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List of minor Finnish deities
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List of minor deities in Finnish mythology.
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In Modern Finnish, deity-like figures in Finnish mythology are often described with two words: jumala and haltija. Risto Pulkkinen described a jumala as a being who rules over a wider concept, such as water, while a haltija is more localized, ruling over a specific body of water. According to him, there is only a small number of beings in Finnish paganism which could be called jumala, but a wide variety of haltija beings.[1]
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Etelätär
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Etelätär, Suetar or Suvetar (all lit. 'Lady South') is a luonnotar and, according to Christfried Ganander, sunny weather itself.[2] She's on the move in the spring when it's raining and southern wind blows: this was ideal time to let cows to pasture, as she would protect the cattle in her embrace. During northern wind, evil things were on the move instead.[3] In runic songs, she is asked to bring refreshing wind and healing rain,[2] as well as look after cattle.[4]
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Hillervo and Juoletar
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Hillervo and Juoletar are a pair of water related haltijas known from one runic song collected by Christfried Ganander. He identified Hillervo as the Mother of Otters and Juoletar as her husband, a beautiful man and Finnish Neptune.[10][11] This has awoken a lot of questions among researchers, as they don't appear in other runic songs, and Juoletar is an explicitly feminine name with the final suffix -tar. According to Martti Haavio's theory, Hillervo was originally the Mother of Polecats, but as polecats only lived in Finland between the 13th and 17th centuries (before returning in the 20th century), Hillervo of polecat hunting spells was reutilized in otter hunting spells. Haavio connected the name Juoletar to the name Kuolari mentioned in a Ladoga Karelian, Karelian language otter-hunting song, believing it to have originally been *Juolari. Therefore, Juoletar would be the original Mother of Otters, or the Elder of Otters (whether the rune singer referred to Juoletar as a mistress or a king).[12]
Some researchers, such as Haavio and Matthias Castrén, have supported the theory that Hillervo would be the same goddess as Tellervo. Haavio suggested her name could come from either the word killeri ("trap") or hilleri ("polecat"), finding the latter theory more likely.[12] Kaarle Krohn suggested origins in hilla ("cloudberry") and hilleri as well. Krohn also suggested a connection to Hilasatar, maiden of Hiisi, mentioned in a Kainuu runic song describing the origin of copper (sharing similarities with the runic songs describing the origin of the common lizard). In Krohn's opinion, these names could be connected to Saint Hilarius.[13]
The name Juoletar has been theorized to come from either juolukka ("bog bilberry", known in Swedish as utterbär "otter berry")[13] or the word juolua ("oxbow lake"). Haavio thought these two words could be connected to each other, further connecting to an older name of the otter or a description of an otter's place of living (calling juolua "river fork which periodically dries up").[12]
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Juonetar
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Juonetar, Juonitar or Uramatar is a haltija or goddess who only appears in two written down runic songs, one being from Kainuu and the other from Ladoga Karelia. Both songs are spells or prayers for hunting forest reindeer. For this reason, Martti Haavio identified Juonetar as the Mother of Reindeer. The songs ask Juonetar to make her "lines" run through the bluish forests and for Uramatar not to cover up animal tracks.
