To all my Norwegian friends, Happy Syttende Mai (17th of May), also known as Constitution Day in Norway. Growing up, my best friend's parents were Finnish (mom) and Norwegian (dad). I would go to pick her up for school and there would be lutefisk laying out on the counter, getting prepped for dinner. Fortunately, there were eight kids in the family so I was never asked to stay for the feast. Their cabin included a sauna (pronounced: sow-nah) and every March 16 they celebrated St. Urho's Day, remembering when St. Urho drove the grasshoppers from Finland (for the Finnish branch of her family). For more information on St. Urho (who is supposedly a myth), go here.
In researching my genealogy, I am pleased to report that I have NO Scandinavian blood in me. I am predominately Irish, then Scottish, then German and Swiss. When gene therapy gets good enough, I plan to have my English, and very small amount of French DNA, removed.
Heinasirkka, heinasirkka, menetaalta hiiten! (Grasshopper, grasshopper, go away!)
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2 comments:
I deleted that first comment because I had posted it before I finished reading your post.
But I do believe that the St Urho legend was created by Finns who were envious of all the partying that the Irish did on St Patrick's Day, during Lent.
And they gave him a feast day of March 16, the day before St Patrick's Day.
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