Crippled the population. Journey through Russian and Finnish North Karelia. Kalevala - village and epic

Kalevala (Karelian Kalevala, until 1963 Ukhta, Karelian Uhtua) is an urban-type settlement in Karelia, administrative center Kalevalsky national area.
Population - 5274 inhabitants (2010), 3902 (2016).
www.all-karelia.ru/regions/settlement_3396.html
The first mention of settlements in the Kalevala area dates back to 1552-53. In Kalevala, the famous Finnish folklorist Elias Lönnrot in the 19th century. wrote down many runes included in the world-famous Karelian-Finnish epos "Kalevala". Guide to Karelia: karelia-guide.ru/goroda-karelii/kalevala/2886-kalevala-... It consisted of two parts, of which the oldest, on east coast the mouth of the river Ukhta - in
part of the Ilyinsky Panozero churchyard, and the later one, on the western coast of the mouth,
ve Prechistinsky Rebolsky churchyard. In the 19th century parts united in a village in Kemsky
county.
For the first time, the Panozero village of Volostka on Kuito Lake on the Ukht River was recorded in
1597, but its resident "Kuytoozerets" testified to the bill of sale as early as 1572. Known
as well as the village on the Kuyto lake on the Ukhta river (1678), Ukhtoma (1707), Ukhti on the Ku-
te-lake (1726) of the Panozero churchyard; then it became part of the Yushkozero volost
Rugozero churchyard (see: Jyskyjärvi / Yushkozero): Ukhta on Ukhto Lake (1748); to Thursday
The first revision returned to the Panozero churchyard again: the village of Ukhta (1797).
Initially, the Panozero churchyard was part of the Lopsky churchyard district of Novgorod-
county, from 1649 - Olonets county, from the 1720s. – Olonets province and county
Petersburg province (1726), by 1748 his villages merged into Rugozero
GOST Olonetsky district of the Novgorod province; from the end of the 18th century Panozero churchyard rises
passed away and entered the Kemsky district of the Arkhangelsk province.
The Rebol village of Ukhta was first recorded by the 1678 census as part of Voknavo-
Lotsky volost of the Rebolsky churchyard of the Kola district (see: Rebol'a / Rebols and
Vuokkiniemi / Voknavolok); from the 1720s - together with the Rebolsky churchyard moved to Olo-
netsky district: Ukhta on Kuto-lake as part of the volost Voknavolotskaya third of the Rebolsky district
Gosta of the district of Lopsky churchyards of the Olonets province and the county of St. Petersburg gu-
Bernia (1726), also known as Ukhta on the Kuyto lake of the Volost Voknavolotskaya third
Rebolsky churchyard of the Lopsky churchyards of the Olonets district of the Novgorod province
(1748); from the end of the 18th century became part of the Kemsky district of the Arkhangelsk province as de-
the village of Okhta is the center of the Okhta volost. The entry of two neighboring villages into one administrative region(Kemsky district, see:
The city of Kem) led to the unification of the Panozero and former rebolsa of Ukhta into one village.
The united village of Ukhta according to the "List of populated places of the Arkhangelsk province
1861" (St. Petersburg, 1861) for 1859: Arkhangelsk province, Kemsky
county, 2nd camp (see: Jyskyjärvi / Yushkozero) - the village of Ukhta (Ukhtua), at the river. Ukhta: from
the county town of Kem 218 versts, from the center of the camp 80 versts; 420 people lived in 95 courtyards.
husband. n. and 401 people. female P.
After civil war, in 1920 the Ukhta volost became part of the Kemsky district
CPC; in 1921 Ukhta - the volost center of the Ukhta volost of the Kemsky district of Karelian
a labor commune within the RSFSR; in 1922, the Ukhta district was formed as part of 7 military districts
losts: Voknavolokskaya, Kestenga, Kondokskaya, Olangskaya, Tikhtozerskaya, Ukhtin-
and Yushkozerskaya, since 1922 the village of Ukhta is the county and volost center of the Ukhta district
and Ukhta volost KTK, since 1923 - AKSSR as part of the RSFSR (see: Linna, Petroskoi /
the city of Petrozavodsk); on administrative reform 1926–28 Ukhta village - the center of Ukh-
tinsky district and Ukhtinsky village council of the AKSSR (since 1936 - KASSR); in 1935 Ukhtin-
the sky district was renamed into the Kalevalsky district of the KASSR; since 1940 - the center of Ukhtinsky
village council of the Kalevalsky district of the K-FSSR, after the Great Patriotic War, in 1945
- Also; since 1956 - KASSR, in 1958 and by 1960. - the center of the Ukhtinsky village council and district
Kalevala; in 1960 Ukhtinsky and Tikhtozersky village councils were merged into one Ukhtinsky
village council, with the center in the village of Ukhta; in 1966 - urban-type settlement (PGT) Kalevala and
the village of Kalevala, Kemsky district, since 1968, the urban-type settlement of Kalevala is the district center of Kaleval-
district of the KASSR, since 1991 - the Republic of Karelia; in 1996, the urban-type settlement Kalevala is the center of Ka-
Levalsky settlement administration and the regional center of the Kalevalsky national
district; since 2005 - urban settlement Kalevala - the administrative center of the Kalevala city
settlements of the Kalevalsky national region of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Until 1963, Kalevala was called Ukhta. Most of all, the village is known for the fact that in these places the Finnish folklorist Elias Lönnrot recorded runes (folk songs) in these places in the 19th century, which were included in the Karelian-Finnish epic Kalevala.
About 4,000 people live here now.

