Wedding customs in the Baltic countries

A typical European country with vast land and sparsely populated areas. In the population structure, 62% are urban and 38% rural; 48.6% are male and 51.4% are female.

One of the longest-lived countries in the world. The average life expectancy of male and female citizens reaches 73 and 80 years respectively. People over 65 years old account for 14% of the national population, and those over 85 years old account for 1.3%. Due to Finland's special natural conditions make its population distribution extremely unbalanced between the north and the south. The south is dense, with 100 people per square kilometer along the Gulf of Finland; the north is sparse, with only 2 people per square kilometer in Lapland, and there are many areas with less than one person per square kilometer.

The Finns account for 93.5% of the population, the Swedish account for 6.2%, and there are also a small number of Laplanders, Gypsies, and Germans. and Jews.

Language and Religion

Historically, Finland has always had two languages ??running in parallel. The 1919 constitution stipulates that both Finnish and Swedish are "the national languages ??of the Republic of China"

Lutherans account for 92% of the residents, and the other sect is the Orthodox Church, accounting for 1.7% of the total population. The non-religious population accounts for 5.8%

Folk customs

For Finland in Northern Europe, three words that people are familiar with are: Santa Claus, sauna and Nokia.

The hometown of Santa Claus According to historical legends, Finland was the first hometown to welcome Santa Claus to settle down. In 1927, Finland and the Soviet Union determined the "Ear Mountain" in Elabi Province as the national boundary between the two countries leading to the Arctic Ocean. The Finnish children's story king Marcus was inspired by this. When telling stories on the radio, he said that Santa Claus lives on this "Ear Mountain" together with 20,000 reindeer. It is because of the "ears" that Santa Claus can live on the "Ear Mountain". The North Pole hears the voices of all the children of the world. His infectious romantic reasoning gained recognition from the world. Since then, the "Ear Mountain" in the story has become the hometown of Santa Claus.

Sauna Bath Sauna bathing began in Finland and has a history of thousands of years. Among the country's population of more than 5 million, there are 1.92 million saunas (as of June 2003), with an average of 3 to 4 people per bathroom. The bathroom is a hut with a log structure. The hut is airtight on all sides. There is a large iron stove in the middle, which is filled with stones. When taking a bath, the stones are burned with wood and water is poured on the stones. Steam suddenly fills the whole house, and the room temperature is as high as 39 ~50℃. Bathers enter naked and are soon covered in sweat. The bather is enveloped in steam, feeling relaxed and at ease. Bathers pat the body with birch branches with leaves to induce sweating and promote blood circulation, which is beneficial to health. Finns have been exposed to the fumigation of saunas almost since childhood, nestled in their mother's arms. "Sauna" has become a place for Finns to interact with each other and is the true national quintessence of Finland.

Women’s social status In Europe, Finnish women were the first to gain the right to vote. They have the same status in society and career achievements as men, and have exactly the same rights. Women account for 1/3 of parliamentarians, and the proportion of female members in various political parties ranges from 30 to 70%. Half of the country's civil servants are women. Women's participation in economic life has contributed to economic success. The employment rate of women reaches 55%, the highest rate in the world. A significant number of women are engaged in technical occupations.

Wedding etiquette of the Lapland people. Generally, young people get engaged in January and get married on the market day in January of the following year so that after the wedding ceremony, a wedding banquet can be held to entertain guests. The guests at the banquet give money or reindeer to the groom and bride depending on their ability. The bride price is replaced by reindeer. The bride and groom start their new life with the reindeer herd or the money they receive.

On the wedding day, the bride and groom exchange wedding rings. Like the Finns, the bride is given a ring at the time of engagement. After marriage, on any memorable day, the husband will give his wife a ring.

Deer Racing Festival March 15th is the Deer Racing Festival of the Laplanders. The Deer Racing Festival is divided into deer driving competition and rope routine competition. Deer racing: A reindeer handles a racing deer. The lake is used as a track, and the race distance is 2 kilometers. Deer racing is more difficult than horse racing. This is an excellent sport to exercise people's bravery and cultivate reindeer skills. Rope roping competition: a target is erected in the arena, and the lasso is thrown to the target from a certain distance. A skilled person can trap the target accurately.

