(no subject)
So yesterday I got in the mail the edition of Kalevala I ordered, and along with it a CD called "The Kalevala Heritage: Archive Recordings of Ancient Finnish Songs."
I'm going to take issue with this title, and I'm going to start taking issue... now.
Firstly, all the recordings were made either in Russian Karelia or *of* Russian Karelians, or both. Secondly, they aren't singing in Finnish per se - they are singing in a range of Karelian and Ingrian dialects, not all of them always mutually understandable with standard Finnish. Thirdly, the Kalevala runes and other musical relics of the Finno-Ugric shamanistic past only survived long enough to be recorded on Russian-ruled territories, thanks in large part to the Orthodox faith, which is rather forgiving of pagan traditions, as opposed to Lutheranism, which completely subverted and destroyed this traditional singing in Finland proper.
Fun coincidence: the packages arrived yesterday, on the 28th of February, which is the traditional Kalevala day in Finland. I didn't know there was a Kalevala day on February 28th. Hell, I didn't even know there was a Kalevala day. I only found out today after reading through a Russian site about the Kalevala.
On 28th of February, the compiler of the epic Elias Lönnrot signed the typescript of the book into publication, outfitting the Finnish people with a national epos which they, ironically, still have difficulties reading, on account of it having been cribbed, as I said, entirely from Russian Karelians.
I'm going to take issue with this title, and I'm going to start taking issue... now.
Firstly, all the recordings were made either in Russian Karelia or *of* Russian Karelians, or both. Secondly, they aren't singing in Finnish per se - they are singing in a range of Karelian and Ingrian dialects, not all of them always mutually understandable with standard Finnish. Thirdly, the Kalevala runes and other musical relics of the Finno-Ugric shamanistic past only survived long enough to be recorded on Russian-ruled territories, thanks in large part to the Orthodox faith, which is rather forgiving of pagan traditions, as opposed to Lutheranism, which completely subverted and destroyed this traditional singing in Finland proper.
Fun coincidence: the packages arrived yesterday, on the 28th of February, which is the traditional Kalevala day in Finland. I didn't know there was a Kalevala day on February 28th. Hell, I didn't even know there was a Kalevala day. I only found out today after reading through a Russian site about the Kalevala.
On 28th of February, the compiler of the epic Elias Lönnrot signed the typescript of the book into publication, outfitting the Finnish people with a national epos which they, ironically, still have difficulties reading, on account of it having been cribbed, as I said, entirely from Russian Karelians.