1. At the entrance to the area, as in the places of residence of the Vepsians, the names on the signs begin to duplicate

2. In general, "Kalevala" is the name of the country where Karelian folk heroes live. "la" just means the place of residence. It turns out that "Kalevala" is the place of residence of Kalev, the mythological ancestor of the heroes Väinämöinen, Ilmarinen, Lemminkäinen.

Lönnrot himself named the epic Kalevala

5. Quotes from Kalevala with illustrations hang throughout the village

7. You can walk from one point of the city to another and read the whole epic) (just kidding)

8. Even such an inconspicuous-looking house was not forgotten

9. True quotes could do with a little update, but the whole idea with them is wonderful

10. On the other side of the house translation into Finnish (or Karelian)

11. You may come across the word "Sampo" more than once in Karelia. This is not an abbreviation, but a magical item from Karelian-Finnish mythology. It has great magical power and is a source of happiness, prosperity and abundance. In general, the dream of many)

In the Kalevala, Sampo is a mill that grinds enough bread, salt and gold to buy food, supplies and feasts. Finland has male name Sampo, as well as the name of a bank, an insurance company, an ice drift, a volleyball club and a puppet theater. And also, when Vyborg was Finnish, that was the name of one of its streets

12. In the village of Kalevala, the Sampo store stands on a street with at least beautiful name. I repeat, "runes" are epic songs of the Baltic-Finnish peoples. We'll talk a little more about them when we go to the local museum of rune singers.

13. Alas, not all streets of Kalevala have pleasant names. But some of them are duplicated. The "katu" part of the word is familiar to anyone who has paid attention to street names in Finland.
I also liked the font and number plates

15. Here again. In neighboring Kalevala district, as I understand it, translation is less common

16. Even a map of the village in Karelian. There is also a translation into Russian

17. Kalevala - a quiet place

19. Alas, closed. But I managed to get into the museum of rune singers, which is better and more informative

21. The museum is quite small, but very interesting. Arrived when closed? Call, they will come to you and open. Separately, it is worth thanking the female guide, an expert in her field and the history of Kalevala. She told us a lot and answered all of our questions. And most importantly - in the museum you can touch everything with your hands! And they won’t scold you for it, but on the contrary, they will also give it to you yourself with the phrase “How can you talk about something without letting it be touched? What kind of perception will it be? What will remain in memory?”

Wonderful place! I will tell about it separately. Then we'll talk about runes, rune singers and Karelian traditions

22. Kalevala streets are not very bright, but in general Kalevala is much nicer than many other cities in Karelia. Neighboring Belomorsk, although larger, looks more unfriendly and gloomy

24. Peter and Paul Church

26. "Lönnrot Pine".
According to legend, in 1834-36, it was under it that the researcher wrote down the runes of the Karelian rune singers. True, the pine was not here and this is just a part of it. Moved the rest here after the tree died.

