Skip to main content

Christmas Countdown Characters #20

A little Finnish surprise for you today.....
 T is for tonttu 
A tonttu ( or tomte in Swedish)  is a mythological creature from Scandinavian folklore today typically associated with the winter solstice and the Christmas season. It is generally described as being no taller than three feet, having a long white beard, and wearing a conical or knit cap in red or some other bright colour. They often have an appearance somewhat similar to that of a garden gnome.[1] from Wikipedia. 
In the past, in Finnish households  there were guardian spirits known as elves (tonttu) Each type of building had its own sort of elf.- household elves, sauna elves, stable elves, storehouse elves, barn elves and mill elves. When treated with respect, they brought good fortune, but if they took offence, there was no predicting the consequences. All commonly were active after nightfall,but individual tonttu were often notorious for their eccentricities. from  The Book of Finnish elves (Suomalainen tonttukirja
These days, Tonttu are Santa's little helpers. According to legend, these quick and cute
characters find out which children have been good by listening to conversations and writing down their findings in a huge notebook. When Christmas arrives, Joulupukki (Santa Claus) rewards the good children with gifts.

Tonttujen Jouluyö is a popular children’s song in Finland with a very catchy tune. It was once featured on an episode of Teletubbies. It relates story of the Tonttu, the elves who visit the house on Christmas Eve, dance, sing, and eat some of the goodies they find. The Tip Tap refers to the noise they make. As morning draws near, they scurry back to their homes under the bridge.


Soihdut sammuu, kaikki vaki nukkuu,
vaki nukkuu,
Oiten varjoon talon touhu hukkuu, touhu hukkuu.
Tip-tap, tip-tap, ti-pe ti-pe, tip-tap, tip, tip, tap.
Tonttujoukko silloin varpahillaan, varpahillaan,
Varovasti hiipii alta sillan, alta sillan.
Tip-tap, tip-tap, ti-pe ti-pe, tip-tap, tip, tip, tap.


“TIP-TAP”
Day is fading, night is slowly creeping, slowly creeping.
Lights go out as people start their sleeping, start their sleeping.
Tip-tap, tip-tap, ti-pe ti-pe, tip-tap, tip, tip, tap.
From their caves the elves come softly prancing, softly prancing.
From beneath their bridge on tiptoe dancing, tiptoe dancing.
Tip-tap, tip-tap, ti-pe ti-pe, tip-tap, tip, tip, tap.
Complete lyrics and translation can be found at You and Me Around Europe
Chrsitmas card by Eva Melhuish

 The Tonttu reflects the Finnish Christmas tradition's innermost being: whatever is linked to Christmas, Peace on Earth and Happiness among all People. The Tonttu is an important symbol for the Christmas celebration and its magic winter mood, not only in Finland but all over the world where  Scandanavian  Christmas traditions. are shared.   

Hyvää Joulua ja Onnellista Uutta Vuotta (Merry Christmas and Happy New Year) 



Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Countdown to Christmas 20 - Fruitcake song!

There are many songs about fruit cakes  - not all of them referring to the Christmas cake we know and love.It is really surprising to learn via Google that there are 89 listed songs with references to Christmas cake or fruit cake - not all of them complimentary.   Probably one of the most famous folk songs about Christmas cake is Miss Fogarty's  Christmas Cake (a favourite sung by The Irish Rovers).  This first recorded comical Christmas song was written by C Frank Horn in 1883 in Pennsylania, as a variation of an Irish folk song, 'Miss Mulligan's Christmas Cake' . The chorus might give you the hint that Miss Fogarty's cake was not for the faint hearted or those who suffered from a weak stomach.    Chorus : There were plums and prunes and cherries, There were citrons and raisins and cinnamon, too There was nutmeg, cloves and berries And a crust that was nailed on with glue There were caraway seeds in abundance Such that...

Dance .... with leaves and animals

Dancing my way to Tag Tuesday this week  for the theme "Dance-Dancers- Dancing" . Here I used torn bits of inked paper with other bits from concert advertising. All I could think of was kinetic energy and how I could convey that as a collage of contemporary dance. I liked the swirls of mark making  because they remind of  dance painting..... no words can explain this  better than the sight of it in action.  In the past week,  I have also been  mesmerised by the  beautiful coloured autumn leaves which look as if they are dancing in the breeze as they fall from trees . (Remember, I am in the southern hemisphere so it is just the start of our winter).  Attention -seeking  Against a bushland backdrop  Golden leaves dancing  ( a free motion stitched wearable art pin  #100pinpoems in #the100dayproject )  Sadly I was a little late photographing the tag I made for the previous theme "Animals" but I incl...

Christmas Countdown 3 ; Christmas tree # 23 - Mannequins and Motors

Mannequin   and Mercedes Benz logo Christmas trees  Advent Blog Day 23 - Mannequins and Motors ... or... What does a Mannequin have in common with a Mercedes Benz?   I have been in such a dilemma as I have so few days left and so many Christmas trees I want to feature.  So, in the spirit of balance today, I've combined a couple of categories into the theme of Mannequins and Motors -   winsome wonders and winning wheels ....  Mannequin and motor oil   Christmas trees  Hubcaps and Mannequin Christmas trees  Not satisfied with auto parts? Decorate with the whole car....  Mannequin and Mini Cooper cars Christmas trees  And tyres seem to be a popular choice and somehow they go beautifully with these 'green' mannequin trees...  Tyres and red ribbons  Tyres and baubles on mannequin Christmas trees  Red bird  wire form and sparkly tyres  Ch...