'One of the great mythic poems of Europe' The New York Times Sharing its title with the poetic name for Finland - 'the land of heroes' - Kalevala is the soaring epic poem of its people, a work rich in magic and myth which tells the story of a nation through the ages from the dawn of creation. Sung by rural Finns since prehistoric times, and formally compiled by Elias Lönnrot in the nineteenth century, it is a landmark of Finnish culture and played a vital role in galvanizing its national identity in the decades leading to independence. Its themes, however, reach beyond borders and search the heart of human existence. Translated with an Introduction by Eino Friberg

Excerpt from Kalevala, the Land of Heroes, Vol. 1 N 0 national epic lies so firmly in the heart of its people as the Kalevala. Its influence on modern Finland has been and is - to Offer the least remote of possible comparisons - an immensely more potent force than the tradition of the Edda collections in western Scandinavia or the Nibelungen cycle among the Germanic nations. As the poem holds up its bright mirror to the life of the Finns moving among the first long shadows of medieval civilization it suggests in our minds the proto-twilight of Homeric Greece. Its historic background is the misty age Of feud and foray between the people of Kaleva and their more ancient neighbours Of Pohjola, possibly the Lapps. Poetically it recounts the long quest Of that singular and prolific talisman, the Sampo, and ends upon the first note of Christianity, the introduction of which was completed in the fourteenth century. Heroic but human, its men and women march boldly through the fifty cantos, raiding, drinking, abducting, outwitting, weeping, but always active and always at Odds with the very perils that confront their countrymen today: the forest, with its savage animals, its myriad lakes and rocks and torrents; wind, fire, and darkness; and the cold. Yet, wild as the scene may be, it is far from barbaric. The craft of the shipwright, the blacksmith, the goldsmith, or the brewer has plainly reached a. High level; household manage ment and the laws Of hospitality are well understood; fine fabrics are woven, fine jewels esteemed; personal cleanliness and the rites of the sauna, or Finnish steam-bath, are fully practised; music is an important part of life, and songs are Often accompanied on the kantele, a stringed instrument still in use; there is constant and highly poetic praise of beauty, whether of bird or tree or maiden. Imagination is perhaps the outstanding talent Of the characters, who conspicuously prefer skill or guile or magic to the use of force. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ++++ The below data was compiled from various identification fields in the bibliographic record of this title. This data is provided as an additional tool in helping to ensure edition identification: ++++ Kalevala, Volume 1; Volume 48 Of Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seuran Toimituksia; Kalevala; Kalevala Kalevala Suomalaisen kirjallisuuden seuran kirjapainossa, 1894