Kaarle Krohn initially thought Juonetar was but a corruption of Johannes (John the Baptist). Later, he also suggested Juonetar could be the personification of juoni or ura ("track"). Haavio connected the word to Karelian juoni ("line of reindeer; reindeer tracks in snow") and Sámi juone ("reindeer path; path of reindeer tracks in snow"). Similarly, the Finnish word ura means "a narrow path; path of sheep" as well as a path made my cows. With this connection, Uramatar would be synonymous with Juonetar in meaning.[17]
Epithets
Köndös
Köndös is a deity mentioned by Mikael Agricola in 1551 as the creator swiddens and fields. E.N. Setälä connected the name to Mari language kinda "grain, bread". He also wondered if it was related to the Finnish word köynnös "vine".[20] In the 1930s, Uno Harva connected him to the Eastern Finnish folklore figure Köntys ("clumsy person"), who created swiddens by cutting down trees, being very strong but also clumsy. R.E. Nirvi wrote that "creating swiddens and fields" should be understood as sowing swiddens and fields. This is why Harva later connected Köndös to Sampsa Pellervoinen instead.[21] Martti Haavio thought Köndös was actually Saint Urban of Langres, the patron of vineyards.[22]
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Osmotar
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Osmotar is a kave brewing the first beer in the runic songs describing the origin of beer. Despite her best attempts, she can't get the drink to ferment so she summons animals to help her. She does the summoning by rubbing her hands together, which is a shamanistic method. The beer brewing happens in the center of the world.[23] A marten brings her the drool of fighting animals which finally works. Yeast was not available to Finns in the past, so the drool of a boar was one of the alternatives used in beer making.[24]
The word osmo means a wolverine or a bear, depending on the dialect.[25] It is also used as a synonym for Kaleva, as well as a synonym for "bridegroom".[26] Haavio believed the name Osmotar was not a feminine derivate of the word Osmo at all, but a compound word of os-motar, "plant juice lees" or in other words, "yeast". He also believed the word "kapo" in her epithet doesn't mean a kave, but kabu (Russian: "small bread").[25] Anna-Leena Siikala thought Haavio was mistaken in this view, as Osmotar's names also appear in other contexts outside of beer brewing.[27]
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Otavatar
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Otavatar (lit. 'Lady Big Dipper') is a luonnotar or goddess asked to light up the night sky in order to make it easier to find a lost object in the night, or find the thief of a lost object. According to Christfried Ganander, she is a goddess from the Big Dipper[33] and, according to Carl Axel Gottlund, although it is a part of the Ursa Major constellation, it is personified as a girl with the feminine name Otavatar.[34] Along with her appears Kipinätär (lit. 'Lady Spark'), who is called Hiisi's cat, and who protects items and scares away thieves.[35][36] A runic song from the Karelian Isthmus says a cloth weaved by a girl is so fine, it's as if it was made by Kuutar, Otavatar, and/or Tähetär (lit. 'Lady Star').[37]
Otavatar's sole epithet is Otavatar, päivän tyttö ("Otavatar, girl of the sun").[33]
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Panu
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Panu in runic songs means fire, flame or personified fire haltija. Panu is called a sunny son, created by sun goddess Auringotar.[38] Kainuu runic singers considered Panu a very powerful word for fire: mentioning it in spells was essential. However, when asked what kind of deity Panu was, answers varied from fire's protector to birther to mother, etc. In Kainuu and Laplandic songs, Panu also has the epithet Panu parka, Tuonen poika ("Poor Panu, son of Tuoni").[39] According to Anna-Leena Siikala, the word panu is of Baltic origin.[40]
The feminine form Panutar (or Pannatar) also exists in runic songs: Christfried Ganander called her the serpent's milkmaid who caused burning and pain.[41] Runic songs from Kainuu, Lapland, North Savo, Olonets Karelia and Ostrobothnia also describe that a spark of fire has feathers of panuttaret (feminine Panutar in plural).[42] An Olonets Karelian song also calls humans of panuttaret, and a great creation of Panutar.[43]
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Rongoteus
Rongoteus is a haltija or god of rye first mentioned by Mikael Agricola in 1551. In 1761, I.D. Alopaeus wrote Rongotäus was worshipped in North Savo in order to make rye grow. Runic songs feature the names in multiple forms, such as Runkoteivas, Runkateivas, Runkateira, Rukitohvana, Rukitehvana and Rukotivo. J.J. Mikkola thought the -teus and -teivas endings came from Proto-Germanic *tīwaz "god", like the Old Icelandic word tivar'. Kaarle Krohn supported this view. Because of the -tehvana and -tohvana endings, Martti Haavio thought it came from Saint Stephen, Theodorus and Theophanes. Anna-Leena Siikala thought Mikkola's explanation was more likely due to the long history of Finno-Ugric rye farming.[46] The name Runkateivas was unknown to 19th century runic song collectors, as multiple misspelled the genetive of the name as "Runkat ej vaan" and "Runka tei vai". His sole epithet is rukiinen ("(made) of rye"): e.g. Rukkiinen Runkateira.[47]
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Sanervatar
Sanervatar is a sauna haltija mentioned only in runic songs from Kainuu. When a sick person is being bathed, she is asked to bring heat and löyly into the sauna but keep them out of the wounds so they won't hurt the patient.[48] A runic song from Ostrobothnia mentions a being named Auteretar in the same context of bathing the sick. She is called the creator of löyly.[49] Her name is thought to come from the Finnish word auer ("sun haze").[50]
Sanervatar's sole epithet is saunapiika ("sauna maid").[48]
Sources
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