28. Temple again. A remake, but pleasant and not at all pretentious

30. Interesting street design. Like it or not, but you will touch a small part of the local culture

31. This is the name of one of the districts of the village. The stand tells about the rune singers and shows the houses where they lived. Again, we’ll talk about them in more detail in a post about the museum. We will also find out if there is a tradition to perform runes now

32. The board on the house says that the storyteller Tatyana Alekseevna Perttunen (1881-1963) lived here

33. "Yamanen's barn". Elias Lönnrot stayed there in 1836

Where did the idea for this trip come from? In 2013, I had the opportunity to make an exhibition in Helsinki dedicated to the next release date of the Karelian-Finnish epic Kalevala. The compiler of the epic, Elias Lennrot, traveled almost all of Karelia, where he collected information bit by bit and wrote down the runes. At that time I had enough material, but I didn’t have the most important thing, photographs of the village named after the epic and the rune-singing center (Voknavolok). Having waited until it became really cold at night in the Kalevala region and autumn began to intensively repaint the foliage, I just had to wait rainy weather and rush to "that steppe." When everything worked out, I left St. Petersburg for Sortavala, spent the night there. And early in the morning, my friend Alexei and I moved towards the border in the Vartsila region.

From Vartsila to Nurmes

Finnish roads

We crossed the border almost instantly. Without stopping, we first reached Joensuu, then drove towards the city of Nurmes. We stopped several times to capture the beauty of autumn in Finland.

cold lake

Connecting the islands

North Karelian swamps

And lakes again

There were many around beautiful places, but frequent stops would mean an exit from the schedule.

Nurmes

forest city

So, the first significant stop was Nurmes. The city is located on the northern tip of Lake Pielinen. Officially, it is recognized as the city of Christmas songs. Every year there is a festival of Christmas music. The city is remembered for residential buildings located on steep hillocks. In winter, if the roads are not covered in time with sand or, as they do in Finland, with small stones, cars will roll down to the embankments like a sled.

Cathedral

Inside the church

Of the architectural sights, it is worth highlighting the church, made in the neo-Gothic style, quite typical for the average size of Finnish cities. It is very strange to celebrate indecently huge churches in small, and sometimes even in very small towns. But, apparently, they are made in case all the inhabitants of the town want to get together and pray.

After circling the city a little more, we went to further way. Our route lay in the direction of Suomussalmi.

Winter War Museum

Before reaching Suomussalmi, 20 kilometers, in the area of \u200b\u200bLake Kokkojavi there is a museum of the winter war Raatteen Portti. You won't pass by. A huge pile of boulders, like tombstones, will be your guide. Of course, we stopped, looked around, but did not look at the internal exposition, as they asked us 25 euros for entry. We later learned that the cost is 8 kopecks. A total "spoiler".

"Forest customs" and "gold gasoline"

The further journey took on a slightly humorous tone, as I decided to trust the navigator. This soulless machine quickly caught where we needed, and just as quickly built a route. Not at all doubting the correctness of the direction, we set off on the road. Our navigator led us towards the border in the Juntusranta area. What was our surprise when, instead of paved customs, we ran into a barrier and a forest behind it. The worst thing was not even that, the fact is that for the last half an hour we, as they say, were driving on steam, hoping to refuel with native and cheap gasoline already in Russia. In short, we did not prepare for the trip at all.

Cameras hung around and without thinking twice, we decided to retreat. After 2 minutes, customs officers were already driving towards us. I don’t know if it’s to our hearts or not, but we didn’t find out. Turning to the same navigator, we found out that the nearest gas station is 18 kilometers away. We made it to the gas station safely. At first we thought we were in a museum, the gas station was from the 50s. The owners of the gas station, the ancient grandparents, may still remember the days when Finland gained independence, and, apparently, they remember so well that they saw Russian numbers by car, they forgot all languages at once, even their own. Gasoline is not cheap in Finland, but at this gas station, they broke all records. The cost is almost 2 euros. After giving grandma 15 euros and asking Alexei to see how the gasoline would be poured, I went to study the local toilet. When I returned, I regretfully found that gasoline was still pouring cheerfully into the tank. I will not describe here everything that I said to those present, but I was very angry. The damage amounted to a thousand rubles. I was so angry that I even forgot to take a picture of this gas station, but I have something similar in the archives ...

This is what the gas station looked like.

A little, having come to my senses, I asked the navigator to plot a route in the direction of Kuusamo. We planned to return through Kostomuksha, therefore, in order not to travel along the same route, it was decided to go north.

