Animal Myths and Legends In Finnish Folklore

In the past, Finland was largely an agricultural society. Because they destroyed rats and other rodents, cats were considered very valuable animals. Many households had "lyylieläin," domesticated wild animals that resided on farms, though not in the same way that we today keep pets in our houses. These creatures were fed and cared for by people. They were thought to bring luck to the family and the property. Lyylieläin might, for instance, be a cat, a snake, or even a wild deer.

In Finnish folk tales, the fox is described to be cunning, smart, and careful. These attributes fit into real-life foxes as well. In ancient Finland, foxes were hunted because of their precious fur. Foxes have a highly developed sense of smell all and fox traps were kept extremely clean. People used to scrub them with pine cones to get rid of the human scent. Foxes were (and are) very smart animals and people had difficulties catching them. It was believed that the person who managed to catch foxes had strong shamanistic powers. According to folklore fox´s emuu (the creator spirit) in Finnish mythology is Käreitär goddess of the flame or goddess called Lukutar. Her name is derived from the word lukka meaning sand bench which are common places for fox’s dens.

Each type of animal and plant has its own emuu in Finnish mythology. Emuu, which means mother in ancient Finnish, was a legendary being. In the myths of the Finns, Saami, and Latvians, Emuus are present. Many Emuus were thought to be hybrids of humans and animals in Finland, and they were frequently depicted as female deities.

Tahvatar was a deity who ruled over Emuus. Fewer and fewer myths about Tahvatar still exist. She was thought to be extremely similar to the Gallo-Roman deity Epona. Tahvatar had the ability to change into other animals, including horses. In Finland, it was customary to invoke Tahvatar's blessings before releasing horses into the fields in the spring.

In many cultures, ravens have been revered and feared as birds. Ravens were strong creatures associated with witchcraft in prehistoric Finland, and shamans frequently kept them as pets. Knowing all of the birth stories was crucial for the shaman, wise man, or wise woman since it was thought that if you knew the magical beginnings of everything, you could then control it.

There are many archaeological finds made from different parts of Finland which suggest that there has been two major clans, the bear clan and the moose clan. It is also possible that under these two major clans there have been smaller clans (clan of the swan, clan of the lynx..). When the area of Finland was first populated after the ice age 10 000 years ago first tribes who arrived were small hunter-collecter communities who had totemic belief systems. Moose and the bear were important animals. From Finnish cave paintings, one can find moose, deer and snakes but not bears. Since the name of the bear was a tabu, perhaps painting the image of the god was tabu as well.

In the Finnish context, working with väki was essentially what a person was doing when they practiced witchcraft. Nature, trees, animals, and all the elements have their own väkis. In Finnish mythology, the concept of the elements is particularly prevalent, and each element has its own väki. There are four types of väki: ilmanväki (for the air), tulenväki (for the fire), maanväki (for the soil), and vedenväki (for the water). Because of the healing properties of water as well as the fact that water was regarded as something eternal, väki of the water was thought to be the most potent of the elements.

The bear cult in Finland dates back 4000–2000 bc. In the animistic belief, the system bear was one of the most sacred totem animals and was considered as the mythical ancestor. Bear worship was common among several other Finnic and Samojedi tribes in Siberia and we can assume that these people were connected to each other. Ostjak tribe in Siberia has a bear myth that is also known in Finland.

About 7000 years ago, agriculture was introduced to what is now Finland, but even then, fishing and hunting continued to play a significant role in the culture. The connection to the elements—earth, fire, air, and water—was one of the most prevalent aspects of traditional Finnish belief. Because they were nearest to people, earth and water elements in particular were crucial. Different elements were classified into invisible spirits, creatures, and plants. Animals played a significant role in Finnish folklore and are frequently depicted in songs and folk magic.

Here is a pdf book of Finnish animal myths that you can download for yourself.