical epics were fundamentally an oral poetic form...
compiled by Elias Lönnrot
Elias Lönnrot
Elias Lönnrot was a Finnish philologist and collector of traditional Finnish oral poetry. He is best known for compiling the Kalevala, the Finnish national epic compiled from national folklore.-Education and early life:...
from Finnish
Finnish language
Finnish is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland Primarily for use by restaurant menus and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of the two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a...
and Karelian
Karelian
Karelian refers to something from or related to the region of Karelia, in present-day Russia and FInland*Karelians*Karelian language*Karelian foods* Karelian pasties* Karelian hot pot* Karelian Birch, a cultivar of Betula pendula...
oral folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
and mythology
Finnish mythology
Finnish mythology is the mythology that went with Finnish paganism which was practised by the Finnish people prior to Christianisation. It has many features shared with fellow Finnic Estonian mythology and its non-Finnic neighbours, the Balts and the Scandinavians...
.
It is regarded as the national epic
National epic
A national epic is an epic poem or a literary work of epic scope which seeks or is believed to capture and express the essence or spirit of a particular nation; not necessarily a nation-state, but at least an ethnic or linguistic group with aspirations to independence or autonomy...
of Finland and is one of the most significant works of Finnish literature
Literature
Literature is the art of written works, and is not bound to published sources...
. The Kalevala played an instrumental role in the development of the Finnish national identity
Fennoman
The Fennomans were the most important political movement in the 19th century Grand Principality of Finland. They succeeded the fennophile interests of the 18th and early 19th century.-History:...
, the intensification of Finland's language strife
Finland's language strife
The language strife was one of the major conflicts of Finland's national history and domestic politics. It revolved around the question of what status Swedish—the language which since the Middle Ages had been the main language of administration and high culture in Finland—and, on the other hand,...
and the growing sense of nationality that ultimately led to Finland's independence from Russia
Finland's declaration of independence
The Finnish declaration of independence was adopted by the Parliament of Finland on 6 December 1917. It declared Finland an independent and sovereign nation state rather than an autonomous Russian Grand duchy.-Revolution in Russia:...
in 1917.
The first version of The Kalevala (called The Old Kalevala) was published in 1835. The version most commonly known today was first published in 1849 and consists of 22,795 verses, divided into fifty songs (Finnish: runot). The title can be interpreted as "The land of Kaleva" or "Kalevia".
Elias Lönnrot
Elias Lönnrot (9 April 1802 – 19 March 1884) was a physicianPhysician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
, botanist and linguist. During the time he was compiling The Kalevala he was the district health officer based in Kajaani
Kajaani
Kajaani is a town and municipality in Finland.It is the capital of the Kainuu region. It is located southeast of Oulujärvi , which drains to the Gulf of Bothnia along the Oulujoki . There are inhabitants and city surface area is of which is water. The population density is . The town is...
responsible for the whole Kainuu
Kainuu
Kainuu is a region of Finland. It borders the regions of Northern Ostrobothnia, North Karelia and Northern Savonia. In the east it also borders Russia. Kainuu is known in the ancient Norse sagas as Kvenland....
region in the eastern part of what was then the Grand Duchy of Finland
Grand Duchy of Finland
The Grand Duchy of Finland was the predecessor state of modern Finland. It existed 1809–1917 as part of the Russian Empire and was ruled by the Russian czar as Grand Prince.- History :...
. He was the son of Fredrik Johan Lönnrot, a tailor
Tailor
A tailor is a person who makes, repairs, or alters clothing professionally, especially suits and men's clothing.Although the term dates to the thirteenth century, tailor took on its modern sense in the late eighteenth century, and now refers to makers of men's and women's suits, coats, trousers,...
and Ulrika Lönnrot; he was born in the village of Sammatti
Sammatti
Sammatti is a former municipality of Finland. It was consolidated with the city of Lohja in the beginning of 2009.It is located in the province of Southern Finland and is part of the Uusimaa region. The municipality had a population of 1,365 and covered a land area of...
, Uusimaa
Uusimaa
Uusimaa, or Nyland in Swedish, is a region in Finland. It borders the regions Finland Proper, Tavastia Proper, Päijänne Tavastia and Kymenlaakso...
.
At the age of 20, he entered the University in Turku and gained his masters degree in 1827. His thesis was entitled De Vainamoine priscorum fennorum numine (Väinämöinen, a Divinity of the Ancient Finns). This was destroyed in the Great Fire of Turku
Great Fire of Turku
The Great Fire of Turku was a conflagration that is still the largest urban fire in the history of Finland and the Nordic countries. The fires started burning on 4 September 1827 in Burgher Hellman’s house on Aninkaistenmäki slightly before 9 p.m...
.
In the spring of 1828, he set out with the aim of collecting folk songs and poetry. Rather than continue this work though, he decided to complete his studies and entered Helsinki University to study medicine. He earned his masters degree in the year of 1832. In January 1833, he started as the district health officer of Kainuu and began his work on collecting poetry and compiling The Kalevala. Throughout his career Lönnrot made a total of eleven field trip
Field trip
A field trip or excursion, known as school trip in the UK and school tour in Ireland, is a journey by a group of people to a place away from their normal environment...
s within a period of fifteen years.
Prior to the publication of The Kalevala Elias Lönnrot compiled several related works including the three-part Kantele (1829–1831) the Old Kalevala (1835) and the Kanteletar
Kanteletar
Kanteletar is a collection of Finnish folk poetry compiled by Elias Lönnrot. It is considered to be a sister collection to the Finnish national epic Kalevala...
(1840).
Lönnrot's field trips and endeavours not only helped him to compile The Kalevala but they also brought considerable enjoyment to the people he visited; he would spend much time retelling what he had collected as well as learning new poems.
Poetry
History
Finnish folk poetry was first written down in the 17th century and collected by hobbyists and scholars through the following centuries. Despite this, the majority of Finnish poetry remained only oral tradition.Finnish born nationalist and linguist Kaarle Akseli Gottlund (1796–1875) expressed his desire for a Finnish epic in a similar vein to The Iliad, Beowulf
Beowulf
Beowulf , but modern scholars agree in naming it after the hero whose life is its subject." of an Old English heroic epic poem consisting of 3182 alliterative long lines, set in Scandinavia, commonly cited as one of the most important works of Anglo-Saxon literature.It survives in a single...
and the Nibelungenlied
Nibelungenlied
The Nibelungenlied, translated as The Song of the Nibelungs, is an epic poem in Middle High German. The story tells of dragon-slayer Siegfried at the court of the Burgundians, how he was murdered, and of his wife Kriemhild's revenge....
compiled from the various poems and songs spread over most of Finland. He hoped that such an endeavour would incite a sense of nationality and independence in the native Finnish people. In 1820, Reinhold von Becker founded the journal Turun Wiikko-Sanomat (Turku Weekly News) and published three articles entitled Väinämöisestä (Concerning Väinämöinen). These works were an inspiration for Elias Lönnrot in creating his masters thesis at Turku University.
In the 19th century, collecting became more extensive, systematic and organised. Altogether, almost half a million pages of verse have been collected and archived by the Finnish Literature Society
Finnish Literature Society
The Finnish Literature Society was founded in 1831 to promote literature written in Finnish. Among its first publications was the Kalevala, the Finnish national epic.-External links:* ...
and other collectors in Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
and the Republic of Karelia
Republic of Karelia
The Republic of Karelia is a federal subject of Russia .-Geography:The republic is located in the northwestern part of Russia, taking intervening position between the basins of White and Baltic seas...
. The publication Suomen Kansan Vanhat Runot (Ancient Poems of the Finns) published 33 volumes containing 85,000 items of poetry over a period of 40 years. They have also archived 65,000 items of poetry that remain unpublished. By the end of the 19th century this pastime of collecting material relating to Karelia and the developing orientation towards eastern lands had become a fashion called Karelianism
Karelianism
Karelianism was a late 19th century cultural phenomenon in the Grand Duchy of Finland and involved writers, painters, poets and sculptors. Since the publishing of the Finnish national epic Kalevala in 1835, compiled from Karelian folk lore, culture spheres in Finland became increasingly curious...
, a form of national romanticism.
The chronology
Chronology
Chronology is the science of arranging events in their order of occurrence in time, such as the use of a timeline or sequence of events. It is also "the determination of the actual temporal sequence of past events".Chronology is part of periodization...
of this oral tradition
Oral tradition
Oral tradition and oral lore is cultural material and traditions transmitted orally from one generation to another. The messages or testimony are verbally transmitted in speech or song and may take the form, for example, of folktales, sayings, ballads, songs, or chants...
is uncertain. The oldest themes (the origin of Earth) have been interpreted to have their roots in distant, unrecorded history and could be as old as 3,000 years.
The newest events (e.g. the arrival of Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
) seem to be from the Iron Age
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...
. Finnish folklorist Kaarle Krohn
Kaarle Krohn
Kaarle Krohn was a Finnish folklorist, professor and developer of the geographic-historic method of folklore research. He was born in Helsinki. He was the son of journalist and poet Julius Krohn, and his sister was Aino Kallas, a Finnish author. Krohn is best known outside of Finland for his...
proposes that 20 of the 45 poems of The Kalevala are of possible Ancient Estonia
Ancient Estonia
Ancient Estonia refers to a period covering History of Estonia from the middle of the 8th millennium BC until the conquest and subjugation of the Estonian people in the first quarter of the 13th century during the Northern Crusades.-The Mesolithic Period:...
n origin or they at least deal with a motif of Estonian origin (of the remainder, two are Ingrian and 23 are Western Finnish).
It is understood that during the Finnish reformation in the 16th century the clergy forbade all telling and singing of pagan
Paganism
Paganism is a blanket term, typically used to refer to non-Abrahamic, indigenous polytheistic religious traditions....
rites and stories. In conjunction with the arrival of European poetry and music this caused a significant reduction in the number of traditional folk songs and their singers. Thus the tradition faded somewhat but was never totally eradicated.
Lönnrot's field trips
Second cholera pandemic
The second cholera pandemic also known as the Asiatic Cholera Pandemic was a Cholera pandemic from 1829-1849.-History:This pandemic began, like the first, with outbreaks along the Ganges River delta. From there the disease spread along trade routes to cover most of India. By 1828 the disease had...
.