Midsummer Festival June 24 is the Midsummer Festival celebrated by the Finnish people. This day has the longest day and the shortest night, making it a great time to appreciate the "day". On this day, the sun is visible day and night in northern Finland, which is the so-called "Eternal Day". Even on the Baltic Sea coast in the south, dusk isn't until 10 p.m. According to Finnish custom, this holiday is as important as Christmas. On this day every year, the whole country rejoices, flags are hung everywhere, shops are closed, and employees go to participate in singing and dancing and other activities to celebrate the festival.

The national flowers are lily of the valley and hydrangea.

History

The name of the country is said to originate from the Germanic language, which means searching or nomadic. One theory is that the Finns call themselves "Somi", which means the country of lakes and swamps.

Before the 12th century, Finland was in the primitive commune stage. Became subordinate to Sweden in 1155. In the Russo-Swedish War of 1808-1909, Sweden was defeated and Finland became a grand principality of Russia. On December 6, 1917, it was declared an independent republic.

After the Soviet-Finnish War of 1939-1940, the unequal Soviet-Finnish Peace Treaty was signed. In 1947, the Paris Peace Treaty was signed with the Soviet Union and other countries, which ceded territory and paid reparations. Finland became a member of the European Union on January 1, 1995.

On March 1, 2000, Tarja Halonen, the first female president in Finnish history, took office. She was elected in the general election on February 6 of the same year with 51.6% of the vote.

Politics

The July 1919 Constitution stipulates that legislative power is exercised by the Congress and the President. After the constitution was revised in 1999, some of the president’s powers were weakened.

Parliament is the highest legislative and power organ, unicameral. The term is 4 years.

Government The prime minister and ministers of the government are appointed by the president. On April 15, 2003, the first female Prime Minister in Finnish history, Jettem?ki Anneli, officially took office. However, he resigned in June due to a "political scandal", ending the first situation in Europe where women served as president and prime minister at the same time.

The judiciary adopts a dual system of justice, with the Supreme Court and the Supreme Administrative Court as the highest judicial organs. The prosecuting authority is the procuratorate at all levels.

Economy

In the 2003/2004 global national economic competitiveness rankings, Finland ranked first (second in the previous year). The pillars of Finland's economy are forests, metals and high-tech industries. Since the 1980s, the development of high technology has been regarded as a basic national policy. Its representative is Nokia.

Economic development has entered the world's advanced ranks, and national income has reached the world's highest income level. Since 1993, Finland's real GDP has grown at an average annual rate of nearly 5%. At present, the per capita GDP has reached 26,800 euros. A country with high welfare, high wages and high burdens.

Forest industry The Finns themselves call it the “green treasury”. The forest industry has become a major pillar of the national economy. Finland's forest factory output accounts for 5% of the world's total output. It is the world's third largest exporter of paper and cardboard, accounting for 25% of world exports, and is also the world's fourth largest exporter of pulp. There are 440,000 private forest owners in the country. UPM Group, the largest forest industry company with a history of more than 100 years, is one of the 500 largest companies in the world. Its strategic goal is to move towards the goal of becoming "the world's leading forest industry company".

Metal Industry Metallurgical industry technology has taken a leading position in the world, and it is the only country in the world that can produce complete sets of forest industry equipment.

Electronic information technology industry Nokia Corporation can manufacture world-class products from optical cables to large-scale computer communication network equipment, and some of its products have entered the international market. In the 2003-2004 "Global Information Technology Competitiveness" rankings, Finland ranked third.

Nokia Corporation is the world's most productive electronics company, headquartered in a small town in southwestern Finland named Nokia with the same name as the river. Its development turned the Finnish economy around. Nokia was founded in 1865 and has been engaged in paper making and chemical industry for a long time. Traditional industries such as rubber and cables. It shifted to telecommunications in the 1960s, and developed high-paying technology and information technology (IT) industries in the 1980s and 1990s. The world's first mobile phone was produced in 1984, but it looked like a small suitcase. Four years later, the "urbanite" mobile car phone came out and became the prototype of a real mobile phone. In 1992, the Nokia 100 series became a member of the world's first generation mobile phone family. In 1993, the "Nokia 1001" was the world's first pocket phone using GSM technology. In the late 1990s, Nokia became a world-class enterprise, with sales reaching 30 billion euros (annual), exceeding 20% ??of the GDP. Its product exports accounted for 4% of the country's exports and 2/3 of the stock market value. 3. It is the locomotive of Finland’s economy.

Cultural Economy

Education

The 1958 law stipulated that eight years of compulsory education should be implemented, but the actual implementation is nine years of compulsory and free education (6 years of primary school, 3 years of junior high school). The Comprehensive Compulsory Education Law was promulgated in 1970 and implemented nationwide in early 1980.

