Many, many years ago, grapes used to grow all over Finland (experts have confirmed this by studying the remains of bears).
During one season, a bunch of grasshoppers came over to Finland and started attacking their vineyards. No one knew what to do, that is until St. Urho came to the rescue.
The Saint grabbed his pitchfork and started walking through the fields chanting, “Heinasirkka, heinasirkka, menetaalta hiiten” (in English, that means “Grasshopper, grasshopper scoot”). His loud voice and appearance must have frightened the grasshoppers and they all fled from the vineyards.
The growing season in Finland was very short and the farmers were very protective of their fields back then. Rumor has it that they started injecting Vodka into their grapes to give them a greater alcohol content.
Urho was declared a Saint because everyone was so happy and grateful for what he had done. They did this on March 16th, the day before St. Patrick’s Day.
Every year since, the Finnish people celebrate St. Urho’s Day on March 16th. The day’s ceremony starts at sunrise. Women and children meet at the lakeshore to chant “Heinasirkka, heinasirkka, menetaalta hiiten”. The men meet on top of a hill and start a procession down to the lake, while kicking and waving pitchforks. Purple and green are the official colors. The color purple represents the grapes and green represents the vines.
During these celebrations, they sing, dance the polka and of course, drink wine. They also enjoy Mojakkaa (a fish soup) which St. Urho ate to give him strength to fight off the grasshoppers.
Now, I don’t know if you believe in Finnish mythology, but this does give you a legitimate excuse to start partying a day earlier, doesn’t it?
Happy St. Patrick’s Day!!