The third field trip was much more successful and led Elias Lönnrot to Viena in east Karelia
East Karelia
East Karelia , also rendered as Eastern Karelia or Russian Karelia, is a name for the part of Karelia that since the Treaty of Stolbova in 1617 has remained Christian Orthodox under Russian supremacy. It is separated from the western part of Karelia, called Finnish Karelia or historically Swedish...
where he visited the town of Akonlahti, which proved most successful. This trip yielded over 3,000 verses and copious notes. In 1833, Lönnrot moved to Kajaani where he was to spend the next 20 years as the district health officer for the region. His fourth field trip was undertaken in conjunction with his work as a doctor; a 10-day jaunt into Viena. This trip resulted in 49 poems and almost 3,000 new lines of verse. It was during this trip that Lönnrot formulated the idea that the poems might represent a wider continuity when poem entities were performed to him along with comments in normal speech connecting them.
On the fifth field trip, Lönnrot met Arhippa Perttunen
Arhippa Perttunen
Arhippa Perttunen was a Karelian folk singer.Around 1834, he met Elias Lönnrot, and was one of his main sources for the Kalevala.The State Prize of the Karelian ASSR was named after him....
who provided a large portion of the verses for The Kalevala. He also met a singer called Matiska in the hamlet of Lonkka on the Russian side of the border. While this singer had somewhat of a poor memory, he did help to fill in many gaps in the work Lönnrot had already catalogued. This trip resulted in the discovery of almost 300 poems at just over 13,000 verses.
In autumn of 1834, Lönnrot had written the vast majority of the work needed for what was to become The Old Kalevala; all that was required was to tie up some narrative loose ends and officially complete the work. His sixth field trip took him into Kuhmo, a municipality in Kainuu to the south of Viena. There he collected over 4,000 verses and completed the first draft of his work. He wrote the foreword and published in February of the following year.
With the Old Kalevala now well into its first publication, run Lönnrot decided to continue collecting poems to supplement his existing work and to understand the culture more completely. The seventh field trip took him on a long winding path through the southern and eastern parts of the Viena poem singing region. He was delayed significantly in Kuhmo because of bad skiing conditions. By the end of that trip, Lönnrot had collected another 100 poems consisting of over 4,000 verses. Lönnrot made his eighth field trip to the Russian border town of Lapukka where the great singer Arhippa Perttunen had learned his trade. In correspondence he notes that he has written down many new poems but is unclear on the quantity.
Elias Lönnrot departed on the first part of his ninth field trip on 16 September 1836. He was granted a 14-month leave of absence and a sum of travelling expenses from the Finnish Literary Society. His funds came with some stipulations: he must travel around the Kainuu border regions and then on to the north and finally from Kainuu to the south-east along the border. For the expedition into the north he was accompanied by Juhana Fredrik Cajan. The first part of the trip took Lönnrot all the way to Inari
Inari
Inari may refer to:* Inari , a Shinto spirit** Mount Inari in Japan, site of Fushimi Inari-taisha, the main Shinto shrine to Inari** Inari Shrine, shrines to the Shinto god Inari* Inari Sami, one of the Sami languages...
in northern Lapland.
The second, southern part of the journey was more successful than the northern part, taking Lönnrot to the Russian town of Sortavala
Sortavala
Sortavala is a town in the Republic of Karelia, Russia, located at the northern tip of Lake Ladoga. Population: It is an important station of the Vyborg-Joensuu railroad.-History:...
on Lake Ladoga
Lake Ladoga
Lake Ladoga is a freshwater lake located in the Republic of Karelia and Leningrad Oblast in northwestern Russia, not far from Saint Petersburg. It is the largest lake in Europe, and the 14th largest lake by area in the world.-Geography:...
then back up through Savo
Savonia (historical province)
Savonia is a historical province in the east of Finland. It borders to Uusimaa, Tavastia, Ostrobothnia, and Karelia. Largest cities in Savo by population are Kuopio, Mikkeli, Savonlinna and Varkaus.-Administration:...
and eventually back to Kajaani. Although these trips were long and arduous, they resulted in very little Kalevala material; only 1,000 verses were recovered from the southern half and an unknown quantity from the northern half.
The tenth field trip is a relative unknown. What is known however, is that Lönnrot intended to gather poems and songs to compile into the upcoming work Kanteletar. He was accompanied by his friend C. H. Ståhlberg for the majority of the trip. During that journey the pair met Mateli Kuivalatar in the small border town of Ilomantsi
Ilomantsi
Ilomantsi is municipality and a village of Finland.It is located in the province of Eastern Finland and is part of the North Karelia region. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is...
. Kuivalatar was very important to the development of the Kanteletar.
The eleventh documented field trip was another undertaken in conjunction with his medical work. During the first part of the trip, Lönnrot returned to Akonlahti in Russian Karelia, where he gathered 80 poems and a total of 800 verses. The rest of the trip suffers from poor documentation.
Methodology
Lönnrot and his contemporaries (e.g. Matthias CastrénMatthias Castrén
Matthias Alexander Castrén was a Finnish ethnologist and philologist.Castrén was born at Tervola, in Northern Finland, on the 20th of November...
, Anders Johan Sjögren
and David Emmanuel Daniel Europaeus) collected most of the poem variants (one poem could easily have countless variants) scattered across rural areas of Karelia and Ingria
Ingria
Ingria is a historical region in the eastern Baltic, now part of Russia, comprising the southern bank of the river Neva, between the Gulf of Finland, the Narva River, Lake Peipus in the west, and Lake Ladoga and the western bank of the Volkhov river in the east...
. Lönnrot was not really interested in, and rarely wrote down the name of the singer except for some of the more prolific cases. His primary purpose in the region was that of a physician and of an editor, not of a biographer or counsellor. He rarely knew anything in-depth about the singer himself and primarily only catalogued verse that could be relevant or of some use in his work.
The student David Emmanuel Daniel Europaeus is credited with discovering and cataloguing the majority of the Kullervo story.
Of the dozens of poem singers who contributed to the Kalevala, significant ones are:
- Arhippa PerttunenArhippa PerttunenArhippa Perttunen was a Karelian folk singer.Around 1834, he met Elias Lönnrot, and was one of his main sources for the Kalevala.The State Prize of the Karelian ASSR was named after him....
(1769–1840) - Juhana Kainulainen
- Matiska
- Ontrei Malinen (1780–1855)
- Vaassila Kieleväinen
- Soava Trohkimainen
Form and structure
The poetry was often sung to music built on a pentachordPentachord
A pentachord in music theory may be either of two things. In pitch-class set theory, a pentachord is defined as any five pitch classes, regarded as an unordered collection . In other contexts, a pentachord may be any consecutive five-note section of a diatonic scale...
, sometimes assisted by a kantele
Kantele
A kantele or kannel is a traditional plucked string instrument of the zither family native to Finland, Estonia, and Karelia. It is related to the Russian gusli, the Latvian kokle and the Lithuanian kanklės. Together these instruments make up the family known as Baltic psalteries...
player. The rhythm could vary but the music was arranged in either two or four lines consisting of five beats each. The poems were often performed by a duo, each person singing alternative verses or groups of verses. This method of performance is called an antiphon
Antiphon
An antiphon in Christian music and ritual, is a "responsory" by a choir or congregation, usually in Gregorian chant, to a psalm or other text in a religious service or musical work....
ic performance, it is a kind of "singing match".
Metre
Despite the vast geographical distance and customary spheres separating individual singers, The Kalevala, as well as the folk poetry it is based on were always sung in the same metre.
The Kalevala's metre is a form of trochaic tetrameter
Trochaic tetrameter
Trochaic tetrameter is a meter in poetry. It refers to a line of four trochaic feet. The word "tetrameter" simply means that the poem has four trochees...
that is known as the Kalevala metre. The metre is thought to have originated during the Proto-Finnic
Finnic languages
The term Finnic languages often means the Baltic-Finnic languages, an undisputed branch of the Uralic languages. However, it is also commonly used to mean the Finno-Permic languages, a hypothetical intermediate branch that includes Baltic Finnic, or the more disputed Finno-Volgaic languages....
period. Its syllable
Syllable
A syllable is a unit of organization for a sequence of speech sounds. For example, the word water is composed of two syllables: wa and ter. A syllable is typically made up of a syllable nucleus with optional initial and final margins .Syllables are often considered the phonological "building...
s fall into three types: strong, weak, and neutral. Its main rules are as follows:
- A long syllable (one that contains a long vowelVowelIn phonetics, a vowel is a sound in spoken language, such as English ah! or oh! , pronounced with an open vocal tract so that there is no build-up of air pressure at any point above the glottis. This contrasts with consonants, such as English sh! , where there is a constriction or closure at some...
or a diphthongDiphthongA diphthong , also known as a gliding vowel, refers to two adjacent vowel sounds occurring within the same syllable. Technically, a diphthong is a vowel with two different targets: That is, the tongue moves during the pronunciation of the vowel...
, or ends in a consonantConsonantIn articulatory phonetics, a consonant is a speech sound that is articulated with complete or partial closure of the vocal tract. Examples are , pronounced with the lips; , pronounced with the front of the tongue; , pronounced with the back of the tongue; , pronounced in the throat; and ,...
) with a main stress is metrically strong. A strong syllable can only occur in the rising part of the second, third, and fourth foot of a line:
- Veli / kulta, / veikko/seni (1:11)
- ("Dearest friend, and much-loved brother")
- A short syllable with a main stress is metrically weak. A weak syllable can only occur in the falling part of these feet:
- Miele/ni mi/nun te/kevi (1:1)
- ("I am driven by my longing")
- All syllables without a main stress are metrically neutral. Neutral syllables can occur at any position. The first foot has a freer structure, allowing strong syllables in a falling position and weak syllables in a rising position:
- Niit' en/nen i/soni / lauloi (1:37)
- ("These my father sang aforetime")
- vesois/ta ve/tele/miä (1:56)
- ("Others taken from the saplings")
There are two main types of line:
- A normal tetrameter, word-stresses and foot-stresses match, and there is a caesuraCaesurathumb|100px|An example of a caesura in modern western music notation.In meter, a caesura is a complete pause in a line of poetry or in a musical composition. The plural form of caesura is caesuras or caesurae...
between the second and third feet:
- Veli / kulta, // veikko/seni
- A broken tetrameter (Finnish: murrelmasäe) has at least one stressed syllable in a falling position. There is usually no caesura:
- Miele/ni mi/nun te/kevi
Traditional poetry in the Kalevala metre uses both types with approximately the same frequency. The alteration of normal and broken tetrameters is a characteristic difference between the Kalevala metre and other forms of trochaic tetrameter.
