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Finland Social Life and Customs (view source)
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''[[Finland]] [[Image:Gotoarrow.png]] [[Finland Social Life and Customs]]'' | |||
Effective family research requires understanding of the society in which your ancestor lived. Learning about everyday life, religious practices, customs, and traditions will help you appreciate your ancestor and the time in which he or she lived. This information is particularly helpful if you choose to write a family history. Research procedures and genealogical sources may differ for each area and time period and are affected by the local customs and traditions. The information that might be of interest to you might include mortality rate, life spans, apprenticeship customs and courting and marriage customs. | Effective family research requires understanding of the society in which your ancestor lived. Learning about everyday life, religious practices, customs, and traditions will help you appreciate your ancestor and the time in which he or she lived. This information is particularly helpful if you choose to write a family history. Research procedures and genealogical sources may differ for each area and time period and are affected by the local customs and traditions. The information that might be of interest to you might include mortality rate, life spans, apprenticeship customs and courting and marriage customs. | ||
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<br> The Finnish Sauna | <br> The Finnish Sauna | ||
Saunas have been a part of the Finnish way of life for hundreds of years. Almost every family in Finland had access to a sauna if they did not have their own. Finnish saunas were not just used for cleanliness. The Finnish believed the hot steam of a sauna promoted good health. Mothers gave birth to their children in saunas and the dead were bathed in the sauna. Many a young bride cleansed herself in the family sauna to prepare for her marriage. If possible the family sauna was built near a lake. See Sylvie Nickels, Hillar Kallas, and Philippa Friedman, editors, Finland, An Introduction (New York: Praeger Publishers, 1973), 292-293. <br> | Saunas have been a part of the Finnish way of life for hundreds of years. Almost every family in Finland had access to a sauna if they did not have their own. Finnish saunas were not just used for cleanliness. The Finnish believed the hot steam of a sauna promoted good health. Mothers gave birth to their children in saunas and the dead were bathed in the sauna. Many a young bride cleansed herself in the family sauna to prepare for her marriage. If possible the family sauna was built near a lake. See Sylvie Nickels, Hillar Kallas, and Philippa Friedman, editors, Finland, An Introduction (New York: Praeger Publishers, 1973), 292-293. <br> | ||
The lake provided the water for the steam and bathing in the sauna. A fire was built under a bed of rocks. Cold water thrown on the hot rocks provided all the steam one could bear. Little birch twigs were grouped together and were used to swat the skin to stimulate circulation. See June Drenning Holmquist, editor, They Chose Minnesota, A Survey of The State’s Ethnic Groups (St. Paul: Minnesota Historical Society Press, 1981), 303. <br> | The lake provided the water for the steam and bathing in the sauna. A fire was built under a bed of rocks. Cold water thrown on the hot rocks provided all the steam one could bear. Little birch twigs were grouped together and were used to swat the skin to stimulate circulation. See June Drenning Holmquist, editor, They Chose Minnesota, A Survey of The State’s Ethnic Groups (St. Paul: Minnesota Historical Society Press, 1981), 303. <br> | ||
Many Finns jumped into the cold water of the lake after they had treated themselves to the hot, moist sauna. | Many Finns jumped into the cold water of the lake after they had treated themselves to the hot, moist sauna. | ||
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The Family History Library has collected a few sources that discuss Finnish social life and customs. The sources are written in Finnish, Swedish and one has an English translation. They are listed in the Subject Search of the Family History Library catalog under: FINLAND – SOCIAL LIFE AND CUSTOMS | The Family History Library has collected a few sources that discuss Finnish social life and customs. The sources are written in Finnish, Swedish and one has an English translation. They are listed in the Subject Search of the Family History Library catalog under: FINLAND – SOCIAL LIFE AND CUSTOMS | ||
[[Category:Finland]] | |||