Ho, ho, ho...Finland might be the home of Santa Clause but the 6th of December has no meaning in the Finnish advent season at all. German kids have been eagerly waiting for Nikolaustag, shining their boots in advance. Today they expect to find lots of sweets and goodies in them.
The meaning in Finland however is entirely different and of a existential nature, literally. After belonging to first the Kingdom of Sweden and then the Russian empire, Finland declared itself independent on the 6th of December, 1917. This achievement didn´t come easy and it took a bit more blood, sweat and tears than it took me to wrap this long lasting process up in one sentence. Itsenäisyyspäivä is celebrated with lots of flag waving, parading and showing what you got, military-wise. Something that totally creeps me out, I´m German and we have a certain history with these things. Interesting enough that Germany and Finland share some of that history, but I don´t want to get into detail about this. These are my personal associations and I know that they are off-topic here. So let´s not compare apples to oranges.
One tradition on Independence Day is to light two white candles in each window of the house. Legend has it that this used to be a sign to inform young men on their way to Sweden and Germany to become Jägers that the house was ready to offer shelter and keep them hidden from the Russians. Today young Finns might be more fond of drinking Jägermeister than becoming a Jäger, but that´s just a wild guess. Anyway, Itsenäisyyspäivä is of course a holiday, everything is closed and people mostly celebrate at home, have good food and prepare for a television marathon:
What Dinner for One is in Germany on New Year´s Eve The Unknown Soldier is on the Finnish Independence Day. Tv station YLE doesn´t get tired to show it year after year, this year will be no exception. Then they show the centerpiece of the day: Linnan juhlat or the Castle´s Ball, held at the Presidential Palace. For the ones of you that didn´t know, Finland has a female president, namely Tarja Halonen. Finnish women have a long history in politics as Finland was the first (!) European country to establish women´s suffrage in 1906 (!!), 12 years (!!!) before Germany. But that only on a side note.
I wish Tarja strong wrists and hands because there are about 2000 hands to shake today. The guests list comprises the who is who in politics, clergy, military, sports, music and entertainment. Entertainment is the key word here: the whole extravaganza has become a crowd favorite with the highlight being the entrance of the guests. Who is wearing what? Who is coming with whom? Who is coming alone? And why? Who is not coming? (a huge insult!) Any scandals this years? People (not only women) spend hours to be able to answer all these questions from first-person perspective. Right on!
This may sound as if the glamor part has become the most important but deep down many Finns really remember that it was pretty damn close that history might have taken a different turn and there would be no Finland today at all. The Finns are jammed between two big powers. They are the underdogs that always had to stand up for themselves. And they did.
My heart beats for the underdogs.
Happy Independence Day, Finland!
SONGS FOR THE (Independance) DAY:
Porilaisten Marssi
Monty Python - Finland
David Bowie - Suffragette City
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