There are also four additional rules:
- In the first foot, the length of syllables is free. It is also possible for the first foot to contain three or even four syllables.
- A one-syllable word can not occur at the end of a verse.
- A word with four syllables should not stand in the middle of a verse. This also applies to non-compound words.
- The last syllable of a verse may not include a long vowel.
Schemes
There are two main schemes featured in The Kalevala:
- AlliterationAlliterationIn language, alliteration refers to the repetition of a particular sound in the first syllables of Three or more words or phrases. Alliteration has historically developed largely through poetry, in which it more narrowly refers to the repetition of a consonant in any syllables that, according to...
- Alliteration can be broken into two forms. Weak: where only the opening consonant is the same, and strong: where both the first vowel or vowel and consonant are the same in the different words. (e.g. Vaka Vanha Vainamoinen "Steadfast old Väinämöinen"). FinnishFinnish languageFinnish is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland Primarily for use by restaurant menus and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of the two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a...
is a language with a relatively small native alphabetAlphabetAn alphabet is a standard set of letters—basic written symbols or graphemes—each of which represents a phoneme in a spoken language, either as it exists now or as it was in the past. There are other systems, such as logographies, in which each character represents a word, morpheme, or semantic...
and with an even smaller number of letters that usually begin a word. This lends itself perfectly to alliteration.- ParallelismParallelism (grammar)In grammar, parallelism is a balance of two or more similar words, phrases, or clauses. The application of parallelism in sentence construction can sometimes improve writing style clearness and readability. Parallelism may also be known as parallel structure or parallel construction...
- Parallelism
- Parallelism is the repetition of previous line using a different word order or different words meaning the same thing. This could have been used by Elias Lönnrot in order that he could use as much of his collected material as possible.
Repetition is useful when a piece has to be rendered into memory as was the case with The Kalevala and its origin poems.
The verses are also sometimes inverted into chiasmus
Chiasmus
In rhetoric, chiasmus is the figure of speech in which two or more clauses are related to each other through a reversal of structures in order to make a larger point; that is, the clauses display inverted parallelism...
.
Poetry example
Verses 221 to 232 of song forty.
|
|
Lönnrot's contribution to Kalevala
Very little is actually known about Elias Lönnrot's personal contributions to The Kalevala. Scholars to this day still argue and hypothesise about how much of The Kalevala is genuine folk poetry and how much is Lönnrot's own work. During the compilation process it is known that he merged poem variants and characters together, left out verses that did not fit and composed lines of his own in order to connect certain passages into a logical plot. Similarly, individual singers used their own words and dialects when reciting their repertoire even going as far as performing different versions of the same song at different times.The Finnish historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
Väinö Kaukonen suggests that 3% of The Kalevala's lines are Lönnrot's own composition, as well as 14% being Lönnrot compositions from variants, 50% verses which Lönnrot kept mostly unchanged except for some minor alterations and 33% original unedited oral poetry. It is fruitless, however, to attempt to extrapolate concrete percentages of how much of The Kalevala is genuine word-for-word oral tradition and how much is fabricated by the compiler. A loose collection of mixed and varied poems all with many possible versions cannot be combined into a single and solid epic without some editing, otherwise The Kalevala would be an anthology and not a national epic.
Publishing
The first version of Lönnrot's compilation was entitled Kalewala, taikka Wanhoja Karjalan Runoja Suomen Kansan muinoisista ajoista (The Kalevala, or old Karelian poems about ancient times of the Finnish people), also known as simply the Old Kalevala, was published in two volumes in 1835–1836. The Old Kalevala consisted of 12,078 verses making up a total of thirty-two poems.Even after the publication of the Old Kalevala Lönnrot continued to collect new material for several years. He later integrated this additional material with significant edits of the existing material into a second version, The Kalevala, this version was published in 1849. This new Kalevala contains fifty poems, and is the standard text of The Kalevala read and translated to this day.
The name Kalevala rarely appears in the original folk poetry of the time and was coined by Lönnrot for the official name of his project sometime at the end of 1834.
The first appearance of Kalevala in collected poetry was recorded in the April of 1836.
The choice of Kalevala as the name for his work was not a random choice however. The name Kalev appears in Finnic and Baltic folklore in many locations and the Sons of Kalev
Kalevipoeg
Kalevipoeg is an epic poem by Friedrich Reinhold Kreutzwald held to be the Estonian national epic.- Origins : There existed an oral tradition within Ancient Estonia of legends explaining the origin of the world...
are known throughout Finnish and Estonian folklore.
Translations
Of the five complete translations into English, it is only the older translations by John Martin CrawfordJohn Martin Crawford (scholar)
John Martin Crawford was an American physician and scholar who translated the Finnish epic Kalevala into English based on a previous German translation by Franz Anton Schiefner published in 1852, to be published for the first time in 1888....
(1888) and William Forsell Kirby
William Forsell Kirby
William Forsell Kirby was an English entomologist and folklorist.He was born in Leicester. He was the eldest son of Samuel Kirby, who was a banker. He was educated privately, and became interested in butterflies and moths at an early age. The family moved to Brighton, where he became acquainted...
(1907) which attempt to strictly follow the original rhythm (Kalevala meter) of the poems.
Eino Friberg
Eino Friberg
Eino Friberg was a Finnish-born, American author most widely noted for his 1989 translation of the Finnish national epic, The Kalevala.-Earlylife:...
's 1988 translation uses it selectively but in general is more tuned to pleasing the ear than being an exact metrical translation also often reducing the length of songs for aesthetic reasons.
A notable partial translation of Franz Anton Schiefner
Franz Anton Schiefner
Franz Anton Schiefner was a Baltic German linguist and tibetologist.Schiefner was born to a German-speaking family in Reval , Estonia, then part of Russian Empire. His father was a merchant who had emigrated from Bohemia...
's German translation was made by Prof. John Addison Porter
John Addison Porter
John Addison Porter was an American Professor of Chemistry. He was born in Catskill, New York and died in New Haven, Connecticut...
in 1868 and published by Leypoldt & Holt
Henry Holt and Company
Henry Holt and Company is an American book publishing company. One of the oldest publishers in the United States, it was founded in 1866 by Henry Holt and Frederick Leypoldt...
.
Edward Taylor Fletcher, a British-born Canadian literature enthusiast, also translated selections of The Kalevala in 1869. He read them before the Literary and Historical Society of Quebec
Literary and Historical Society of Quebec
-External links:*, managed by the Literary and Historical Society of Quebec.*, virtual exhibit on the history of Canadian learned societies.*, virtual library containing all publications from 1824-1924....
on 17 March 1869.
Francis Peabody Magoun
Francis Peabody Magoun
Francis Peabody Magoun, Jr. MC was one of the seminal figures in the study of medieval and English literature in the 20th century, a scholar of subjects as varied as football and ancient Germanic naming practices, and translator of numerous important texts...
published a scholarly translation of the Kalevala in 1963 written entirely in prose. The appendices of this version contain notes on the history of the poem, comparisons between the original Old Kalevala and the current version, and a detailed glossary of terms and names used in the poem. Magoun also translated The Old Kalevala which was published six years later entitled The Old Kalevala and Certain Antecedents.
The two most recent translations were both published in 1989 by Keith Bosley
Keith Bosley
Keith Bosley is a British poet and language expert.Bosley was born in Bourne End, Buckinghamshire, grew up in Maidenhead, Berkshire...
(Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press is the largest university press in the world. It is a department of the University of Oxford and is governed by a group of 15 academics appointed by the Vice-Chancellor known as the Delegates of the Press. They are headed by the Secretary to the Delegates, who serves as...
) and Eino Friberg
Eino Friberg
Eino Friberg was a Finnish-born, American author most widely noted for his 1989 translation of the Finnish national epic, The Kalevala.-Earlylife:...
(Otava).
So far The Kalevala has been translated into sixty-one languages and is Finland's most translated work of literature.
The story
The Kalevala begins with the traditional Finnish creation myth, leading into stories of the creation of the earth, plants, creatures and the sky. Creation, healing, combat and internal story telling are often accomplished by the character(s) involved singing of their exploits or desires. Many parts of the stories involve a character hunting or requesting lyrics (spells) to acquire some skill, such as boat-building or the mastery of iron making.As well as magical spell casting and singing, there are many stories of lust, romance, kidnapping and seduction. The protagonists of the stories often have to accomplish feats that are unreasonable or impossible which they often fail to achieve leading to tragedy and humiliation.
The Sampo
Sampo
In Finnish mythology, the Sampo or Sammas was a magical artifact of indeterminate type constructed by Ilmarinen that brought good fortune to its holder...
is a pivotal element of the whole work. Many actions and their consequences are caused by the Sampo itself or a character's interaction with the Sampo. It is described as a magical talisman or device that brings its possessor great fortune and prosperity.
There are also similarities with mythology and folklore from other cultures, for example the Kullervo character and his story bearing some likeness to the Greek Oedipus
Oedipus
Oedipus was a mythical Greek king of Thebes. He fulfilled a prophecy that said he would kill his father and marry his mother, and thus brought disaster on his city and family...
. The similarity of the virginal maiden Marjatta to the Christian Virgin Mary is also striking. The arrival of Marjatta's son in the final song spelling the end of Väinämöinen's reign over Kalevala is similar to the arrival of Christianity bringing about the end of Paganism in Finland and Europe at large.
Synopses
The first Väinämöinen cycle
Songs 1 and 2: The poem begins with an introduction by the singers. The Earth is created from the shards of a duck egg and the first man (Väinämöinen) is born to the goddess Ilmatar. Väinämöinen brings trees and life to the barren world.Songs 3 to 5: Väinämöinen encounters the jealous Joukahainen and they do battle. Joukahainen loses and pledges his sister's hand in return for his life, the sister (Aino) drowns herself in the sea.
Songs 6 to 10: Väinämöinen heads to Pohjola to propose the maiden of the north. Joukahainen attacks Väinämöinen again, he floats for days on the sea until he is carried by an eagle to Pohjola. He makes a deal with Louhi to get Ilmarinen to create the Sampo. Ilmarinen refuses to go to Pohjola so Väinämöinen forces him against his will. The Sampo is forged. Väinämöinen returns without a bride.