On Kuusamo

The lands of reindeer herders began

On the way we met a huge number of Finnish hunters in orange capes. Everywhere were heard the sounds of shots from guns. Apparently, all Finnish men agreed to leave the house at the same time under the plausible pretext of a general, national hunt. Capercaillie, black grouse, partridges, hares, foxes, and other animals periodically crossed our path. We managed to photograph only the deer, which quite slowly crossed the road.

Calm itself (saamo)

Anyone can take pictures of them. Some deer moved so slowly that they managed to make love during this transition. To be honest, I did not expect such impudence from them and therefore did not have time to photograph what was happening.

Kuusamo

Finally we got to the city of Kuusamo. After a snack, we went to the store to buy something for the road. There we met with the Russians who had come to stock up, and found out that there really is border crossing. True, there terrible road and leads to nowhere, but we needed to go nowhere. By the way, customs is open until 9, and it's already 7, so we need to hurry. After picking up fast food, we hit the road.

To Kalevala. Jeeping and customs.

Another stop

20 kilometers to the border, all disappeared road signs, for those who have been to Finland, it would seem strange. The remaining distance the road got worse and worse, no signs, no cars, no people. It reminded me of the movie "The 13th Floor" when main character went where he would never go, buried himself in the end of the world and realized that the world in which he lives is unreal.

Shot from the movie "13th Floor"

We were more fortunate and instead of a hologram we saw a real customs office. The Finnish customs officers were overjoyed at our arrival. They kept us for half an hour, examining the whole car up and down, plus us from head to toe. The same thing happened on the Russian side, only 2 times more thorough, more fun and provocative. I really liked the phrase of the customs officer - "the road is not very good, though it still rained here ...". For all the time of passage through the border, except for our car, there was not a single one. The only thing that made us happy was this information that there will be a gas station soon.

From Finland to Russia

Do you know what a "tank direction" is? This is exactly how the road that was waiting for us to the village of Pyaozersky is characterized. We drove 50 kilometers for 4 hours. I would like to say a few more words about the same gas station that the customs officers promised us. But, it is better to show once than to retell seven times, look at the photos, you will understand everything yourself.

The distance from the village of Pyaozersky to Kalevala is twice as long, but we covered this distance three times faster. Although the road was not paved, just good gravel, the road was unfamiliar, dark, but the accumulated fatigue and the desire to quickly finish today's "taxiing" made us drive faster, focusing only on the light road strip highlighted by the navigator. I had already been driving for 15 hours, so for half an hour I handed the steering wheel to the already drunk Alexei, not being afraid to meet traffic cops in this horror. Finally, the lights of the village appeared. Asphalt!!! It remains only to find a place to sleep. From the story of the locals, we realized that there are two hotels, one is called "Sampo", the second "Welt". I repeat once again that we did not prepare for the trip, so we had no idea what Sampo was like, what kind of hotels it was, we did not order anything, no rooms. First we stopped at the Sampo Hotel. We were met by an administrator so "blue" that he could not even connect two words. The next and last was the Welt Hotel. A warm and friendly welcome, a pleasant and sober administrator, a cozy room, a clean bed, what else does a weary traveler need? The rest is all tomorrow.

Kalevala

View from the hotel window

The next morning we found that the windows in our room overlooked picturesque lake, outlined by the bright colors of the Karelian autumn.

The lake is called Middle Kuito. There is also Upper and Lower Kuito. The upper one is located to the west and lower, but the lower one definitely justifies its name, judging by the map. After breakfast, and having vacated the room, we decided to get to know the village better. The weather was fine. The cold nights of autumn adorned the foliage of the village in bright warm colors. It's a paradox, but cold created heat. Slowly walking around the village, I remembered everything that I could remember about Kalevala. Firstly, Kalevala is a Karelian-Finnish folk epic. The village was renamed in 1963 in Kalevala, as the creator of the epic Elias Lennrot came here, collecting lyrics (runes) for his work.

Lennrot tree

One of the attractions of the village is an ancient tree, or rather a dried trunk, under which Elias allegedly sat, writing down his texts. Next to the tree is the Peter and Paul Church.

Apart from Orthodox Church There is also a Lutheran parish.