Finnish secondary education is divided into higher secondary education and vocational education. Finland implements educational freedom and allows the establishment of private schools with state funding.

In recent years, higher education in Finland has become more popular. The University of Helsinki is the oldest university in Finland. It was founded in 1640 and has a history of more than 360 years. It is the largest university in Northern Europe today.

Literature

Oral literature appeared in the 13th century, and its symbol is the legendary story-the hymn "The Death of Bishop Henry". By the 16th century, oral literature had further developed, and many folk songs reflecting people's lives and labors had been produced.

In the 1830s, Finnish literature began a new stage, and a bright pearl - the Finnish national epic "Kalevala" (ie "The Land of Heroes") was born. It was edited with the support of the Finnish Literary Society by Elias Langrot (1802-1844), an outstanding Finnish folk literature writer, who spent more than 10 years of effort. People call Langrot the "Finnish Homer".

At the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, New Romanticism quietly entered the Finnish literary world.

Its main representative is the poet and literary critic Aino Reno (1878-1926).

The most famous writer, Sirenpe (1888-1964), won the Nobel Prize in 1939.

After World War II, a large number of literary works describing war appeared. In the 1950s and 1960s, Finnish poetry, especially lyric poetry, was influenced by the West, and modernism emerged. Many writers continue to use realist methods in their work. For example, the famous writer Paavo Lintala (1930~) was a prolific realist writer. In the 1960s, he created many works that reflected major events in Finland's modern history, such as "Children", "My Grandmother and the Marshal" and " Reconnaissance Lieutenant" and so on.

Art

The art of painting originated in the 18th century, and its main representatives are the most famous.

The most prolific church decorative artist Michel Topelius (1734-1821) and landscape painter Elias Martin (1739-1818). There were two most famous artists in the 19th century, Gustav Finberg (1784-1833) and Robert Wilhelm Ecomann (1808-1873). Ecomann's works had nationalist characteristics. , praised as the "Father of Finnish Painting".

In the mid-19th century, there were three very important representatives who showed their talents on the Finnish art stage. They are: Edelfeldt, Shijelfbeck and Garland-Callera. In the 1890s, because Edfelt's works reflected the spirit of nationalism, he became Finland's main "art master" and won French recognition of Finnish art.

In the 1930s, the Finnish art scene was very active, and many new art groups were established. Many art exhibitions were held in the newly built Helsinki Art Hall. In 1935, a "Free Painting School" was established and a modern gallery for new artists was established. In order to promote the development of future art careers, the Art Foundation was created.

City

Helsinki has a history of more than 400 years as the capital. It is located on a narrow peninsula extending into the Gulf of Finland and is surrounded on three sides by the Baltic Sea. The population is 555,000, and together with the satellite cities of Espoo, Vantaa, and Kauniainen, the total population is 1 million. Area is 680 square kilometers. There are 315 islands, large and small, with a water area of ??501 square kilometers.

The political, economic and cultural center of Finland is also the largest port in Finland. Helsinki is worthy of being the capital of the "Land of Thousand Lakes" and the "Forest Kingdom". The city is dotted with lakes, dotted in the streets and alleys; the numerous lakes are in various shapes and sizes, shining like "blue eyes". Around Helsinki, the lush and boundless forests extend into the city from all directions. The streets and alleys are green, like a girl's head with "golden green hair shining". The bronze statue of "Sea Goddess" Amanda, built in the early 20th century, is one of the symbols of Helsinki. The neoclassical building complex located on Senate Square in the city center was built after Helsinki became the capital of Finland in 1812. It is the essence of Finnish architectural art. The central square of the building complex covers an area of ??more than 7,000 square meters. The main building is a milky white cathedral. The light green domed bell tower on the top is the symbol of Helsinki. The Finnish Building on the shores of Dre Bay is a modern-style multi-functional building. Adjacent to it is the tranquil National Center for the Performing Arts.

The summer days in Helsinki are exceptionally long, with up to 20 hours of sunshine a day. Therefore, people call Helsinki "the capital where the sun never sets."

Helsinki is Finland’s largest industrial center and the country’s largest foreign trade port, responsible for about 50% of the foreign trade cargo turnover.

Helsinki is known as a "university town". It is home to the University of Helsinki, the largest university in Northern Europe, as well as the famous Helsinki University of Technology, Helsinki School of Economics and Management, the National Academy of Sciences, and various museums (63 ), libraries (57), concert halls (10) and opera houses. The art of architecture is world-famous. Mannahan Avenue is a cultural center lined with beautiful buildings and cultural facilities. Sibelius Park in the city is a major attraction in Helsinki.

