Joulupukki

2025-05-05T17:25:08Z

2001:14BA:A4D2:1000:F037:1618:645A:C6B0: /* Origins and description */

{{short description|Christmas figure from Finland}}
{{Refimprove|date=January 2017}}
{{Title language|fi|i=no}}
[[File:Pukki ja muori.jpg|thumb|right|Joulupukki and his wife.]]
'''{{langr|fi|Joulupukki}}''' ({{IPA|fi|ˈjou̯luˌpukːi|lang}}) is a [[Culture of Finland|Finnish]] [[Christmas]] figure. The name {{lang|fi|joulupukki}} literally means {{gloss|Christmas goat}} or {{gloss|[[Yule goat]]}} in [[Finnish language|Finnish]]; the word {{lang|fi|pukki}} comes from the Old Swedish word ''bukker'', a [[cognate]] of English "[[wikt:buck#Noun|buck]]", meaning {{gloss|billy-goat}}. An old [[Nordic folklore|Nordic folk tradition]], the figure is now often conflated with [[Santa Claus]].<ref>{{cite news|last1=Nordland|first1=Rod|title=Santa in Finland, Where Marketing Triumphs Over Geography|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/20/world/europe/finland-lapland-santa.html|access-date=16 January 2018|agency=[[The New York Times]]|date=December 20, 2017}}</ref>

==Origins and description==
The Finnish Father Christmas {{lang|fi|Joulupukki}} (literally "Christmas goat") appears connected with the Scandinavian ''julebukk'', not the "[[Yule goat]]" as such, but rather the ritual theatrics of men dressed up in costume rowdily going around villages (see [[Julebukking]]).<ref name="simonsen2024"/> Thus an older dictionary glosses Finnish {{lang|fi|joulu-ukko}} (lit. "Yule's old man") as Swedish ''julebock''.<ref>[[:fi:Knut Cannelin|Cannelin, Knut]] (1913) ''Suomalais-ruotsalainen sanakirja'' s.v. "{{URL|1=https://books.google.com/books?id=-fo_AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA130 |2=joulu-ukko}}"</ref>

Today, in some parts of [[Finland]], [[Folklore of Finland|the folk custom]] persists of persons performing in goat costume in return for leftover Christmas food. The performer traditionally is an older man, who is called a "{{lang|fi|{{interlanguage link|nuuttipukki|fi}}}}".<ref>{{cite news |title=Nuutipukit käyvät kohta matkaan |date=28 December 2010 |website=Lautta Kylä |url=https://www.lauttakyla.fi/uutinen/122810/nuutipukit-k%c3%a4yv%c3%a4t-kohta-matkaan |lang=fi |access-date=21 December 2019 |archive-date=7 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190407204241/https://www.lauttakyla.fi/uutinen/122810/nuutipukit-k%C3%A4yv%C3%A4t-kohta-matkaan |url-status=dead}}</ref>

In Finland in its modern incarnation, inspired by the international Santa Claus figure, he usually wears warm red robbers, but with a broad band of blue near the fur, uses a walking stick, and travels in a [[sleigh]] pulled by a number of [[reindeer]] (which do not fly, unlike Santa Claus' team).{{citation needed|date=December 2018}} In [[Lapland (Finland)|Lapland]], he rides in a {{lang|fi|[[pulkka]]}}, rather than a sleigh. The popular holiday song "[[Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (song)|Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer]]", in its Finnish translation, {{lang|fi|[[Petteri Punakuono]]}}, has led to Rudolph's general acceptance in Finland as Joulupukki's lead reindeer. Joulupukki is often mentioned as having a wife, {{lang|fi|Joulumuori}} ({{lit|Old Lady Christmas}}), but tradition says little of her.

==Joulupukki's other side==

Popular radio programs from the year 1927 onwards probably had great influence in reformatting the concept with the Santa-like costume, reindeer and [[Korvatunturi]] as his dwelling place. Because there really are reindeer in Finland, and [[Finns]] live up North, the popular American story took root in Finland very quickly.

Finland's Joulupukki receives over 500,000 letters from over 200 countries every year. Most letters come from Poland, Italy, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.iltalehti.fi/matkajutut/a/201711242200556994|title=Joulupukki saa mykistävät määrät postia - Suomesta tulee vasta viidenneksi eniten kirjeitä|website=www.iltalehti.fi}}</ref>

Joulupukki is a prominent character in ''[[Rare Exports]]'', a film based on the award-winning shorts by [[Jalmari Helander]].

==See also==
* Section on Finland in [[Christmas worldwide#Finland|Christmas worldwide]]
* [[Korvatunturi]]
* ''[[Rare Exports]]'' (film)
* [[Santa Claus Village]]
* [[Yule Goat]]
* [[Krampus]]

==References==
{{Reflist|2|refs=
<ref name="simonsen2024">{{cite book|last=Simonsen |first=Vagn |author-link=:da:Vagn Simonsen|chapter=22 Den Finske Julemand |title=Julemanden og hele hans slæng |publisher=Lindhardt og Ringhof |date=2024 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Rg0fEQAAQBAJ&pg=PT101 |page= |isbn=9788727031347|lang=da}}</ref>
}}

{{Christmas}}
{{Winter solstice}}

[[Category:Christmas characters]]
[[Category:Christian folklore]]
[[Category:Finnish folklore]]
[[Category:Finnish mythology]]
[[Category:Santa Claus]]
[[Category:Christmas gift-bringers]]
[[Category:Yule]]
[[fi:Joulupukki#Suomi]]

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Joulupukki