In general, I really liked the village, original and self-sufficient. Near the village rich story. Until 1963, the village was called Ukhta in honor of the river flowing here. Wow-Ohta, I mean, in St. Petersburg - Ohta. At the beginning of the twentieth century, this village was even the capital of the state, the so-called North Karelian. The communists could not allow such liberties, and therefore they quickly reined in those who disagreed, and the initiators themselves did not seem to be going to take up arms, they really hoped for Finland, which, although it tried to defend the interests of the North Karelian state, retreated under the onslaught of the red troops.

Ukhta

Road to Voknavolok

After wandering around the village for a bit, we set off on our further journey towards the village of Voknavolok. The road also left much to be desired, but in principle it was passable. In some places there was an impression that the road was going to be made. There are 16-18 kilometers from the village memorial Complex Kitty Kitty. Here was the line of one of the most stable fronts during the Great Patriotic War. For 3 years, this hill held the offensive of the German-Finnish troops. Where did the name Kis-Kis come from? Nearby is the Kis-Kis River and the Kis-Kis Swamp. I read somewhere that Kis-Kis in Finnish is juniper, if so, then such a name is either ancient or slang, since juniper in Finnish is kataja. Bowing to the fallen, we go further. Quite often the road passed over rivers and rivers, where we stopped and took photos.

Voknavolok

So, imperceptibly, we reached the village of Voknavolok. The village is considered the center of the rune-singing culture. Almost at the very entrance to the village is one of the attractions, the Church of Elijah the Prophet.

Voknavolok. Church of Elijah the Prophet

The church that you will see now was built with Finnish money in 1997 on the site of the one that burned down in 1939. Only 20 years have passed, and the church is already clearly lopsided. Like the village of Kalevala, the village of Voknavolok stands on the shores of Lake Kuito. Only now it is Upper Kuito. It is strange that it is called Upper because it is located on the map below the Middle. More like left, middle and right Kuito.

Let's go further. There is very little left before Kostomuksha. The road is ancient asphalt, you can drive quickly, but be very careful, because at any moment you can fall into some kind of hole. Approaching Kostomuksha, the first thing you pay attention to is huge complex, the so-called Mining and Processing Plant.

The city itself is quite young and socialist. There is nothing special to see there. We stopped at a small "church town", headed by the Church of the Intercession of the Virgin, looked at how weddings are held there, listened to the belfry. Here, by the way, the first snow fell. The weather generally changed often, immediately after the snow the sun came out and did not hide until the evening.

Then we were advised to visit the territory of the hotel and cottage complex "Fregat". Very picturesque place, a lot of different "chips".

A leisurely walk through the territory took about an hour, and I have never regretted the time spent.

Way home

Having finished the inspection, we went towards the border. There was practically no one at the border, so we decided that we would pass it quickly. But the valiant customs officers this time decided to inspect us thoroughly. Jumping out to Finland, we hurried towards the house. This time there was no time at all, we drove almost non-stop.

We drove through Lieksa, which met us with "Syrians".

Well, since this is no longer Finnish land, we have nothing to do here, we decided and went on. I can’t tell anything special about the way back, a simple stretch. There were more people on the Vartsilevo border than on the Kostomuksha one, but we passed it much faster.

The evening was fabulous and on the way from customs to Sortavala I stopped a couple of times to capture the beauty.

We arrived in Sortavala quite late in the evening. After spending the night in the city, in the morning, with fresh forces, I went to St. Petersburg.

Conclusion

That, perhaps, is all. I want to add that if you have free time, such a trip can be stretched out for a couple of weeks. There is something to see, where to relax. Nature is magnificent and beautiful in any season, there are many historically significant places.

The only thing that stops me is the roads on the territory of Russia, but if you remember what and how Elias Lennrot moved, then it’s somehow even uncomfortable to even think about the roads. But he had been in these parts a dozen times. If you say that it was his job and he had a lot of free time, then just read his biography.

Good luck on the road and don't be lazy.

The urban-type settlement of Kalevala ( Kalevala ) - the administrative center of the Kalevalsky national region of Karelia, located 550 km from Petrozavodsk, in the north of the republic, on the shores of Lake Srednee Kuito.

Until 1963 it was called Ukhta (Karelian Uhtua).

The modern name of the village is directly related to the Kalevala epic. Also in 1935 . (the year of the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the first edition of the epic) the petition of the government of the republic to rename the Ukhta district into Kalevalsky was granted. Finnish linguist and poet Elias Lönnrot called the area around Ukhta "the best and richest cradle of runes." Later, in 1963 . By the decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Council of Karelia, the village of Ukhta itself was also renamed.

