#I wish there was more elf culture like holidays and a flag or at least like something to represent them other than glitter

[mrsiggytheimp]

Runes are just elf cursive, right?

#Kotlc #kotlc headcanon? Ig #keeper of the lost cities #I wish there was more elf culture like holidays and a flag or at least like something to represent them other than glitter #The flag could be white gray and yellow for the prime sources #I also have a Headcanon that their’s something called the “Noble Regalia” that’s like seal maybe on a flag that represents the nobility #And I want more on bramble #It says there’s a big championship or whatever every four years and I want the elves to completely devide for like a week when it happens #And Grady and Edaline are from different teams and Eda goes watch it with Juline and the other Dizznees #And Grady is from the same team as the Vackers and he takes Sophie and they all watch it together #With face paint and jerseys and everything and whenever someone scores they hail the other to rub it in #Does Foxfire have a Bramble team #Tam and Linh are from some random obscure team and Tam is pretty chill about it #but Linh recruits Marella and Maruca and they go absolutely feral #And Rayni also supports that team and she and Linh begrudgingly act like friends for the sake of bramble #And the Heks and the Dizznees are on teams that are huuuge rivals which is the real route of the Heks and Dizznee rivalry #I need fanart

[sneakend]

Hyvää joulua, @fruzsislangblrstuff  !!! I had the honor of being your substitute santa for @langblrsecretsanta this year. I made a list of interesting Finnish Christmas traditions with related vocabulary. And since you like baking I added some Finnish recipes at the end! Hope you have a great year 2020!

♢ food ♢

Casseroles

Casseroles are a staple of Finnish Christmas, enough so that most people get sick of them by December 25th. The traditional Christmas dinner includes casseroles made of potatoes, carrots, liver and rutabaga. My family usually also includes a macaroni casserole even though this is a food that people eat throughout the year. It’s great for kids too since they’re often not that into the other casseroles. Moreover, sweet potato casserole has gained popularity in recent years and I think I even saw parsnip casserole at the grocery store this year.

laatikko = a casserole (the same word also means box so a cardboard box would be pahvilaatikko). The name of a specific casserole can be formed just by adding the name of a vegetable in front of this word, peruna (potato) + laatikko = perunalaatikko (potato casserole) just like in English.

bataatti = a sweet potato

lanttu = a rutabaga

palsternakka = a parsnip

peruna = a potato

porkkana = a carrot

makaroni = macaroni

maksa = a liver

Rosolli

A bound salad eaten mostly as a cold side dish, in particular as part of the traditional Finnish Christmas meal.

Rosolli is made of cooked, diced root vegetables, especially beetroot, carrot and potato, often combined with one or more of pickled cucumber (of either the vinegar or brine type), raw onion and apple. It is often served with a dressing made of whipped cream or a soured cream product available in Finland called kermaviili (being a type of viili made with sour cream), laced with vinegar or the pickling liquid of beetroot, which also colours the cream pink.

My personal opinion is that rosolli is gross but each to their own.

punajuuri = a beetroot

suolakurkku = pickled cucumber (literally “salt cucumber”)

etikka = vinegar

kermavaahto = whipped cream (literally “cream foam”)

Rice porridge (riisipuuro)

A warm porridge eaten with cinnamon and sugar. Can be eaten either as a dessert or breakfast on Christmas. A whole almond is hidden in the porridge and the one who finds it in their bowl gets to make a wish.

kaneli = cinnamon

sokeri = sugar

manteli = an almond

Christmas tart (joulutorttu)

A Finnish Christmas pastry, traditionally made from puff pastry in the shape of a star or pinwheel and filled with prune jam and often dusted with icing sugar. Lately people have also started using different jams or even caramel as a filling for these. Some years back there was some controversy in Sweden over the fact that some people think these pastries resemble swastikas. But not to worry, there are several different shapes one can choose from!

luumu = a prune/plum

Chocolate boxes

These are one of the most traditional (and lazy) gifts year after year. Every Christmas everyone gets at least a few of these, eats their favourites and leaves the rest to gather dust until they’re inedible. Every Christmas the supermarkets have special deals where you get a bunch of chocolate boxes relatively cheap (what’s really cheap in Finland?). The most popular are the ones by Fazer and Panda. Other popular Christmas sweets include green jellies, Julia and Budapest.

suklaarasia = a chocolate box

Glögg (glögi)

A Scandinavian, spiced, usually alcoholic drink, served warm. There are many different types in Finland, including a good selection of non-alcoholic glögg that’s sweet and even fit for children. The prices vary from under one euro to 20 euros (potentially even more). Some people add raisins and almonds to their glögg.

mauste = spice

rusina = a raisin

♢traditions♢

Little Christmas (pikkujoulu)

A Finnish traditional party held to anticipate Christmas. The Pikkujoulu party is non-formal, highly festive, and themed after Christmas. Pikkujoulu parties are held by various communities, organisations, companies, or just among friends. Pikkujoulu differs from Christmas as more free-form and less religious.

