The Kalevala in modern Finland
The Kalevala has left its mark on many areas of Finnish life. "Kalevala-ness" has established itself firmly in Finnish culture, a fact which can best be seen in our nomenclature.
The names of city quarters, streets, businesses and products draw continually on the distinctiveness of the Kalevala. The Kalevala is a unique trademark in the marketing world.
The use of names from the Kalevala was particularly widespread at the end of the last century, nowadays it is more sporadic. Nonetheless, the distinctiveness of Finnish products and handicraft is still emphasized by choosing a Kalevala-related name for the product.
“The modern Finnish couple Aino and Ilmari Pohjola live in Oulu on Kalevalankuja Lane, earlier they lived in Espoo's Tapiola. Mornings they read the newspaper Kaleva. The family is insured by the Pohjola insurance company. When guests come to visit, the table is set with Sampo pewter dinnerware, and Aino Pohjola wears her Väinämöis sweater. Ilmari Pohjola works for the Lemminkäinen asphalting company, Aino Pohjola at the Kalevala-Koru jewelry boutique. Ilmari Pohjola's father worked as a young man on the icebreaker Sampo. Aino Pohjola, on the other hand, is from a farming family, and the crops on the farm were harvested with a Sampo harvester. Her family belonged to the Pellervo Society, and were insured by the Kaleva insurance firm. The Pohjola family have a summer cottage in Hiidenvesi. Evenings they light the fire in the fireplace with Sampo matches.â€
According to the Kalevala, he who possesses the Sampo receives prosperity and all good things. The loss of the Sampo, on the other hand, portends ruin.
Over the last 150 years the question of what the Sampo actually is has occupied not only Finnish researchers from nearly every field of study, but also non-Finnish experts on the Kalevala. There are as many solutions to the riddle of the Sampo as there are persons interested in it. The possibilities are endless.
Could the puzzling nature of the Sampo be one reason why it is possibly the theme from the Kalevala which is used most often in the names of firms and businesses? Examples include: Iron-Sampo, Sampo Bingo, Sampo Film, Sampo Marketing, Electricity Sampo, and Sport-Sampo.