Helsinki is covered with snow for five months a year, and there are many white buildings in the city, making it known as the "White Capital of Northern Europe".

Turku is the oldest city in Finland. Turku is the third largest city in Finland and the capital of the province of Turku-Pali. It was a commercial center developed from a fortress built by the Swedes. In 1525, King Gustav Varsa of Sweden granted Turku city rights. In the mid-16th century it became the Finnish Park and then the capital of the Great Park. Since the 14th century, Turku has become the country's foreign trade center.

An important industrial center and transportation center in Finland. Turku inherits the fine tradition of an ancient trade center and is still the second largest foreign trade port in Finland and an important cultural center in Finland after Helsinki.

Tourism

Two-thirds of the country is covered by forests, and lush trees and lawns can be seen everywhere; dotted among the green forests are hundreds of thousands of large and small trees. Lakes and numerous islands form a unique landscape. The “Land of Thousand Lakes” is indeed well-deserved.

Starting from Helsinki and heading west, you can take a plane or train to Turku, the provincial capital of the ancient capital Turku. From there, transfer to a ship to the town of Marjanhamina in the ?land Islands where the Maritime Museum is located; go to the central lake area , you can fly to the cultural center, Jyv?skyl?, the capital of Central Finland, and the city of Kuopio on the shores of Lake Kara, the capital of Kuau; to the north, you can fly to the Arctic Circle, which is only a hundred kilometers away from the Finnish border. Ilowa on the shores of Lake Nali, then transfer to a car to sightsee the natural scenery of the Arctic, and finally arrive at the unique Arctic Village.

The best season for traveling is June to September every year. When you come to Finland during this season, you can see the rare spectacle of "polar daylight" in the world, and you can also see the joyful scenes of people celebrating "Midsummer Festival".

The ancient city of Rauma is located in the ancient city of Rauma (Old City) on the Baltic Sea coast in southwestern Finland. It was built in 1442 and covers an area of ??28 hectares. Except for a few buildings built with stone in the Middle Ages, most of the buildings in the city are wooden houses, making it the most complete and largest "wooden city" in Northern Europe. To this day, the city still maintains its medieval style, with winding and narrow roads and primitive architectural styles. More than 200 antique shops are scattered throughout the city. In 1991, UNESCO listed it as a "World Cultural Heritage".

The Nautical Museum is located in the city of Marianhamina, Ahwainama Islands. The exhibits in the museum are rich and colorful, which is an eye-opener for visitors. There is also an ocean-going sailing ship "Pomern" parked on the pier outside the museum. This is the last ocean-going sailing ship in the world.

Arctic Village is a newly built tourist attraction. Santa's new home was set up under the inspiration of US President Mrs. Rose. After the end of World War II, she visited Finland and visited Rovaniemi, the capital of the northern province of Rabi. The city had been razed to the ground by the war, and there were few beautiful sights to please the eyes of this distinguished guest. The Arctic Circle crossing the outskirts of the city suddenly made the owner think in a hurry, so he built a cabin with an area of ??only 10 square meters at a point within the Arctic Circle at 66°33′07″ north latitude and 25°50′51″ east longitude. For Mrs. Roosevelt to stop and enjoy the polar scenery. Guests are quite interested in this. This small wooden house is the prototype of Arctic Village.

The Finns saw that the wonderful and impressive geographical location in the world was very attractive to foreigners, so they began to build the Arctic Village. In the 1960s, a map sign board was set up to mark the location of the polar circle, and products for selling polar travel souvenirs and postal points dedicated to accepting Santa Claus mail were gradually built. Today, at the entrance of the small town of Arctic Village, there is an Arctic Circle commemorative plaque written in four languages. Arctic Village has many beautiful and wonderful natural scenery. If you come here in the summer, you can watch the unforgettable midnight sun that never sets; if you come here in the winter, you can see the rare Northern Lights in the world in the clear sky where the sun never sets day and night. The "Santa Claus Hometown Project" adds to the Arctic style and makes visitors forget to leave. Among them, "Santa Claus Workshop" is the most fascinating. There is a Santa Claus office in a corner of the "workshop" in case Santa Claus meets children and important guests. Santa's assistants are a group of "fairy children" wearing pointed red hats, commonly known as "elves".

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