The first Lemminkäinen cycle
Songs 11 to 15: Lemminkäinen sets out to Saari (English: The Island) in search of a bride. He and the maid Kyllikki make vows to each other but thinking Lemminkäinen has repudiated his, the maiden repudiates hers so Lemminkäinen discards her and sets off to woo the Maiden of the North. He asks Louhi for her daughter's hand and she assigns tasks to him. Lemminkäinen is killed while attempting the tasks and thrown into the river of death. His mother goes in search of him and revives him.The second Väinämöinen cycle
Songs 16 to 18: Väinämöinen builds a boat to travel to Pohjola once again in search of a bride. He visits Tuonela (English: The land of Death) and is held prisoner. Väinämöinen uses his magical powers to escape and warns his people of the dangers present in Tuonela. Väinämöinen now sets out to gather the necessary spells from Antero Vipunen. Väinämöinen is swallowed and has to torture Antero Vipunen for the spells and his escape. His boat completed, Väinämöinen sets sail for Pohjola. Ilmarinen learns of this and resolves to go to Pohjola himself to woo the maiden. The Maiden of the North chooses Ilmarinen.Ilmarinen's wedding
Songs 19 to 25: Ilmarinen is assigned dangerous unreasonable tasks in order to win the hand of the Maiden of the North. He accomplishes these tasks with some help from the maiden herself. In preparation for the wedding beer is brewed, a giant steer is slaughtered and invitations are sent out. Lemminkäinen is uninvited. The wedding party begins and all are happy. Väinämöinen sings and lauds the people of Pohjola. The bride and bridegroom are prepared for their roles in matrimony. The couple arrive home and are greeted with drink and viands.The second Lemminkäinen cycle
Songs 26 to 30: Lemminkäinen is resentful for not having been invited to the wedding and sets out immediately for Pohjola. On his arrival he is challenged to and wins a duel with Sariola, the Master of the North. An army is conjured to enact revenge upon Lemminkäinen and he flees to his mother. She advises him to head to the Island of Refuge. On his return he finds his house burned to the ground. He goes to Pohjola with his companion Tiera to get his revenge, but Louhi freezes the seas and Lemminkäinen has to return home. When he arrives home he is reunited with his mother and vows to build larger better houses to replace the ones burned down.The Kullervo cycle
Songs 31–36: Untamo kills his brother Kalervo’s people, but spares his wife who later begets Kullervo. Untamo sees the boy as a threat, and tries to have him killed several times without success, so Kullervo is sold as a slave to Ilmarinen. Ilmarinen's wife torments and bullies Kullervo so he sends a pack of wolves and bears to tear her to pieces. Kullervo escapes from Ilmarinen's homestead and learns from an old lady in the forest that his family is still alive, he is reunited with them. While returning home from paying taxes he meets and seduces a young maiden only to find out that she is his sister, she kills herself and Kullervo returns home distressed. Kullervo decides to wreak revenge upon Untamo and sets out to find him. Kullervo wages war on Untamo and his people laying all to waste, he then returns home to find the farm deserted. Filled with remorse and regret he kills himself in the place where he seduced his sister.The second Ilmarinen cycle
Songs 37–38: Grieving for his lost love, Ilmarinen forges himself a wife out of gold and silver, but finds her to be cold and discards her. He heads for Pohjola and kidnaps the youngest daughter of Louhi. She is outraged and insults him badly so he sings magic and turns her into a bird. He returns to Kalevala and tells Väinämöinen about the prosperity and wealth of Pohjola's citizens because of the Sampo.The plunder of the Sampo (the third Väinämöinen cycle)
Songs 39–44: Väinämöinen, Ilmarinen and Lemminkäinen sail to Pohjola to recover the Sampo. While on their journey they kill a monstrous pike and from its jaw bone the first kanteleKantele
A kantele or kannel is a traditional plucked string instrument of the zither family native to Finland, Estonia, and Karelia. It is related to the Russian gusli, the Latvian kokle and the Lithuanian kanklės. Together these instruments make up the family known as Baltic psalteries...
is made. The heroes arrive in Pohjola and demand a share of the Sampo's wealth or they will take the whole Sampo by force. Louhi musters her army however Väinämöinen lulls to sleep everyone in Pohjola with his music. The Sampo is taken from its vault of stone and the heroes set out for home. Louhi conjures a great army, turns herself into an eagle and fights for the Sampo. In the battle the Sampo is lost to the sea and destroyed.
Louhi's revenge on Kalevala
Songs 45–49: Enraged at the loss of the Sampo, Louhi sends the people of Kalevala diseases and a great bear to kill their cattle. She hides the sun and the moon and steals fire from Kalevala. Väinämöinen heals all of the ailments and, with Ilmarinen, restores the fire. Väinämöinen forces Louhi to return the Sun and the Moon to the skies.The Marjatta cycle
Song 50: The shy young virgin Marjatta becomes impregnated from a lingonberry she ate while tending to her flock. She begets a son. Väinämöinen orders the killing of the boy, but the boy begins to speak and reproaches Väinämöinen for ill judgement. The child is then baptised King of Karelia. Väinämöinen sails away leaving only his songs and kantele as legacy.The poem ends and the singers sing a farewell and thank you to their audience.
Characters
Väinämöinen
VäinämöinenVäinämöinen
Väinämöinen is the central character in the Finnish folklore and the main character in the national epic Kalevala. His name comes from the Finnish word väinämö, meaning minstrel. Originally a Finnish god, he was described as an old and wise man, and he possessed a potent, magical...
is the central character of The Kalevala, a shamanistic hero with a magical power of song and music, similar to that of Orpheus
Orpheus
Orpheus was a legendary musician, poet, and prophet in ancient Greek religion and myth. The major stories about him are centered on his ability to charm all living things and even stones with his music; his attempt to retrieve his wife from the underworld; and his death at the hands of those who...
. He is born of Ilmatar
Ilmatar
In Kalevala, the Finnish national epic, Ilmatar was a virgin spirit of the air.-Origins:The name Ilmatar is derived from the Finnish word ilma, meaning "air," and the suffix -tar, denoting a female spirit...
and contributes to the creation of Earth as it is today. Many of his travels resemble shamanistic journeys, most notably one where he visits the belly of a ground-giant, Antero Vipunen
Antero Vipunen
Antero Vipunen is a giant who figures in Finnish mythology and Kalevala folk poetry. He is buried underground and possesses some very valuable ancient incantations....
, to find the songs of boat building.
Väinämöinen created and plays the kantele
Kantele
A kantele or kannel is a traditional plucked string instrument of the zither family native to Finland, Estonia, and Karelia. It is related to the Russian gusli, the Latvian kokle and the Lithuanian kanklės. Together these instruments make up the family known as Baltic psalteries...
, a Finnish stringed instrument that resembles and is played like a zither
Zither
The zither is a musical string instrument, most commonly found in Slovenia, Austria, Hungary citera, northwestern Croatia, the southern regions of Germany, alpine Europe and East Asian cultures, including China...
.
Väinämöinen's search for a wife is a central element in many stories; although he never finds one. One of his potential brides, Joukahainen's sister Aino, drowns herself instead of marrying him. He is the leading member of the group which steals the Sampo
Sampo
In Finnish mythology, the Sampo or Sammas was a magical artifact of indeterminate type constructed by Ilmarinen that brought good fortune to its holder...
from the people of Pohjola
Pohjola
Pohjola or Pohja is a location in Finnish mythology, sometimes translated in English as Northland or Pohjoland. It is one of the two main polarities in the Finnish national epic, the Kalevala, along with Kaleva or Väinölä. Its name is derived from the word pohjoinen meaning the compass point north...
.
Ilmarinen
Seppo IlmarinenIlmarinen
Seppo Ilmarinen, the Eternal Hammerer, blacksmith and inventor in the Kalevala, is an archetypal artificer from Finnish mythology. Immortal, he is capable of creating practically anything, but is portrayed as unlucky in love...
, is a heroic artificer (comparable to the Germanic Weyland and the Greek Daedalus
Daedalus
In Greek mythology, Daedalus was a skillful craftsman and artisan.-Family:...
). He crafted the dome of the sky, the Sampo and various other magical devices featured in The Kalevala. Ilmarinen is the second member of the group who steal the Sampo.
Ilmarinen, like Väinämöinen, also has many stories told of his search for a wife, reaching the point where he forges one of gold.
Lemminkäinen
LemminkäinenLemminkäinen
Lemminkäinen or Lemminki is a prominent figure in Finnish mythology. He is one of the Heroes of the Kalevala, where his character is a composition of several separate heroes of oral poetry. He is usually depicted as young and good looking, with wavy blonde hair.The original, mythological...
is a handsome, arrogant and reckless ladies-man, he is the son of Lempi (English: lust or favourite). He shares a very close relationship with his mother who revives him after he has been drowned in the river of Tuonela
Tuonela
Tuonela is the realm of the dead or the Underworld in Finnish and Estonian mythology. Tuonela, Tuoni, Manala and Mana are used synonymously. In Estonian mythology, it is called Toonela or Manala....
while pursuing the object of his romantic desires. This section of The Kalevala echoes the myth of Osiris
Osiris
Osiris is an Egyptian god, usually identified as the god of the afterlife, the underworld and the dead. He is classically depicted as a green-skinned man with a pharaoh's beard, partially mummy-wrapped at the legs, wearing a distinctive crown with two large ostrich feathers at either side, and...
. Lemminkäinen is the third member of the group which steals the Sampo from Pohjola.
Ukko
UkkoUkko
In Finnish mythology, Ukko, in Estonian mythology Uku, is a god of sky, weather, crops and other natural things. He is the most significant god in Finnish and Estonian mythologies, and created the goddess Ilmatar, creator of the world. The Finnish word ukkonen, thunderstorm, is derived from his...
(English: Old man) is the leading deity mentioned within The Kalevala. His character corresponds to Thor
Thor
In Norse mythology, Thor is a hammer-wielding god associated with thunder, lightning, storms, oak trees, strength, the protection of mankind, and also hallowing, healing, and fertility...
and Zeus
Zeus
In the ancient Greek religion, Zeus was the "Father of Gods and men" who ruled the Olympians of Mount Olympus as a father ruled the family. He was the god of sky and thunder in Greek mythology. His Roman counterpart is Jupiter and his Etruscan counterpart is Tinia.Zeus was the child of Cronus...
