kansanperinne

Kansanperinne is the Finnish term for folk tradition, the body of beliefs, practices, stories, songs, crafts and social norms transmitted across generations within Finnish-speaking communities. It includes folk tales and legends, mythic cycles, proverbs, charms and spells, rites of passage, and seasonal rituals. The material culture of Kansanperinne comprises traditional music and dance, clothing and crafts, place-based knowledge of nature and agriculture, and the use of runo-based poetry and other forms of oral narrative.

The tradition shows regional variation and layers from pre-Christian to Christian and modern times. In the 19th century, folklorists collected living material, helping to preserve and organize it; the Kalevala, Finland’s national epic, grew from Finnish and Karelian oral poetry gathered from Kansanperinne. Today Kansanperinne continues in local customs, festivals, and everyday practice, and informs contemporary literature, music and art. It is studied by folklorists, ethnologists and historians as a window into community life, values and knowledge about nature, and efforts to document and safeguard intangible cultural heritage aim to ensure transmission to future generations.