As for the name of the village, it should be noted that toponyms with the base -uht- are common in the places of settlement of various Finno-Ugric tribes. Suffice it to recall, for example, Ukhto-island and Ukht-Navolok (at the bend of the Northern Dvina), Ukhta Bay (White Sea) or the Ukhta River (flows into Lake Lacha). Scientists today do not have a single point of view on the origin and meaning of the basis -uht-. Thus, a researcher in the field of Finnish languages Mihkel Veske considered such toponyms to be Finnish in origin, from huuhtoma, huuhto - “washing, rinsing”. The Sverdlovsk toponymist A.K. Matveev is inclined to see in the names Ukhta, Bokhta, Okhta a geographical component - “channel, river”. The well-known Sovietexpert in the field of toponymy and cartography E. M. Pospelov.

History of Kalevala

Around the XIV century in the north of Karelia, the so-called Lopsky graveyards ( common name seven separate administrative units of the Novgorod Republic: Seletsky, Padansky, Rugozersky, Shuezersky, Panozersky, Syamozersky, Lindozersky churchyards). The indigenous inhabitants of these lands - the Sami (or the so-called goblin, that is, the forest lop) led a semi-nomadic lifestyle. An important role in the formation and emergence settlements these territories were played by the rivers Kem, Chirka-Kem and Lake Kuito, along which the main transport routes passed.

One of the first written evidence of the settlements of the Lapps on Lake Kuito in the Panozero Pogost were entries in a separate book of the Kemskaya volost for 1552 (acts Solovetsky Monastery): “... Yes, on the Kem land, baptized and unbaptized Lukozersky Lapps lived along the forest lakes on Topozero, and in Kistenge and on Kuntoozero ...”.

On "foreign" handwritten geographical maps in these places, a settlement called "Kuytka" (map by Abraham Ortelius, 1570) or "Kuytta" (1595, map by Gerard Mercator) was also noted.

According to the sentinel book of the Lopsky churchyards, dated 1597, the Panozero churchyard included Kurzhiev Navolok, Topozero, Yushkozero, Sopasalma and "volostka on Kuitozero on the Ukht River."

In 1649, the Lopsky churchyards were subordinated to the Olonets governor.

It should be mentioned that around this time, in the second quarter XVII century, the so-called "great migration of Korela" began, associated with the Russian-Swedish wars. The Russian linguist D. V. Bubrikh describes this process as follows:

“Last of all, the Pribotnian Korela set off, which in its northern places experienced Swedish oppression in somewhat weakened forms. The last groups of the Pribotnian Korela appeared in the modern Kalevala region at the beginning XVIIIcentury. A hundred years ago, the population of the Kalevalsk region still remembered their resettlement well ... As aliens, by the way, the family of the famous rune singer Perttunen remembered itself.

With the advent of the Karelians, part of the Lop population migrated further north, and part gradually assimilated with the newcomers.

We must not forget that, according to the Stolbovsky Treaty of 1617, the border between Russia and Sweden passed in the immediate vicinity of Lake Kuito, which determined the role of Ukhta as a border settlement. On the one hand, Ukhta gradually became a kind of "international" trading point: salt, fish, cloth, silk and sugar delivered by merchants from Arkhangelsk were exported to Sweden through the Panozero churchyard. On the other hand, the proximity of the border and the military claims of the Swedes contributed to the ruin of individual settlements.

So Ukhta during Northern war was almost completely destroyed. Elias Lönnrot, the famous explorer and ethnographer, writes in his travel notes 1834:

“... Under the reign of Charles XII during the Northern War, the village was completely destroyed.<...>As far as the war devastated this region, if these fertile places, fields and fields, located also on the shores of a lake rich in fish - which was also quite important when choosing a place for a settlement - there was no person closer than from Kianta to which it is not possible to reach from here. less than twelve miles ... ".

The gradually devastated settlement was restored, new residents appeared in Ukhta - Karelians and Finns. In the notes of Lönnrot, an excerpt from which was quoted above, there is a description of the then Ukhta:

“... I went from Yuvalaksha to Ukhtua. There are eighty houses in this richest village in the region, most of them of good quality. The name comes from the river Ukhut, which flows through the village<...>The village is divided into four parts: Lamminpokhya, Miitkala, Ryhya and Likopäya. Half of the village belongs to Vuokkiniemi parish, the other half belongs to Paanajärvi parish. The border between the volosts runs along the Ukhut River.