. John Martin Crawford wrote that the name may be related the obsolete Hungarian
Hungarian language
Hungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
word for an old man (agg).
Joukahainen
JoukahainenJoukahainen
Joukahainen is a character in the Kalevala, the Finnish epic poem of fifty parts. He is the rival of the main character, Väinämöinen. After losing a singing contest, he pledges his sister Aino to Väinämöinen, but she drowns herself rather than marry him...
is a base, unintelligent young man who arrogantly challenges Väinämöinen to a singing contest which he loses. In exchange for his life Joukahainen promises his young sister Aino
Aino (mythology)
Aino is a figure in the Finnish national epic Kalevala. It relates that she was the beautiful sister of Joukahainen. Her brother, having lost a singing contest to the storied Väinämöinen, promised Aino's "hands and feet" in marriage if Väinämöinen would save him from drowning in the swamp into...
to Väinämöinen. Joukahainen attempts to gain his revenge on Väinämöinen by killing him with a crossbow but only succeeds in killing Väinämöinen's horse. Joukahainen's actions lead to Väinämöinen promising to build a Sampo in return for Louhi rescuing him.
Louhi
LouhiLouhi
Louhi is a queen of the land known as Pohjola in Finnish mythology and the mythology of Lapland.-In mythology:Louhi is described as a powerful witch with the ability to change shape and weave mighty enchantments. She is also the main opponent of Väinämöinen and his group in the battle for the...
the Mistress of the North, is the shamanistic matriarch of the people of Pohjola
Pohjola
Pohjola or Pohja is a location in Finnish mythology, sometimes translated in English as Northland or Pohjoland. It is one of the two main polarities in the Finnish national epic, the Kalevala, along with Kaleva or Väinölä. Its name is derived from the word pohjoinen meaning the compass point north...
, a people rivalling those of Kalevala. She is the cause of much trouble for Kalevala and its people.
Louhi at one point saves Väinämöinen's life. She has many daughters whom the heroes of Kalevala make many attempts (some successful) at seducing. Louhi plays a major part in the battle to prevent the heroes of Kalevala from stealing back the Sampo which as a result is ultimately destroyed. She is a powerful witch with a skill almost on a par with that of Väinämöinen's.
Kullervo
KullervoKullervo
In the Finnish Kalevala, Kullervo was the ill-fated son of Kalervo. He is the only irredeemably tragic character in Finnish mythology.-Rune 31 - Kullervo, son of Evil:...
is the vengeful, mentally ill and tragic son of Kalervo. He was abused as a child and sold into slavery to Ilmarinen. He is put to work and treated badly by Ilmarinen's wife whom he later kills. Kullervo is a misguided and troubled youth often at odds with himself and his situation. He often goes into berserk
Berserker
Berserkers were Norse warriors who are reported in the Old Norse literature to have fought in a nearly uncontrollable, trance-like fury, a characteristic which later gave rise to the English word berserk. Berserkers are attested in numerous Old Norse sources...
rage and in the end commits suicide.
Marjatta
Marjatta is the young virgin of Kalevala. She becomes pregnant from eating a lingonberryVaccinium vitis-idaea
Vaccinium vitis-idaea is a short evergreen shrub in the heath family that bears edible sour fruit, native to boreal forest and Arctic tundra throughout the Northern Hemisphere from Eurasia to North America. In the past it was seldom cultivated, but fruit was commonly collected in the wild. ...
. When her labour begins she is expelled from her parents' home and leaves to find a place where she can sauna and give birth. She is turned away from numerous places but finally finds a place in the forest and gives birth to a son.
Marjatta's nature, impregnation and searching for a place to give birth are in allegory to the Virgin Mary and the Christianisation of Finland.
Marjatta's son is later condemned to death by Väinämöinen for being born out of wedlock, the boy in turn chastises Väinämöinen and is later crowned King of Karelia. This angers Väinämöinen who leaves Kalevala leaving his songs and kantele to the people as his legacy.
Influence of The Kalevala
The Kalevala is a major part of Finnish culture and history, and has impacted the arts in Finland, and in other cultures around the world.Daily life
The influence of The Kalevala in daily life and business in Finland is tangible. Names and places associated with The Kalevala have been adopted as company and brand names and even as place names.There are several places within Finland with Kalevala related names, for example: the district of Tapiola
Tapiola
Tapiola or Hagalund is a district of Espoo on the south coast of Finland, and is one of the major urban centres of Espoo...
in the city of Espoo
Espoo
Espoo is the second largest city and municipality in Finland. The population of the city of Espoo is . It is part of the Helsinki Metropolitan Area along with the cities of Helsinki, Vantaa, and Kauniainen. Espoo shares its eastern border with Helsinki and Vantaa, while enclosing Kauniainen....
; the district of Pohjola
Pohjola, Turku
Pohjola is a district of the city of Turku, in Finland. It is located to the north of the city centre, between Ratapihankatu and Kähäri. Turku Central railway station is located in Pohjola, and about half of the district's land area is owned by the VR railway company.The current population of...
in the city of Turku
Turku
Turku is a city situated on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River. It is located in the region of Finland Proper. It is believed that Turku came into existence during the end of the 13th century which makes it the oldest city in Finland...
, the district of Metsola in the city of Vantaa
Vantaa
Vantaa is a city and municipality in Finland. Helsinki, Vantaa, Espoo and Kauniainen make up the Helsinki Metropolitan Area.Vantaa, with its population of , is the fourth most populated city of Finland. The biggest airport in Finland, the Helsinki-Vantaa Airport, is located there...
and the district of Kaleva
Kaleva (Tampere)
Kaleva is an eastern part of the city of Tampere, Finland. The population of Kaleva is about 10,000 people .The most notable landmark is the Kaleva Church, built between 1959 and 1966....
in the city of Tampere
Tampere
Tampere is a city in southern Finland. It is the most populous inland city in any of the Nordic countries. The city has a population of , growing to approximately 300,000 people in the conurbation and over 340,000 in the metropolitan area. Tampere is the third most-populous municipality in...
; the historic provinces of Savo
Savonia (historical province)
Savonia is a historical province in the east of Finland. It borders to Uusimaa, Tavastia, Ostrobothnia, and Karelia. Largest cities in Savo by population are Kuopio, Mikkeli, Savonlinna and Varkaus.-Administration:...
and Karjala
Karelia
Karelia , the land of the Karelian peoples, is an area in Northern Europe of historical significance for Finland, Russia, and Sweden...
and the Russian town of Hiitola
Khiytola
Khiytola is a settlement in Lahdenpohja district of the Republic of Karelia, Russia, and the railroad junction of the Vyborg–Joensuu and Saint Petersburg–Hiitola railroads. Before the Winter War it was a municipality of the Viipuri province of Finland....
are all mentioned within the songs of The Kalevala. In addition the Russian town of Ukhta was in 1963 renamed Kalevala and in the United States a small community founded in 1900 by Finnish immigrants is named Kaleva, Michigan
Kaleva, Michigan
Kaleva is a village in Manistee County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 509 at the 2000 census.-Geography:*According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of , all land.*Kaleva is part of Northern Michigan....
and many of the street names are taken from the Kalevala.
The banking sector of Finland has at least three Kalevala related brands: Sampo
Sampo Bank
Sampo Bank is a brand name for Danske Bank's Finnish and Estonian operations. Sampo Bank was acquired by the Danske Bank Group in 2007.-History:...
, Pohjola
OP-Pohjola Group
OP-Pohjola Group comprises 229 independent member co-operative banks and the Group's statutory central institution, OP Bank Group Central Co-operative.The subsidiaries of the OP Bank Group Central Co-operative and their products include:...
and Tapiola
Tapiola Bank
Tapiola Bank Ltd is a Finnish bank and a part of Tapiola Group. Tapiola was originally only in the insurance business, but entered also the banking market in 2004 with Tapiola Bank. Loyalty benefits are given to customers who have both insurance contracts and bank accounts at Tapiola....
.
The jewellery
Jewellery
Jewellery or jewelry is a form of personal adornment, such as brooches, rings, necklaces, earrings, and bracelets.With some exceptions, such as medical alert bracelets or military dog tags, jewellery normally differs from other items of personal adornment in that it has no other purpose than to...
company Kalevala Koru was founded in 1935 on the 100th anniversary of the publication of The Old Kalevala. It specialises in the production of unique and culturally important items of jewellery. It is co-owned by the Kalevala Women's League and offers artistic scholarship
Scholarship
A scholarship is an award of financial aid for a student to further education. Scholarships are awarded on various criteria usually reflecting the values and purposes of the donor or founder of the award.-Types:...
s to a certain number of organisations and individuals every year.
The Finnish dairy
Dairy
A dairy is a business enterprise established for the harvesting of animal milk—mostly from cows or goats, but also from buffalo, sheep, horses or camels —for human consumption. A dairy is typically located on a dedicated dairy farm or section of a multi-purpose farm that is concerned...
company Valio
Valio
Valio Ltd is one of the biggest companies in Finland and mostly produces dairy products such as cheese, powdered ingredients, butter, yogurt and milk. Valio is Finland's biggest milk processor, producing 86% of Finland's milk....
has a brand of ice-cream named Aino, specialising in more exotic flavours than their normal brand.
The construction
Construction
In the fields of architecture and civil engineering, construction is a process that consists of the building or assembling of infrastructure. Far from being a single activity, large scale construction is a feat of human multitasking...
group Lemminkäinen
Lemminkäinen Group
Lemminkäinen Group is a Finnish company that operates in the construction industry. It has subsidiaries in civil engineering, building construction, technical building services, and the building materials industry....
was formed in 1910 as a roofing and asphalt
Asphalt
Asphalt or , also known as bitumen, is a sticky, black and highly viscous liquid or semi-solid that is present in most crude petroleums and in some natural deposits, it is a substance classed as a pitch...
company, the name was chosen specifically to emphasise that they were a wholly Finnish company. They now operate internationally.
Celebration
The Kalevala Day is celebrated in Finland on the 28 February, to match Elias Lönnrot's first version of The Kalevala in 1835.Several of the names in The Kalevala are also celebrated as Finnish name day
Name day
A name day is a tradition in many countries in Europe and Latin America that consists of celebrating the day of the year associated with one's given name....
s. The name days themselves and the dates they fall upon have no direct relationship with The Kalevala itself however the adoption of the names became commonplace after the release of The Kalevala.
