In researching the various pantheons of gods, I came across several pantheons that I hadn't considered...although I probably should have. One of which was the Finnish Gods. These should not be confused with the Norse Gods, although Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, and the Faeroe Islands all comprise Scandinavia. The main traditional Finnish Mythology is found in the work called Kalevala, which is an ancient Finnish Epic.
For your research pleasure, we have found and added Kalevala to the Visual Adjectives Book Store. You may find it here:
While Kalevala will provide you with the mythology and lore of Finland, here is a list of the gods and brief descriptions of them:
*Disclaimer* There are no proper punctuation marks on some of these names.
Ahti, God of the depths, giver of fish.
Ajatar, an evil forest spirit.
Akka, a female spirit, the feminine counterpart of "Ukko"
Akras, the god of fertility and the protector of plants, especially the turnip.
Anter Vipunen, deceased giant, protector of deep knowledge and magic.
Hiisi, demon, originally meaning sacred grove, later a mean goblin.
Iku-Turso, a malevolent sea monster, is probably the same as Tursas.
Ilmarinen, the great smith, maker of heaven. Designed the Sampo mill of fortune. Originally a male spirit of air.
Ilmatar, the female spirit of air; the daughter of the primeval substance of creative spirit. Mother of Vainamoinen in Kalevala.
Jumala, is a generic name for a major deity. Originally the name given by the Finns to the sky, the sky-God, and the supreme god. Later Taivas and Ukko were used as names for the sky and the sky-God. The word means God and was later used for the Christian God.
Kalenvanpoika, a giant hero who can cut down forests and mow down huge meadows, identical with the Estonian national epic hero Kalevpoeg.
Kave, an ancient god of the sky, later the deity of the lunar cycle. Father of Vainamoinen. Also, Kaleva.
Kullervo, tragic antihero. Model for Turin Turambar in Tolkiens Silmarillion.
Kuu, goddess of the moon
Lemminkainen, a brash hero
Lempo, originally a fertility spirit, became synonymous with demons in the Christian era.
Lalli, Finn who slew Bishop Henry on the ice of Lake Koylio according to legend.
Louhi, the matriarch of Pohjola, hostess of the Underworld.
Loviatar, the blind daughter of Tuoni and the mother of Nine Diseases.
Luonnotar, spirit of nature, fiminie creator.
Menninkainen, a fairy spirit, gnome, leprechaun of some sort.
Metsanvaki, a spirit of the forest, a forest creature.
Mielikki, wife of Tapio, the goddess of the forest.
Nyyrikki, the god of hunting, is the son of Tapio.
Nakki, is the fearsome spirit of pools, wells, and bridges. (A spiteful and beautiful, womanlike creature with a woman's body and fish's tail who flatters men into the water in Estonian Mythology) Same as Nix.
Otso, the spirit of the bear
Pekko, the god of crops, especially barley and brewing
Perkele, the devil. Originally God of thunder, Perkele was demonized with the introduction of the Christian Religion. Related to Baltic Perkunas and Norse Thor.
Pellervo, the god of harvest.
Piru, spirit, demon. Probably later loan word related to "spirit"
Paivatar, the goddess of day.
Raako, the Karelian god of time. "Rahko tars the moon" describes the phases of the moon.
Suma, is the personification of violent death.
Tapio, the god of the forest.
Tellervo, the goddess of the forest, daughter of Tapio and Mielikki.
Tuonetar, name referring both to the mistress and the daughter of Tuoni.
Tursas, the Tavastian God of war. Maybe the same as the Norse Tyr and the Germanic Tiwaz.
Tuulikki, daughter of Tapio, and Mielkki, goddess of animals.
Ukko, the god of the sky and of thunder, is related to Thor.
Vellamo, the wife of Ahti, goddess of the sea, lakes, and storms. A current image of Vellamo can be seen on the coat of arms of Paijathame.
Vedenemo, Karelian goddess of water.
Vainamoinen, the old and wise man, who possessed a potent and magical voice. Also related to Estonian Vanemuine. The central character in Finnish folklore and he is the main character in Kalevala
Comments