In 1846, a separate Ukhta parish was formed. It included the villages of Ukhta, Chiksha, Kurmalaksha, previously belonging to the Panozero parish, as well as Yuvalaksha, Alozero, Kentozero and Regozero of the Voknavolotsk parish.

In 1894 Kusta Karjalainen (Finnish philologist) and Konrad Inh (Finnish photographer) visited Ukhta with a linguistic expedition. During the trip, Inhom took more than two hundred photographs from life North Karelia, and Konrad Inch left quite detailed description Wow:

“On the northern shore of Lake Srednee Kuito, closer to the eastern tip, there is the largest settlement of the White Sea Karelia - Ukhta. By the number of inhabitants and building density, it could be called a city, however, in terms of its structure and location, it does not differ from ordinary villages this edge.<...>All croplands are located on open space around the village, they are small in size, divided among many owners, so that it would be impossible to feed on their products without having other sources of income. For the most part the inhabitants of Ukhta live off trade. Men walked all over Finland and it was rare to find a corner in the country where they did not have shops or peddlers. Along with agriculture and animal husbandry, fishing was an important way of earning a livelihood...”.

At the beginning of the 20th century, Ukhta was the administrative center of the Ukhta volost. By this time, the village consisted of 207 households and 1260 souls of the population. The inhabitants of Ukhta and the volost are engaged in fishing, hunting, logging and rafting of timber, carting, seasonal work in St. Petersburg and Arkhangelsk.

In the summer of 1917, a meeting of the White Sea Karelians (about 9 thousand people) took place in the village, at which it was decided to demand from the Russian government the possibility of forming a separate administrative unit - the autonomous North Karelian region.

At the end of 1917, the independence of Finland was proclaimed, Finnish armed detachments began to penetrate the territory of Russia.

In March 1918, a detachment of the Finnish security corps (shutskor) under the command of Colonel Malm entered Ukhta. Local self-government was organized under the leadership of the Ukhta Committee (Uhtuan Toimikunta), whose members advocated the independence of Karelia from Russia.

From 1919 to 1920, Ukhta managed to be the "capital" of the so-called North Karelian state or the Ukhta Republic. In May 1920, units of the Red Army took Ukhta. The government of the newly-made state was forced to move to Finland.

However, already in the autumn of 1921, the uprising began again. Set against Soviet power local population received support from Finland. By the end of December 1921, local detachments, supported by Finnish volunteers, controlled a significant part of Northeast Karelia.

The Soviet state decided to form the Karelian Front, where about 20 thousand people were transferred. By February 1922, units of the Red Army occupied Ukhta again. And again, the village was practically destroyed: out of 350 houses, only 40 survived.

In 1923, Ukhta became the center of the Ukhta district, which in 1927 was transformed into the Ukhta district. In 1935, as mentioned above, the year of the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the first edition of the world-famous Kalevala, the district was renamed Kalevala.

In the summer of 1927, four kilometers from the village, the Ukhtinskaya hydroelectric power station, the first rural hydroelectric power station in Karelia, began to operate. In 1931, the first aircraft was launched to deliver mail from Kem to Ukhta.

During the Great Patriotic War, the Kalevala region became one of those places where the enemy troops achieved the least result. Neither the Finns nor the Germans succeeded in advancing the front line frozen for three years (along the line of Lake Kis-Kis - the Chirka-Kem River, west of Ukhta). Unfortunately, the military confrontation in these places has led to the fact that already sparsely populated, these places are practically empty. Suffice it to say that by the end of 1943, only (!) 602 inhabitants remained in the region (data from the Finnish Military Directorate of Eastern Karelia).

Apparently, the abolition of the Kalevalsk region as an administrative unit in 1963, when Ukhta and nearby lands were transferred to the jurisdiction of the Kem industrial region, is connected with the small population. Then, in 1963, the village of Ukhta became the urban-type settlement of Kalevala, and in 1966 - the center of the newly created Kalevala district.

Modernity

Kalevala today is a village that apparently survives only thanks to seasonal tourism and the presence (so far) of a border detachment on its territory. OAO "Ukhtua" and the Kalevalsk industrial complex (logging) that existed on its territory, which provided work for the residents of the village, have now been successfully liquidated.

