Suomi - Finland From Helsinki to Lapland

Welcome to Finland, the Scandinavian country bordered by Russia and Sweden with a population of 5.5 million people. Known for its progressive economy, high quality education, civil liberties as well as the quality of life, its become a liked place for many to reside in.

Food

Carelian pie (left), Leipäjuusto (cheese) served with cloudberry jam (right) - (kotikokki.fi)

Finnish food has several influences coming from its surrounding countries. Commonly Finns eat potatoes, vegetables and poultry. Red meat consumption is lower when compared to other countries due to its high cost. Other popular foods within the country are: porridge, fish, berries, mushrooms and bread.

Raspberry pastry (left), Smoked salmon (right) - (kotikokki.fi)

Celebrations

All Saints Day (left), Christmas (right) - (whatthehelsinki.com)

Finland has several celebrations in which specialty foods are eaten, and traditions are performed. All saints day celebrated on November 1st, Candles are lit on the steps of stairs outside churches. Another example being Midsummers festival celebrated in mid June. On these days, a bonfire is lit by the sea/lake shore and commonly people participate in heavy drinking. Christmas and New Years are other big celebrations in Finland, on which special food is eaten, presents are given on Christmas eve, and on New Years Eve fireworks are lit. Within these traditions people also make small snow ball castles with candles in them.

Snow Lantern (left), New Years Eve (right) - (yle.fi)

History

Saint Olaf's Castle (Built by Swedish in 1475), Soldiers in the Winter War (1939-1940) - (wikipedia) (wikitravel)

From the 12th to 18th century, Finland was owned by Sweden but was lost due to the Finnish War, causing Finland to then be ruled by Russians. Finland then was under the rule of Russians from the mid 1800's to the early 1900's. Due to this Finland suffered "The Great Famine", which killed 15% of the population making it one of the worst famines in European history (wikipedia). To gain complete independence Finland endured its civil war which went from 1918-1919. During the second world war, Finland fought the Soviet Union twice, the first time after being attacked by the Soviets, the second time in the continuation war, allied with Germany. However after having reached an armistice with the Soviet Union, the Lapland war took place and in order to cease the war, Finland was forced to sign a treaty making them give up 10% of their land. Throughout this time, they maintained their independence as a whole, however at the cost of losing 93,000 soldiers and causing 400,000 people to flee their homes (wikipedia). In more recent history, Finland's economy was decentralised in 1980. In 1995 it became a member of the European Union and a member of the Eurozone in 1999. It changed currency from the Finnish 'Markka' to the Euro in 2002.

Soviet and Finnish Peace Agreement, Medieval Castle in Turku

Social Behaviors

The Finnish are generally very taciturn people, they don't enjoy mindless small talk and usually try keep conversations as straight and to the point as possible. Although they do not enjoy mindless chatting, being polite is very important to the culture, this includes speaking at a relatively low volume, staying calm in arguments and being respectful are all very important parts in social interactions. Other things which are very important to Finn's is their personal space, punctuality and honesty. Being vague on plans or being late is considered to be very rude and disrespectful.

Traditional Arts

Kantele (traditional instrument) - (temps.fi)

A traditional musical instrument which is occasionally played at family parties or traditional events. Another aspect relating to finish culture is the traditional story called the Kalevala. As it is a very long story consisting of 50 parts which are in a way songs as they are written like poetry. The story was written in 1835 by Elias Lönnrot, and is referred to as the most important piece of literature in Finnish history. The story is made up of Finnish and Karelian folklore and mythology.

Kalevala (traditional story)

Architecture

Finlands architecture spans over 800 years, being influenced by its history, traditions as well as neighbouring countries; Finland and Russia. Historical buildings being built in medieval times are mainly being used as museum facilities, however many churches have also been built several years ago having influences from Finlands on culture as well as being influenced by Swedish and Russian principles of architecture. Today, Finland is well known for its sustainable and aesthetic forms of architecture and is home to some globally famed architects such as Eliel Saarinen and Alvar Aalto. A lot of the modern architecture is also using northern Finland as inspiration for design as well as composition.

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