Saint Lucy’s Day (Lucian päivä) 

A Christian feast day observed on 13 December, commemorating Lucia of Syracuse, an early-4th-century martyr, who according to legend brought food and aid to Christians hiding in the Roman catacombs, wearing a candlelit wreath on her head to light her way and leave her hands free to carry as much food as possible. Her feast day, which coincided with the shortest day of the year prior to calendar reforms, is widely celebrated as a festival of light. Falling within the Advent season, Saint Lucy's Day is viewed as a precursor of Christmastide.

Saint Lucy's Day is celebrated most widely in Scandinavia and in Italy, with each emphasising a different aspect of her story. The Finnish celebrations have been historically tied to Swedish culture and the Swedish-speaking Finns. The St. Lucy of Finland has been elected since 1949 and she is crowned in the Helsinki Cathedral. Local St. Lucies are elected in almost every place where there is a Swedish populace in Finland. The Finnish-speaking population has also lately begun to embrace the celebrations. (Santa Lucia)

marttyyri = a martyr

pyhimys = a saint

seppele = a wreath

valo = light

Declaration of Christmas Peace (joulurauhan julistus)

Christmas Peace is a tradition based on old Scandinavian legislation created by Birger Jarl in the 13th century, extending the tradition of the Truce of God. Offenders who committed crimes on religious holidays like Christmas were given harsher punishments. The Declaration of Christmas Peace has remained in Finland where it is an essential part of the Christmas tradition.

Declaration of Christmas Peace is announced in several Finnish cities on Christmas Eve. The oldest and most popular event is held at noon at the Old Great Square of the former Finnish capital Turku where the declaration has been read since the 1320s. The Turku declaration has been broadcast by the Finnish Broadcasting Company since 1935. (on YouTube)

julistus = a declaration

rauha = peace

Kauneimmat joululaulut

Literally the most beautiful Christmas carols. An annual event organized by and held in local churches is numerous cities before Christmas. People gather to sing the most beloved Finnish Christmas carols and have a chance to donate money to a charity. The event has become an important Christmas tradition to a lot of people and many attend even if they aren’t religious.

kaunis = beautiful

laulu = a song

kirkko = a church

Heavy Christmas (Raskasta Joulua)

A music project from Finland founded by Erkka Korhonen. Raskasta Joulua have recorded traditional Christmas carols and Christmas hits in a Heavy metal style. Their albums and tours have featured appearances of many notable Finnish metal vocalists.  Raskasta Joulua have toured every year since 2005 and the 3 concert tour has become an annual tradition. (on YouTube | x | x | x)

Depressing Christmas carols

Many of the most beloved FInnish Christmas carols are quite melancholy and depressing. Here are some examples:

Varpunen jouluaamuna (The Sparrow on a Christmas Morning) - About a girl meeting her dead little brother who visits her in the form of a sparrow. (on YouTube)

Sylvian joululaulu (Sylvia's Christmas Song) - About a caged bird that can never return to its homeland. Zachris Topelius who wrote the original poem opposed the custom of trapping birds and piercing their eyes so they could be used to attract other birds. (on YouTube)

Konsta Jylhän joululaulu (Konsta Jylhä’s Christmas Carol) - About a little child visiting their mother’s grave on Christmas. (on YouTube)

Christmas sauna

You absolutely can’t have Christmas without sauna! It’s common to clean the sauna before Christmas and to use candles and lanterns to create a cozy atmosphere. It is also possible to buy a frozen vihta/vasta (a bunch of leafy, fragrant silver birch used to gently beat oneself) in some stores and thaw it for Christmas. Moreover, in Finland elves aren’t limited to Christmas elves but it’s believed that every sauna has its own elf that takes care of it.

