Master's Theses

Department

History

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Abstract

This thesis examines the role of sensory experiences in religious syncretism in nineteenth-century rural Finland, focusing on how pre-Christian elements were incorporated into Christian traditions through communal rites of passage and seasonal festivals. By analyzing the sensory aspects of rituals and practices, this study demonstrates how sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch mediated the complex relationship between pagan and Christian beliefs, enabling the persistence and transformation of older practices within the framework of new religious beliefs. Drawing upon sources including oral poetry, folk accounts, and songs from the Suomen Kansan Vanhat Runot (SKVR), it provides insights into the sensory and spiritual experiences of rural Finnish communities. Through three main chapters, the thesis explores key areas of religious syncretism: rites of passage (baptism, funerary rituals, and lament singing), seasonal festivals (Eastertide, Kekri, and Christmas), and folk magic practices incorporating Christian elements. The study reveals how sensory elements in these rituals and practices served to define community boundaries, ensure spiritual protection, mark agricultural transitions, and channel spiritual power. It demonstrates that the process of religious syncretism was not merely theological or cultural but deeply rooted in embodied, sensory experiences that shaped and were shaped by social realities.

By examining how rural communities maintained connections to their pre-Christian past through sensory rituals, this thesis contributes to our understanding of how Finnish cultural identity was negotiated and preserved during a period of significant change. It also offers a new perspective on the mechanisms of religious change and cultural continuity, highlighting the importance of sensory experiences in facilitating the blending of religious traditions. This research contributes to the fields of religious studies, folklore, and sensory history, offering a model for examining religious syncretism through the lens of sensory experiences in other cultural contexts.

Keywords

Folk Christianity, Agricultural Rites, Ritual Performance, Symbolic Practices, Finnic Paganism

Advisor

Dr. Marco Macias

Date of Award

Fall 2024

Document Type

Thesis

Rights

© The Author(s)

Comments

For questions contact ScholarsRepository@fhsu.edu

Download


Share

COinS