Lalli
Encyclopedia
Lalli is an apocryphal character from Finnish
history. According to legend, he killed Bishop Henry on the ice of lake Köyliönjärvi
in Finland on January 20, 1156.
Lalli took the bishop's hat from his decapitated head and cut off the bishop's finger to take his ring. The hat became fused to Lalli's head and when he tried to remove it, it tore his scalp off with it. When Lalli tried to remove the bishop's ring from his finger, it likewise tore his finger off. Afterward, Lalli drowned in the lake Köyliönjärvi. Per the bishop's last wish, his body parts were collected by his servants and transported with oxen. Where the oxen stopped became the site of the first church in Finland.
The legend is enshrined in a famous Finnish folk poem called Henrikin surma ("The Slaying of Henry"). The poem includes such characters as a talking statue of Christ
and the lying wife, who falsely accuses Bishop Henry of theft. This negligence was probably seen as criminal at the time of the story's setting, but the poem also presents Lalli as a violent madman. One of the versions of the poem is found in the Kanteletar
, a collection of old Finnish folk poetry.
folklore
. His name is not common in Finland and may be a form of "Laurentius". He has been depicted as a figure prostrated at the feet of the Bishop Henry in wooden statues. More recently, Lalli has been seen to representing a positive rebellion against oppressive authority.
In the television series Suuret suomalaiset
– the Finnish version of 100 Greatest Britons
– Lalli was chosen as the 14th greatest Finn.
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
history. According to legend, he killed Bishop Henry on the ice of lake Köyliönjärvi
Köyliönjärvi
Köyliönjärvi is a lake in Köyliö, Finland. Saint Henry was allegedly murdered on the ice of the lake in the mid-12th century. The lake and its surroundings are classified as a nationally valuable landscape by the government. The area has been inhabited continuously since the Iron Age....
in Finland on January 20, 1156.
Legend
The story tells that when Lalli returned home one day, his wife Kerttu informed him that the bishop recently visited their house and had departed without paying for his food, drink, or fodder. When Lalli heard of this, he became enraged and left to pursue the bishop. At Bishop Henry's bidding, his entourage fled and hid in a nearby forest, while Lalli decapitated Henry with an axe.The legend is enshrined in a famous Finnish folk poem called Henrikin surma ("The Slaying of Henry"). The poem includes such characters as a talking statue of Christ
Christ
Christ is the English term for the Greek meaning "the anointed one". It is a translation of the Hebrew , usually transliterated into English as Messiah or Mashiach...
and the lying wife, who falsely accuses Bishop Henry of theft. This negligence was probably seen as criminal at the time of the story's setting, but the poem also presents Lalli as a violent madman. One of the versions of the poem is found in the Kanteletar
Kanteletar
Kanteletar is a collection of Finnish folk poetry compiled by Elias Lönnrot. It is considered to be a sister collection to the Finnish national epic Kalevala...
, a collection of old Finnish folk poetry.
Cultural significance
Lalli is a well-known figure in FinnishFinland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
. His name is not common in Finland and may be a form of "Laurentius". He has been depicted as a figure prostrated at the feet of the Bishop Henry in wooden statues. More recently, Lalli has been seen to representing a positive rebellion against oppressive authority.
In the television series Suuret suomalaiset
Suuret suomalaiset
Suuret suomalaiset was a 2004 television show broadcast in Finland by YLE , which determined the 100 greatest Finns of all time according to the opinions of its viewers. The viewers were able to vote during a programme which lasted from October to December 2004...
– the Finnish version of 100 Greatest Britons
100 Greatest Britons
100 Greatest Britons was broadcast in 2002 by the BBC. The programme was the result of a vote conducted to determine whom the United Kingdom public considers the greatest British people in history. The series, Great Britons, included individual programmes on the top ten, with viewers having further...
– Lalli was chosen as the 14th greatest Finn.