Fine art
Several artists have been influenced by The Kalevala, most notably Akseli Gallen-KallelaAkseli Gallen-Kallela
Akseli Gallen-Kallela was a Finnish painter who is best known for his illustrations of the Kalevala, the Finnish national epic . His work was considered very important for the Finnish national identity...
who has painted many pieces relating to The Kalevala.
Iittala
Iittala
Iittala is a Finnish design company specialising in houseware objects made on the principle of "modern Scandinavian design". [N.B. The official logo of the Company is all in lower case - iittala. Using upper case for the initial i can cause some confusion as it may be mistaken for an L.] The Iittala...
group's Arabia brand kilned a series of Kalevala commemorative plates, designed by the late Raija Uosikkinen. The series ran from 1976 to 1999 and are highly sought after collectables.
One of the earliest artists to depict a scene from The Kalevala is Robert Wilhelm Ekman
Robert Wilhelm Ekman
Robert Wilhelm Ekman , aka R. W. Ekman, was a significant teacher and painter of the Finnish romantic portraits and early national romanticism.-Childhood and Arts Education:...
. One of his drawings from 1886 depicts Väinämöinen playing his kantele.
Aarno Karimo was a Finnish artist who illustrated the Kuva Kalevala (Published by Pellervo-Seura in 1953). He died before completing it. Hugo Otava finished it using original sketches as a guide.
In 1989, the fourth full translation of Kalevala into English was published, richly illustrated by Björn Landström
Björn Landström
Björn Landström was a Finnish artist, writer, graphic designer, illustrator and researcher. He also staged and directed the theater....
.
Literature
The Kalevala has been translated over one-hundred and fifty times into over sixty different languages. For more details about the translations into English please see the translations section.Franz Anton Schiefner's translation of The Kalevala was one inspiration for Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was an American poet and educator whose works include "Paul Revere's Ride", The Song of Hiawatha, and Evangeline...
's 1855 poem, The Song of Hiawatha
The Song of Hiawatha
The Song of Hiawatha is an 1855 epic poem, in trochaic tetrameter, by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, featuring an Indian hero and loosely based on legends and ethnography of the Ojibwe and other Native American peoples contained in Algic Researches and additional writings of Henry Rowe Schoolcraft...
, which is written in a similar trochaic tetrameter
Trochaic tetrameter
Trochaic tetrameter is a meter in poetry. It refers to a line of four trochaic feet. The word "tetrameter" simply means that the poem has four trochees...
.
Friedrich Reinhold Kreutzwald
Friedrich Reinhold Kreutzwald
Friedrich Reinhold Kreutzwald was an Estonian writer, who is considered to be the father of the national literature for the country.-Life:Friedrich's parents were serfs at the Jõepere estate, Virumaa. His father worked as a granary keeper and his mother was a chambermaid...
's Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
n national epic Kalevipoeg
Kalevipoeg
Kalevipoeg is an epic poem by Friedrich Reinhold Kreutzwald held to be the Estonian national epic.- Origins : There existed an oral tradition within Ancient Estonia of legends explaining the origin of the world...
was inspired by The Kalevala. Both Väinämöinen and Ilmarinen are mentioned in the work and the overall story of Kalevipoeg (Kalev's son) bears similarities with the Kullervo story.
J.R.R. Tolkien claimed The Kalevala as one of his sources for The Silmarillion
The Silmarillion
The Silmarillion is a collection of J. R. R. Tolkien's mythopoeic works, edited and published posthumously by his son Christopher Tolkien in 1977, with assistance from Guy Gavriel Kay, who later became a noted fantasy writer. The Silmarillion, along with J. R. R...
. For example, Kullervo's story is the basis of Túrin Turambar
Túrin Turambar
Túrin Turambar is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium. "Turambar and the Foalókë", begun in 1917, is the first appearance of Túrin in the legendarium. J.R.R...
in Narn i Chîn Húrin
Narn i Chîn Húrin
A portion of the Narn i Chîn Húrin or The Tale of the Children of Húrin is a part of the book Unfinished Tales by the English author J. R. R. Tolkien. It is a prose version of an earlier narrative poem called The Lay of the Children of Húrin...
, including the sword that speaks when the anti-hero
Anti-hero
In fiction, an antihero is generally considered to be a protagonist whose character is at least in some regards conspicuously contrary to that of the archetypal hero, and is in some instances its antithesis in which the character is generally useless at being a hero or heroine when they're...
uses it to commit suicide. Echoes of The Kalevala's characters, Väinämöinen in particular, can be found in Tom Bombadil of The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings is a high fantasy epic written by English philologist and University of Oxford professor J. R. R. Tolkien. The story began as a sequel to Tolkien's earlier, less complex children's fantasy novel The Hobbit , but eventually developed into a much larger work. It was written in...
.
Finnish cartoonist Kristian Huitula illustrated the comic book adaptation of the Kalevala. The Kalevala Graphic Novel contains the storyline of all the 50 chapters in original text form.
Finnish cartoonist and children's writer Mauri Kunnas
Mauri Kunnas
Mauri Tapio Kunnas is a Finnish cartoonist and children's author.Kunnas matriculated in 1969 and graduated from the Finnish Academy of Arts as a graphic designer in 1975. He has worked as a political cartoonist in many Finnish newspapers...
wrote and illustrated Koirien Kalevala (The Canine Kalevala). The story is that of The Kalevala with the characters presented as anthropomorphized dogs, wolves and cats. The story deviates from the full Kalevala, presumably, to make the story more appropriate for children.
The Kalevala also inspired the American Disney cartoonist Don Rosa
Don Rosa
Keno Don Hugo Rosa, known simply as Don Rosa, is an American comic book writer and illustrator known for his stories about Scrooge McDuck, Donald Duck and other characters created by Carl Barks for Disney comics, such as The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck.-Early life:Don Rosa's grandfather,...
to draw a Donald Duck
Donald Duck
Donald Fauntleroy Duck is a cartoon character created in 1934 at Walt Disney Productions and licensed by The Walt Disney Company. Donald is an anthropomorphic white duck with a yellow-orange bill, legs, and feet. He typically wears a sailor suit with a cap and a black or red bow tie. Donald is most...
story based on The Kalevala, called The Quest for Kalevala
The Quest for Kalevala
The Quest for Kalevala is an Uncle Scrooge comic book story written and drawn by Keno Don Rosa in 1999.The Quest for Kalevala is based on the Finnish national epic Kalevala, assembled and partly written by Elias Lönnrot in the 19th century...
. The comic was released in the year of the 150th anniversary of The Kalevalas publication.
The Neustadt Prize-winning poet and playwright Paavo Haavikko
Paavo Haavikko
Paavo Haavikko was a Finnish poet and playwright, considered one of the country's most outstanding writers...
who is regarded as one of Finland's finest writers, has also taken influence from The Kalevala.
Emil Petaja
Emil Petaja
Emil Petaja was an American science fiction and fantasy writer whose career spanned seven decades. He was the author of 13 published novels, nearly 150 short stories, numerous poems, and a handful of books and articles on various subjects...
was an American science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
and fantasy author of Finnish descent. His best known works known as the Otava Series make up a series of novels based on The Kalevala. The series brought Petaja readers from around the world; while his mythological approach to science fiction was discussed in scholarly papers presented at academic conferences. He has a further Kalevala based work which is not part of the series, entitled The Time Twister.
The British science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
writer Ian Watson
Ian Watson (author)
Ian Watson is a British science fiction author. He currently lives in Northamptonshire, England.His first novel, The Embedding, winner of the Prix Apollo in 1975, is unusual for being based on ideas from generative grammar; the title refers to the process of center embedding...
's Books of Mana duology: Lucky's Harvest and The Fallen Moon both contain references to places and names from the Kalevala.
British fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
author Michael Moorcock
Michael Moorcock
Michael John Moorcock is an English writer, primarily of science fiction and fantasy, who has also published a number of literary novels....
's sword and sorcery anti-hero, Elric of Melniboné
Elric of Melniboné
Elric of Melniboné is a fictional character created by Michael Moorcock, and the antihero of a series of sword and sorcery stories centering in an alternate Earth. The proper name and title of the character is Elric VIII, 428th Emperor of Melniboné...
is influenced by the character Kullervo.
Music
Music is the area which has the richest influence from The Kalevala, which is apt considering the way that the folk poetry and songs were originally performed.The first recorded example of a musician influenced by The Kalevala is Filip von Schantz, in 1860 he composed the Kullervo Overture. The piece premièred on the opening of a new theatre building in Helsinki on November of the same year. Von Schantz's work was followed by Robert Kajanus
Robert Kajanus
Robert Kajanus was a Finnish conductor and composer of Swedish descent.-Life:Robert Kajanus was the most prominent Finnish composer before Jean Sibelius. His music drew on the folk legends of the Finnish people...
' Kullervo's death and the symphonic poem Aino in 1881 and 1885 respectively. Aino is credited with inspiring Jean Sibelius to investigate the richness of The Kalevala.
Jean Sibelius
Jean Sibelius
Jean Sibelius was a Finnish composer of the later Romantic period whose music played an important role in the formation of the Finnish national identity. His mastery of the orchestra has been described as "prodigious."...
is the best known Kalevala influenced classical composer. Twelve of Sibelius' best known works are based upon and influenced by The Kalevala, including his Kullervo
Kullervo (Sibelius)
Kullervo, Op. 7 is an early symphonic poem for soloists, chorus and orchestra, written by the Finnish composer Jean Sibelius.The work, based on the character of Kullervo from the epic poem Kalevala, premiered to great critical acclaim on 28 April 1892. The soloists at the premiere were Emmy Achté...
, a symphony for soprano, baritone, chorus and orchestra that he composed in 1892. Sibelius also composed the music of Jääkärimarssi (The Jäger March) to words written by Finnish soldier and writer Heikki Nurmio
Heikki Nurmio
Heikki Nurmio - Finnish jäger and writer. He is remembered for writing the lyrics for "Jääkärien marssi" composed by Jean Sibelius in 1917....
. The march features the line Me nousemme kostona Kullervon ("We shall rise in vengeance like that of Kullervo's").
