What is Finnishness

28.8.2024 — Susanna Häkkinen

Others say Finnish people are loud and other say we are quiet, of course it depends on the point of view, which culture you are from and what you are used to. You can define Finnishness over 5,5 million different ways.

This is my determination of Finnishness as a Finn.

Spending time at summer cottage and in nature generally is part of our nature, at least I think it is. Sauna is our sacred place. We go there usually naked and that is totally normal to us and liberating. We want to relax and get clean physically and mentally there.

Family is important to us and we like to spend the holidays together. But we need also our own space and don’t want to live under the same roof with our parents for example.

Landscape from our family cottage Smoke sauna, my grandmother's birthplace

Finnishness is state of mind. We sit quiet as a group at a table or play summer yard games loudly at cottage and be comfortable about it. We want to live here in Finland even though most of the year it’s dark, wet or/and cold here. It is that stubbornness and perseverance called sisu what we have.

Olavinlinna in winter Skiing