♢items♢

Candles

Though candles are common in many places during Christmas, in Finland one should visit a graveyard during Christmas Eve to either light a candle or to simply admire the hundreds of candles already burning. For the Finnish independece day on 6th of December many also buy special blue and white candles (the colors are the same as in the Finnish flag).

kynttilä = a candle

hautausmaa = a graveyard

Poinsettia

This is a very popular Christmas flower in Finland and can be found in nearly all stores that sell flowers in December. It is called joulutähti in Finnish, which literally means Christmas star. People often gift this to others during Christmas. Hyacinths are another common Christmas flower and stores sell them in many different colors.

kukka = a flower

hyasintti = hyacinth

Elf door (tonttuovi)

A tiny decorative door through which the Christmas elves can wander. These are a rather recent craze in FInland but every year it’s possible to find more and more acessories for elf doors in the stores. There are tiny mailboxes, snowmen, sleds, presents, lanterns, Christmas trees, brooms etc. It’s possible to make an elf door by yourself, to buy one you have to paint or to get one that’s completely ready to set up.

ovi = a door

tonttu = an elf (like a Christmas elf, not Legolas)

kelkka = a sled

lumiukko = a snowman

lyhty = a lantern

Advent calendar (joulukalenteri)

Though many Finns swear by the traditional chocolate advent calendar, other options have become available in the recent years. There are the ever popular tea, toy and cosmetics calendars but also ones for cats and dogs, calendars filled with fishing equipment and the most Finnish of all, a salmiakki advent calendar. Additionally, this year an ice cream calendar was released by Vanhan Porvoon jäätelötehdas. Nokian panimo also created a beer calendar consisting of 24 000 beer cans and costing 48 000 euros.

salmiakki = salty liquorice

jäätelö = ice cream

kalja/olut = beer

♢tv♢

Santa’s hotline (Joulupukin Kuuma linja)

A tv show shown every Christmas in which children can call Santa. People can also send Christmas greetings through email and they are read during the show. In between the calls different Christmas themed cartoons are played. (on YouTube)

The Joulukalenteri

Finnish for "The Christmas Calendar"; the English word "the" is part of the name, making it approximately "The The Christmas calendar". It was a 1997 Finnish television miniseries produced by MTV3 that was broadcast again in 1998, 2007 and 2017. It was based on the Danish series The Julekalender from 1991. The series came out in December 1997 with one episode per day, concluding on Christmas Eve. It’s still popular to this day and caused nightmares for me when I was a kid. (Different advent calendar shows for children are popular in Finland but this one’s aimed at adults.)

Santa Claus and the Magic Drum  (Joulupukki ja noitarumpu)

A 51 minute long Finnish-Hungarian animation released in 1996. The story is based on a 1995 children's book of the same name by Mauri Kunnas. The movie has been recorded in Finnish, English (British) and Swedish. It was made for TV broadcasting and was first shown on Christmas Eve 1996, and has been broadcast on YLE TV2 nearly every Christmas Eve since. (on YouTube)

joulupukki = Santa Claus

noita = a witch

rumpu = a drum

♢recipes♢

Christmas

potato casserole

carrot casserole

rutabaga casserole

macaroni casserole (I’m vegetarian so I always make this without eggs and replace the meat with soy)

rosolli

rice porridge

Christmas tart

More Finnish pastries

Runeberg torte (Runebergin torttu) = a Finnish pastry flavored with almonds and arrack or rum. It usually has raspberry jam encircled by a ring of icing on top. The torte is named after the Finnish poet Johan Ludvig Runeberg (1804–1877) who, according to legend, regularly enjoyed the torte with punsch for breakfast. Runeberg tortes are typically eaten only in Finland and are generally available in stores from the beginning of January to Runeberg's birthday on February 5.

Pulla = a mildly-sweet Finnish sweet roll or dessert bread flavored with crushed cardamom seeds and occasionally raisins or sliced almonds. Typically coated with egg wash and then sprinkled with white sugar or almonds.

Semla = a traditional sweet roll associated with Lent and especially Shrove Tuesday. Today, the Swedish-Finnish semla consists of a cardamom-spiced wheat bun which has its top cut off, and is then filled with a mix of milk and almond paste, topped with whipped cream. The cut-off top serves as a lid and is dusted with powdered sugar. In Finland, the bun is often filled with strawberry or raspberry jam instead of almond paste, and bakeries in Finland usually offer both versions.

pancake (pannukakku) = Structurally, the Finnish pancake resembles a hotcake, and is baked in an oven instead of using a frying pan.

Karelian pasty (karjalanpiirakka) = traditional pasties or pirogs from the region of Karelia. Today, the most familiar and common version has a thin rye crust with a filling of rice. Mashed potato and rice-and-carrot fillings are also commonly available. Butter, often mixed with chopped-up boiled egg (egg butter or munavoi), is spread over the hot pasties before eating.

spoon cookies (lusikkaleivät) = Lusikkaleivät are Finnish "spoon" cookies so named because they are shaped with a spoon. The inside of the spoon cookies is filled with a berry jam, either raspberry or strawberry.

mocha brownies (mokkapalat) = perhaps the most common treat in every child’s birthday party.

#christmas #finnish #finland #langblrsecretsanta2019 #langblr