Other classical composers influenced by The Kalevala:
- Einojuhani RautavaaraEinojuhani RautavaaraEinojuhani Rautavaara is a Finnish composer of contemporary classical music, and is one of the most notable Finnish composers after Jean Sibelius.-Life:...
- Leevi MadetojaLeevi MadetojaLeevi Antti Madetoja was a Finnish composer.-Life and career:Born in Oulu, he was the son of Antti Madetoja and Anna Hyttinen...
- Uuno KlamiUuno KlamiUuno Klami was a Finnish composer. He was born in Virolahti. Many of his works are related to the Kalevala. He was also influenced by French music, in particularly by Maurice Ravel and the group Les Six...
- Tauno MarttinenTauno MarttinenTauno Marttinen was a Finnish composer of contemporary classical music.Born in Helsinki, Marttinen studied in Viipuri and Helsinki. His earliest works are mainly late romantic. His output includes ten symphonies, several concertos, operas and chamber music, among others...
- Aulis SallinenAulis SallinenAulis Sallinen is a Finnish contemporary classical music composer. He writes in a modern, though tonal and not experimental music style. He studied at the Sibelius Academy, where his teachers included Joonas Kokkonen...
- Veljo TormisVeljo TormisVeljo Tormis is an Estonian composer, regarded to be one of the greatest living choral composers and one of the most important composers of the 20th century in Estonia. Internationally, his fame arises chiefly from his extensive body of choral music, which exceeds 500 individual choral songs, most...
Classical composers are not the only musicians who have delved into The Kalevala for inspiration. In the mid 1960s the progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
band Kalevala was active within Finland and in 1974 the now prolific singer-songwriter Jukka Kuoppamäki
Jukka Kuoppamäki
Jukka Kuoppamäki is a Finnish singer, songwriter and priest for The Christian Community in Germany. He visits his summer house in Finland every year. He is one of the most prolific Finnish popular singer-songwriters and has written over 1 500 songs for himself and other famous Finnish singers...
released the song Väinämöinen. These were some of the first pieces of modern music inspired by The Kalevala.
In 1994, the Finnish metal band Amorphis
Amorphis
Amorphis is a Finnish heavy metal band started by Jan Rechberger, Tomi Koivusaari, and Esa Holopainen in 1990. Initially, the band was a death metal act, but on later albums they evolved into playing other types of genres, which include heavy metal, progressive metal, and folk metal...
released their concept album
Concept album
In music, a concept album is an album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical." Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being improvised or composed in the studio, with all songs contributing...
Tales from the Thousand Lakes
Tales from the Thousand Lakes
-Bonus tracks:Tracks 11-13 added from the Black Winter Day EP:-Band members:* Tomi Koivusaari – vocals, rhythm guitar* Esa Holopainen – lead guitar* Olli-Pekka Laine – bass guitar* Jan Rechberger – drums* Kasper Mårtenson – keyboards...
. This was a departure from their original death metal
Death metal
Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It typically employs heavily distorted guitars, tremolo picking, deep growling vocals, blast beat drumming, minor keys or atonality, and complex song structures with multiple tempo changes....
roots and into a more melodic style. This album was the first of many that have been Kalevala themed.
In 1998 Ruth MacKenzie recorded the album Kalevala: Dream of the Salmon Maiden, a song cycle covering the part of the story concerning Aino
Aino (mythology)
Aino is a figure in the Finnish national epic Kalevala. It relates that she was the beautiful sister of Joukahainen. Her brother, having lost a singing contest to the storied Väinämöinen, promised Aino's "hands and feet" in marriage if Väinämöinen would save him from drowning in the swamp into...
and her choice to refuse the hand of the sorcerer Väinämöinen and instead transform herself into a salmon. MacKenzie has continued to perform the piece live.
The Finnish Folk metal
Folk metal
Folk metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal music that developed in Europe during the 1990s. As the name suggests, the genre is a fusion of heavy metal with traditional folk music...
band Ensiferum
Ensiferum
Ensiferum is a Finnish folk metal band from Helsinki. The members of the band label themselves as "heroic folk metal." Since their formation, Ensiferum has released four full-length albums, one EP, one compilation, three singles, and three demo albums and one unreleased album.-Musical...
have released songs, such as "Old Man" and "Little Dreamer" which are influenced by The Kalevala. The third track of their Dragonheads
Dragonheads
-Line-up:* Petri Lindroos - Harsh Vocals, Guitar* Markus Toivonen - Guitar, Clean & Backing Vocals, Percussion* Meiju Enho - Keyboard* Sami Hinkka - Bass, Clean & Backing Vocals* Janne Parviainen - Drums-Session musicians:...
EP is entitled "Kalevala Melody". It is an instrumental piece following the rhythm of the Kalevala metre. Another Finnish folk metal band, Turisas
Turisas
Turisas is a Finnish folk metal band from Hämeenlinna. It was founded in 1997 by Mathias Nygård and Jussi Wickström and named after an ancient Finnish God of war....
, adapted several verses from song nine of The Kalevala "The Origin of Iron" for the lyrics of their song "Cursed Be Iron" which is track three of the album The Varangian Way
The Varangian Way
The Varangian Way is the second full-length album from Finnish folk metal band, Turisas and was released in 2007. It is a concept album that tells the story of a group of Scandinavians traveling the river routes of medieval Russia, through Ladoga, Novgorod and Kiev, down to the Byzantine Empire.A...
. Finnish metal band Amberian Dawn
Amberian Dawn
Amberian Dawn is a Finnish symphonic power metal band, formed in 2006 by Tuomas Seppälä and Tommi Kuri. Their third album End of Eden was released on Spinefarm Records in October 2010.-Atheme One :...
used lyrics inspired by The Kalevala in their album River Of Tuoni, as well as in its successor.
The Karelian Finnish folk music group Värttinä
Värttinä
Värttinä is a Finnish folk music band which was started as a project by Sari and Mari Kaasinen back in 1983 in the village of Rääkkylä, in Karelia, the southeastern region of Finland. Many transformations have taken place in the band since then...
has based some of its lyrics on motifs from The Kalevala and the Vantaa Chamber Choir
Vantaa Chamber Choir
Vantaa Chamber Choir is a Finnish mixed choir which was established in 1986.-Conductors:* Toivo Korhonen 1986–1998* Ilona Korhonen 1998–2011* Juha Kuivanen 2011--Discography:* Lauluja Kuninkaantien varrelta , album, folk songs...
have songs influenced by The Kalevala. Their Kalevala themed third album, Marian virsi (2005), combines contemporary folk with traditionally performed folk poetry.
In 2003, the Finnish progressive rock quarterly Colossus and French Musea Records
Musea
Musea Records is a non-profit [for the label's bands] musician-owned French record label dedicated to progressive rock. It was founded in 1985 by Bernard Gueffier and Francis Grosse, along with a small team of friends - Daniel Adt, Alain Juliac, Alain Robert, Thierry Sportouche, Jean-Claude...
commissioned 30 progressive rock groups from around the world to compose songs based on parts of The Kalevala. The publication assigned each band with a particular song from The Kalevala which the band was free to interpret as they saw fit. The result was a three-disc, multilingual, four-hour epic telling the entirety of The Kalevala. For more information, please see: Kalevala (project)
Kalevala (project)
Kalevala is a 3 CD progressive rock epic based upon the Finnish national epic of the same name. It tells the story in 30 parts, each part played by a different band.-The Kalevala:...
In the beginning of 2009, in celebration of the 160th anniversary of The Kalevala's first published edition the Finnish Literature Society the Kalevala Society premièred ten new and original works inspired by The Kalevala. The works included poems, classical and contemporary music and artwork. A book was published by the Finnish Literature Society in conjunction with the event and a large exhibition of Kalevala artwork and cultural artefacts were put on display at the Ateneum museum
Ateneum
The Ateneum is a major museum in Finland. It is located in the centre of Helsinki at the Rautatientori square opposite Helsinki Central Railway Station. It has the biggest collections of classical art in Finland. Previously the Ateneum building also housed the Finnish Academy of Fine Arts and...
in Helsinki.
Film
In 1959, a joint Finnish/Soviet production entitled SampoSampo (film)
Sampo is a Russian and Finnish language 1959 joint Finnish and Soviet production based loosely on the events depicted in the Finnish national epic Kalevala. A significantly edited version called The Day the Earth Froze was released internationally. This version was later featured in the American...
(aka The Day the Earth Froze) was released, inspired by the story of the Sampo from the Kalevala.
In 1982, the Finnish Broadcasting Company (YLE) produced a television mini-series called Rauta-aika (The Age of Iron). With music composed by Aulis Sallinen
Aulis Sallinen
Aulis Sallinen is a Finnish contemporary classical music composer. He writes in a modern, though tonal and not experimental music style. He studied at the Sibelius Academy, where his teachers included Joonas Kokkonen...
and the book by Paavo Haavikko
Paavo Haavikko
Paavo Haavikko was a Finnish poet and playwright, considered one of the country's most outstanding writers...
. The series was set "during the Kalevala times" and based upon events which take place in The Kalevala. The series' part 3/4 won Prix Italia
Prix Italia
The Prix Italia is an international Italian television, radio-broadcasting and Website award. It was established in 1948 by RAI - Radiotelevisione Italiana in Capri...
in 1983.
The martial arts film Jadesoturi (aka Jade Warrior), released in Finland on October 13, 2006, is based upon the Kalevala and set in Finland and China.
Interpretations of The Kalevala
The Kalevala, as the important work of national literature it is, has of course attracted many scholars and enthusiasts to interpret its contents in a historical context. Many interpretations of the themes in The Kalevala have been tabled. Some parts of the epic have been perceived as ancient conflicts between the early Finns and the SamisSami people
The Sami people, also spelled Sámi, or Saami, are the arctic indigenous people inhabiting Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of far northern Sweden, Norway, Finland, the Kola Peninsula of Russia, and the border area between south and middle Sweden and Norway. The Sámi are Europe’s northernmost...
. In this context, the country of Kalevala could be understood as Southern Finland and Pohjola
Pohjola
Pohjola or Pohja is a location in Finnish mythology, sometimes translated in English as Northland or Pohjoland. It is one of the two main polarities in the Finnish national epic, the Kalevala, along with Kaleva or Väinölä. Its name is derived from the word pohjoinen meaning the compass point north...
as Lapland.
