Introduction to the Article:

To be or not to be, that is the question? – Features of the multifaceted Finnish ballad tradition

Finnish folk ballad, what is it? Answering this question is not straightforward if one follows, for example, the research tradition of our neighboring country, Sweden. In Finland, folk ballads have been sung in two languages, Swedish and Finnish. The tradition of our Swedish-speaking population has historical and cultural roots in the tradition of our former mother country. The peculiar feature of the Finnish-language ballad is that here many ballads familiar to Scandinavians have been sung in a completely different way, using the methods of old-fashioned runo singing, in the Kalevala meter. Following the newer singing style, Finns have also sung their ballads according to the Swedish model, with rhymes and stanzas.

In light of examples, and roughly following the research history, I aim to show which songs have crossed the language barrier to the Finnish-speaking side. I also consider the influence of our country’s Swedish-speaking tradition on the Finnish-speaking one, and I ask, what happened to the songs when Finns learned to read? I examine the interaction between oral and written tradition from the perspective of the Finnish-language ballad tradition.

Anneli-Asplund-Ollakke-vai-eiko-olla