Post by HorsegirlDylan on Feb 2, 2009 10:29:21 GMT -7
Now, this lesson is dedicated to Finland's national anthem–Maamme, our country–and a discussion on the origins of the word 'Suomi' (finnish for 'Finland').
Now, here are Maamme's words:
Oi maamme Suomi synnyinmaa,
soi sana kultainen!
Ei laaksoa, ei kukkulaa,
ei vettä rantaa rakkaampaa;
kuin kotimaa tää pohjoinen,
maa kallis isien!
Kuin kukoistukses kuorestaan
kerrankin puhkeaa,
viel' lempemme saa nousemaan,
sun toivos, riemus, loisteessaan;
ja kerran laulus, synnyinmaa,
korkeemman kaiun saa!
And, since you probably want to know what the hell you are singing, here's the translation:
Oh our country Finland, birthland
plays the golden word!
No valley, no hill,
no water, beach more dear to heart;
like a homeland, this northerly place,
precious country of our fathers!
When your blossom breaks out of your shell,
our love will rise [because of]
your hope, joy, in its glow;
and once your song, birthland,
gets a higher sound.
Don't take that for exact, but it's closer than Wikipedia's.
Now for the possible origins of the word 'Suomi'.
Wikipedia:
"The name Suomi (Finnish for "Finland") has uncertain origins but a strong candidate for a cognate is the Proto-Baltic word *zeme, meaning "land". In addition to the close relatives of Finnish (the Baltic-Finnic languages), this name is also used in the Baltic languages Latvian and Lithuanian. According to an earlier theory the name was derived from suomaa (fen land) or suoniemi (fen cape).
The exonym Finland has resemblance with, e.g., the Scandinavian placenames Finnmark, Finnveden and hundreds of other toponyms starting with Fin(n) in Sweden and Norway. Some of these names are obviously derived from finnr, a Germanic word for a wanderer/finder and thus supposedly meaning nomadic "hunter-gatherers" or slash and burn agriculturists as opposed to the Germanic sedentary farmers and seafaring traders and pirates. The term "Finn" often refers to Sami people, too. Finn started referring to the people of Finland Proper after the 15th century, when the church appointed a bishop — who became one of the most powerful men in the province — over the whole area corresponding roughly to today's Finland. The fact there was no other ecclesiastical authority of the same level, coupled with the Bishop's temporal authority, engendered a sense of "the Finns" belonging to one geographical area over which the name spread from the 15th century onwards to refer to the people of the entire country.”
My theory:
My theory is that it comes from suo, marsh, with the posessive suffix -ni, suoni*, my marsh, and over the years suoni has evolved to Suomi.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finland
*Suoni can also mean vein.
Now, here are Maamme's words:
Oi maamme Suomi synnyinmaa,
soi sana kultainen!
Ei laaksoa, ei kukkulaa,
ei vettä rantaa rakkaampaa;
kuin kotimaa tää pohjoinen,
maa kallis isien!
Kuin kukoistukses kuorestaan
kerrankin puhkeaa,
viel' lempemme saa nousemaan,
sun toivos, riemus, loisteessaan;
ja kerran laulus, synnyinmaa,
korkeemman kaiun saa!
And, since you probably want to know what the hell you are singing, here's the translation:
Oh our country Finland, birthland
plays the golden word!
No valley, no hill,
no water, beach more dear to heart;
like a homeland, this northerly place,
precious country of our fathers!
When your blossom breaks out of your shell,
our love will rise [because of]
your hope, joy, in its glow;
and once your song, birthland,
gets a higher sound.
Don't take that for exact, but it's closer than Wikipedia's.
Now for the possible origins of the word 'Suomi'.
Wikipedia:
"The name Suomi (Finnish for "Finland") has uncertain origins but a strong candidate for a cognate is the Proto-Baltic word *zeme, meaning "land". In addition to the close relatives of Finnish (the Baltic-Finnic languages), this name is also used in the Baltic languages Latvian and Lithuanian. According to an earlier theory the name was derived from suomaa (fen land) or suoniemi (fen cape).
The exonym Finland has resemblance with, e.g., the Scandinavian placenames Finnmark, Finnveden and hundreds of other toponyms starting with Fin(n) in Sweden and Norway. Some of these names are obviously derived from finnr, a Germanic word for a wanderer/finder and thus supposedly meaning nomadic "hunter-gatherers" or slash and burn agriculturists as opposed to the Germanic sedentary farmers and seafaring traders and pirates. The term "Finn" often refers to Sami people, too. Finn started referring to the people of Finland Proper after the 15th century, when the church appointed a bishop — who became one of the most powerful men in the province — over the whole area corresponding roughly to today's Finland. The fact there was no other ecclesiastical authority of the same level, coupled with the Bishop's temporal authority, engendered a sense of "the Finns" belonging to one geographical area over which the name spread from the 15th century onwards to refer to the people of the entire country.”
My theory:
My theory is that it comes from suo, marsh, with the posessive suffix -ni, suoni*, my marsh, and over the years suoni has evolved to Suomi.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finland
*Suoni can also mean vein.