Some of the Kalevala residents are still working to serve the border guards, but back in 2005 it was decided to gradually transfer the unit to Kostomuksha, and, apparently, very soon locals will remain without this source of income.

Transport

The roads are hard here. Apparently, this is already a kind of, as they say, “time-honored” tradition. Folklorist Axel Borenius, who visited these places in the 1870s, mentioned that although Ukhta was considered a relatively large trading place at that time, there were no roads in any direction, and during the thaw, the village was simply cut off from the rest of the world.

To date, the main highway is the A135 highway connecting the M-18 (“Kola”) highway and the village. Kalevala (130 km), laid in 1928. The condition in some places is quite consistent with the "manufacturing" date. Perhaps the best “Karelian hedgehogs” in the republic are also found there - stumps of trees cut down during the construction of the road “sprouting” through the asphalt.

The rest of the roads are graders. On them you can get from Kalevala to Finland (to the west, through Voinitsa), or alternatively (through the same Voinitsa to the south) to Kostomuksha. Directly from the village goes the road to the north in the Loukhsky district to Tungozero.

The quality of graders depends entirely on how long they have been “stroked”. If you are lucky, you will drive like on asphalt, if not, you will crash the car on a “comb” - rhythmically repeating tubercles-cavities.

Sights of Kalevala

The hallmark of the Kalevala is the Lönnrot pine. Allegedly, it was sitting under it that he wrote down, according to local peasants, the famous epic.

Memorial Museum of the Kalevala Rune Singers (Väinämeinen St., 1a). Located in the house of the storyteller Maria Remshu. The exposition of the museum includes antiquities, household utensils, personal belongings of rune singers. By order of tourists, excursions around the village, concerts of folklore groups are organized.

Museum-printing house, which has preserved machine tools with manual typesetting. There are guided tours showing the printing process in action.

The Moberg House is an Art Nouveau manor from the early 20th century. Now it continues (which is already a year!) Restoration work. It is interesting that the money for the restoration was allocated even by the European Union (more than 40 thousand euros) - as a participant in the international project "PoCoBus Karelia ENPI".

Holidays of Kalevala

Festival of culture of Ukhta Karelians "Folk fun". Held annually, on the second Saturday of June. It is also the Day of the Ukhta Karelian.

Ethnomusic festival "Sommelo". It usually takes place at the beginning of July. The peculiarity of the festival is that it is held as if in two stage: not only in Karelia, but also in Finland.

1. At the entrance to the area, as well as in places of residence, the names on the signs begin to duplicate

Lönnrot himself named the epic Kalevala

5. Quotes from Kalevala with illustrations hang throughout the village

7. You can walk from one point of the city to another and read the whole epic) (just kidding)

8. Even such an inconspicuous-looking house was not forgotten

9. True quotes could do with a little update, but the whole idea with them is wonderful

10. On the other side of the house translation into Finnish (or Karelian)

In the Kalevala, Sampo is a mill that grinds enough bread, salt and gold to buy food, supplies and feasts. In Finland, there is a male name Sampo, as well as the name of a bank, an insurance company, an ice drift, a volleyball club and a puppet theater. And also, when Vyborg was Finnish, that was the name of one of its streets

12. In the village of Kalevala, the Sampo store stands on a street with an equally beautiful name. I repeat, "runes" are epic songs of the Baltic-Finnish peoples. We'll talk a little more about them when we go to the local museum of rune singers.

15. Here again. In neighboring Kalevala district, as I understand it, translation is less common

16. Even a map of the village in Karelian. There is also a translation into Russian

17. Kalevala - a quiet place

19. Alas, closed. But I managed to get into the museum of rune singers, which is better and more informative

Wonderful place! I will tell about it separately. Then we'll talk about runes, rune singers and Karelian traditions

22. Kalevala streets are not very bright, but in general Kalevala is much nicer than many other cities in Karelia. Neighboring Belomorsk, although larger, looks more unfriendly and gloomy

24. Peter and Paul Church

28. Temple again. A remake, but pleasant and not at all pretentious

30. Interesting street design. Like it or not, but you will touch a small part of the local culture

32. The board on the house says that the storyteller Tatyana Alekseevna Perttunen (1881-1963) lived here

33. "Yamanen's barn". Elias Lönnrot stayed there in 1836

34. Against the background of this barn