However, the place names in Kalevala seem to transfer the Kalevala further south, which has been interpreted as reflecting the Finnic settlement expansion from the South that came to push the Samis further to the north. Some scholars locate the lands of Kalevala to East Karelia
East Karelia
East Karelia , also rendered as Eastern Karelia or Russian Karelia, is a name for the part of Karelia that since the Treaty of Stolbova in 1617 has remained Christian Orthodox under Russian supremacy. It is separated from the western part of Karelia, called Finnish Karelia or historically Swedish...
, where most of the Kalevala stories were written down. In 1961 a small town of Uhtua in the then Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
Republic of Karelia
Republic of Karelia
The Republic of Karelia is a federal subject of Russia .-Geography:The republic is located in the northwestern part of Russia, taking intervening position between the basins of White and Baltic seas...
was renamed Kalevala, perhaps to promote that theory.
Finnish politician and linguist Eemil Nestor Setälä
Eemil Nestor Setälä
Eemil Nestor Setälä, was a Finnish politician and once the Chairman of the Senate of Finland, from September 1917 to November 1917....
rejected the idea that the heroes of Kalevala are historical in nature and suggested they are personifications of natural phænomena. He interprets Pohjola as the northern heavens and the Sampo as the pillar of the world. Setälä suggests that the journey to regain the Sampo is a purely imaginary one with the heroes riding a mythological boat or magical steed to the heavens.
The practice of bear-worship, arctolatry
Bear worship
Bear worship is the religious practice of the worshiping of bears found in many North American and North Eurasian ethnic circumpolar religions such as the Sami, Nivkh, Ainu, and pre-Christian Finns...
, was once very common in Finland and there are strong echoes of this in The Kalevala.
The old Finnish word väinä (a strait of deep water with a slow current) appears to be the origin of the name Väinämöinen; one of Väinämöinen's other names is Suvantolainen, suvanto being the modern word for väinä. Consequently it is possible that the Saari (Island) might be the island of Saaremaa
Saaremaa
Saaremaa is the largest island in Estonia, measuring 2,673 km². The main island of Saare County, it is located in the Baltic Sea, south of Hiiumaa island, and belongs to the West Estonian Archipelago...
in Estonia and Kalevala the Estonian mainland.
Finnish folklorists Matti Kuusi and Pertti Anttonen state that terms such as the people of Kalevala or the tribe of Kalevala are created of the whole cloth by Elias Lönnrot. Moreover, they contend that the word Kalevala is very rare in traditional poetry and that by emphasizing dualism (Kalevala vs. Pohjola) Elias Lönnrot created the required tension that made The Kalevala dramatically successful and thus fit for a national epic of the time.
See also
- Finnish mythologyFinnish mythologyFinnish mythology is the mythology that went with Finnish paganism which was practised by the Finnish people prior to Christianisation. It has many features shared with fellow Finnic Estonian mythology and its non-Finnic neighbours, the Balts and the Scandinavians...
- KalevipoegKalevipoegKalevipoeg is an epic poem by Friedrich Reinhold Kreutzwald held to be the Estonian national epic.- Origins : There existed an oral tradition within Ancient Estonia of legends explaining the origin of the world...
- Kaleva, MichiganKaleva, MichiganKaleva is a village in Manistee County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 509 at the 2000 census.-Geography:*According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of , all land.*Kaleva is part of Northern Michigan....
Many of the street names from this small Michigan (USA) village were taken from the Kalevala.
Translations
- The Kalevala: The Epic Poem of Finland, translation by John Martin CrawfordJohn Martin Crawford (scholar)John Martin Crawford was an American physician and scholar who translated the Finnish epic Kalevala into English based on a previous German translation by Franz Anton Schiefner published in 1852, to be published for the first time in 1888....
, ISBN 0-7661-8938-4. Text at Project GutenbergProject GutenbergProject Gutenberg is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks". Founded in 1971 by Michael S. Hart, it is the oldest digital library. Most of the items in its collection are the full texts of public domain books...
: Volume 1 and Volume 2. - The Kalevala: Or the Land of Heroes, translation by William Forsell KirbyWilliam Forsell KirbyWilliam Forsell Kirby was an English entomologist and folklorist.He was born in Leicester. He was the eldest son of Samuel Kirby, who was a banker. He was educated privately, and became interested in butterflies and moths at an early age. The family moved to Brighton, where he became acquainted...
, ISBN 1-85810-198-0. Text at Project GutenbergProject GutenbergProject Gutenberg is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks". Founded in 1971 by Michael S. Hart, it is the oldest digital library. Most of the items in its collection are the full texts of public domain books...
: Volume 1 and Volume 2. - The Kalevala: Or Poems of the Kaleva District, translation by Francis Peabody MagounFrancis Peabody MagounFrancis Peabody Magoun, Jr. MC was one of the seminal figures in the study of medieval and English literature in the 20th century, a scholar of subjects as varied as football and ancient Germanic naming practices, and translator of numerous important texts...
, ISBN 0-674-50010-5. Preview at Google Books: http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=FRoMUZQmx_MC&printsec=frontcover. - The Old Kalevala and Certain Antecedents, a translation of the original Old Kalevala by Francis Peabody MagounFrancis Peabody MagounFrancis Peabody Magoun, Jr. MC was one of the seminal figures in the study of medieval and English literature in the 20th century, a scholar of subjects as varied as football and ancient Germanic naming practices, and translator of numerous important texts...
, ISBN 0-674-63235-4 - The Kalevala: Epic of the Finnish People, translation by Eino FribergEino FribergEino Friberg was a Finnish-born, American author most widely noted for his 1989 translation of the Finnish national epic, The Kalevala.-Earlylife:...
, Björn LandströmBjörn LandströmBjörn Landström was a Finnish artist, writer, graphic designer, illustrator and researcher. He also staged and directed the theater....
, George C. Schoolfield, ISBN 951-1-10137-4. Preview at Google Books: http://books.google.fi/books?id=KXW9I3kmQp0C&printsec=frontcover. - The Kalevala: Or the Land of Heroes, translation by Keith BosleyKeith BosleyKeith Bosley is a British poet and language expert.Bosley was born in Bourne End, Buckinghamshire, grew up in Maidenhead, Berkshire...
, foreword by Albert B. Lord (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1990), ISBN 0-19-283570-X. Preview at Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?id=TbuseamMwGcC&lpg=PR55&ots=6I6W1UPols&pg=PP1.
Retellings
- The Canine Kalevala Tim Steffa (Translator), Mauri KunnasMauri KunnasMauri Tapio Kunnas is a Finnish cartoonist and children's author.Kunnas matriculated in 1969 and graduated from the Finnish Academy of Arts as a graphic designer in 1975. He has worked as a political cartoonist in many Finnish newspapers...
, ISBN 951-1-12442-0 - The Kalevala Graphic Novel, a complete comic book version of the 50 chapters of The Kalevala by Finnish artist Kristian Huitula, translation by Eino FribergEino FribergEino Friberg was a Finnish-born, American author most widely noted for his 1989 translation of the Finnish national epic, The Kalevala.-Earlylife:...
, ISBN 952-99022-1-2 - The Magic Storysinger: A Tale from the Finnish Epic Kalevala, M. E. A. McNeil, a retelling in a style friendly to children, ISBN 0-88045-128-9
- The Quest for KalevalaThe Quest for KalevalaThe Quest for Kalevala is an Uncle Scrooge comic book story written and drawn by Keno Don Rosa in 1999.The Quest for Kalevala is based on the Finnish national epic Kalevala, assembled and partly written by Elias Lönnrot in the 19th century...
, Uncle Scrooge #334, by Don RosaDon RosaKeno Don Hugo Rosa, known simply as Don Rosa, is an American comic book writer and illustrator known for his stories about Scrooge McDuck, Donald Duck and other characters created by Carl Barks for Disney comics, such as The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck.-Early life:Don Rosa's grandfather,...
, A story in tribute to The Kalevala featuring Scrooge McDuck and some characters from Kalevala, ISBN 0-911903-55-0 - The Wizard of the North : A Tale From the Land of Heroes By Parker Hoysted Fillmore, (1923)
- Epic of the North by John Ilmari Kolehmainen (1973)
Analysis
- The Kalevala and the World's Traditional Epics, edited by Lauri HonkoLauri HonkoLauri Honko was a professor of folklore studies and comparative religion.- Life and work :Honko was a disciple of Martti Haavio. The title of his doctoral dissertation was Krankheitsprojektile...
(2002) ISBN 9517464223 - A History of Finland's Literature, ed. by George C. Schoolfield (1998) ISBN 0803241895
- Finland: a cultural encyclopedia, ed. by Olli Alho (1997) ISBN 9517178859
- Finland: A Cultural Outline by Veikko Kallio (1994) ISBN 9510194212
- The Uses of Tradition : a Comparative Enquiry Into the Nature, Uses and Functions of Oral Poetry in the Balkans, the Baltic and Africa, ed. by Michael Branch and Celia Hawkesworth (1994) ISBN 0903425386
- Religion, Myth, and Folklore in the World's Epics, ed. by Lauri Honko (1990) ISBN 0899256252
- Kalevala Mythology by Juha Y. Pentikäinen (1999) ISBN 0253336619
- The Key to The Kalevala, by Pekka ErvastPekka ErvastPekka Elias Ervast, born 26 December 1875 in Helsinki, died 22 May 1934 in Helsinki, was a Finnish writer.Ervast joined 1895 the Swedish theosophical society and started 1907 the Finnish theosophical society, Suomen Teosofinen Seura. He was chief secretatary there 1907-17 and editor for the...
, John Major JenkinsJohn Major JenkinsJohn Major Jenkins is an American author and independent researcher, best known for his works that theorize certain astronomical and esoteric connections of the calendar systems used by the Maya civilization of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica...
, Tapio Joensuu, ISBN 1-57733-021-8 - Studies in Finnish Folklore by Felix J. Oinas (1985) ISBN 9517173156
- Finnish Folk Poetry, ed. by Matti Kuusi et al. (1977) ISBN 9517170874
- Folklore and Nationalism in Modern Finland by William A. Wilson (1976) ISBN 0253323274
- Väinämöinen, Eternal Sage by Martti Henrikki Haavio (1952)
- Sammon Arvoitus (The Riddle of the Sampo) by E.N. Setälä (1932)
- Lönnrot ja Kalevala (Lönnrot and The Kalevala) by Väinö Kaukonen (1978)