A new year is soon upon us!

It's the last day of the year. How will you spend it? 2023 was a turbulent year for many, may 2024 bring peace, joy and happiness.

 

Tallinn 1900 vs. 2023

One more Estonian born into the world

My sister rang me at 5am yesterday to announce she had just given birth to her eight child. EIGTH CHILD! I honestly thought she was planning to stop at six but then the seventh arrived and now there's eight. My family has really grown during the past ten years and there's another on the way. My brother will be a father for the first time in February and my other brother is engaged and will start his family in the near future.

It is quite unusual for a woman to have so many children these days and despite the high cost of living and growing inflation, it didn't dissuade my sister from having a large family. She now has the perfect balance of children, four boys and four girls. All the girls' names begin with the letter 'L' and all the boys (apart from the eldest) start with the letter 'J'. I am thrilled to welcome the new little bundle of joy into our family and looking forward to meeting him when I next visit Australia.

In Estonia there are 125 mothers with 10 or more children. In 2022 the Aan family from South Estonia won the European Large Family of the Year Award. This was the first time Estonia has ever won this award.

Estonian birth statistics

The current fertility rate in Estonia is 1.41.
Estonian women have 2.0 children on average, compared to 1.63 children among the ethnic Russian population.
The average age of a woman at birth of first child is 28.6 years
In 2022 there were 6,014 boys and 4,632 girls born in Estonia
This includes 168 twins and 3 triplets
The most popular baby names are- Olivia, Saara, Sofia, Eliise and Mia. Sebastian, Adrian, Gustav, Rasmus, David, Hugo and Karl.

Tammsaare's "Elu ja Armastus" / "Life & Love" to be released in cinemas on Valentine's Day

 

For the first time, A.H. Tammsaare's "Life and Love" has been produced into a full-length feature film. Elu ja Armastus / Life & Love is the tale of an unexpected love story of two iconic figures known from Estonian literature, Irma and Rudolf. The action of the film takes place at a pivotal period when the young Estonian Republic, crippled by growing well-being, has to deal with the shaking challenges of a changing world. The film gives a fresh perspective to timeless topics, creating surprising parallels with the modern world.

What Christmas looked like in Estonian homes during the last century

Here is an interesting article recently published by Delfi. I find the old interiors of people's really fascinating. You can view them here - Millised nägid välja pühadeaegsed kodud eelmisel sajandil

Häid jõule! Merry Christmas!

5 Estonian Christmas Traditions

Christmas (Jõulud) is traditionally celebrated in Estonia between December 21 and the Epiphany on January 6. In modern day Estonia, December 24-26 are celebrated as national holidays. Christmas Eve is the most important day on the Estonian calendar so we all have a busy day ahead of us!

Estonia has many Christmas traditions, here are five of them.

1. Tradtionally houses were cleaned thoroughly on December 21 in preparation of the Christmas feast which was the richest meal of the year. Straw was brought into the house as it was considered a blessing of good health. Estonians honour their deceased relatives at Christmas time so straw, food and drinks were tradtionally left out for the spirits who came to visit at night.

2. In old times it was very popular to brew your own beer at Christmas time and today some brewers still release a special Christmas beer.

3. The Christmas feast is the highlight of the day. Pork, verivorst, fish, potatoes, cabbage and bread are the staples on the table. Pirukas and rosolje are also very popular. When it comes to baking, Estonians enjoy eating piparkoogid, apples cakes or cinnamon kringle at Christmas time.

4. The declaration of Christmas peace is a  tradition that dates back to the 17th century, during the reign of Queen Kristina of Sweden. Today, the Mayors of Tallinn and Tartu continue this tradition, using the words from Queen Kristina's original speech.

5. Unlike other countries, children in Estonia actually meet Santa when he comes to visit on Christmas Eve. But before but they receive his gift, the child must sing a song or recite a poem. The gift must be earned.

Christmas joy with a hint of sadness

I love Christmas time. It has always given me great pleasure to decorate my home each year, buy nice gfts and cook up a feast. I come from a large family so our Christmas celebrations are usually filled with lots of joy and laughter. It has been a few years now since my family have been all together for Christmas. Some members of my family have moved away and some have passed away. Christmas can be tough when you miss the people you love. This year will be the fifth Christmas without my mother. I often feel bouts of sadness knowing she's not here anymore. Every year since her death I started the tradition of always putting out the last Christmas card she send me with the new cards. This is my way of including her during the festive season.

The World's first Christmas tree was in Tallinn

Estonia has many wonderful cultural traditions but the one that is the most practiced around the world is the public Christmas tree. The tradition of the public Christmas tree dates back to the year 1441 when the Brotherhood of Black Heads put a Christmas tree up on Tallinn Town Hall Square. The evergreen spruce tree symbolises rebirth and was decorated with small edible items.

It is not known exactly when it became commonplace to place a tree in a home in Estonia. Calendars and newspaper reports show Estonians have brought spruce trees into their homes since at least 1845. Christmas trees were also hung from the rafters in farmhouses. Up until the 1920s, straw was also brought into houses during the festive period.

It has been a tradition to give Christmas gifts in Estonia since at least 1845 and they were normally placed on the table. In other countries Christmas presents are put under the tree, but tradtionally, in Estonia, a gift has to be earned. Memoirs from the end of the 19th century reveal people often sang for their presents, or were worried about forgetting the words to a poem.They had to get it right!

Glass baubles and other decorations were seen on trees during the last decades of the 19th century. Candles were replaced by lights and tinsel came into fashion.

Today, Tallinn is not only the location where the Christmas tree tradition began, but it's also home to one of the finest Christmas markets in the world. The Tallinn Christmas Market has been voted the best many times.  Merry Christmas everyone! Häid jõule!

New Paul Keres Documentary: Kuningas

The newly completed documentary film about Estonia's greatest chess player of all time, Grandmaster Paul Keres is now freely available for Delfi readers to watch here:  Paul Keres: Kuningas

Photo flashback: Old Tallinn Taxis

These photographs date back to the early 1930s when cars were sparingly used during winter.

 

 

Discover Estonian film heritage

The video on demand platform Arkaader was created by the Estonian National Archive and Estonian Film Institute and launched in 2022. It aims to bring all Estonian film hertiage together under one roof, making it easy to access feature films, documentaries, animation and film chronicles after its theatrical run. The search engine enables films to be searched by their geographical locations in Estonia. There are currently 3000 titles available online. In the film vault you can view many Estonian classics.

With Arkaader you can watch movies individually or in carefully curated collections or explore the movie map.

All Estonians are ambassadors for their country

At the recent sixth annual global Estonian forum, Minister of Foreign Affairs Margus Tsahkna, stated 'every Estonian is an ambassador for his country to other nations, particularly when residing abroad.'. This is very true. Estonia is a very patriotic country and national pride is extremely high among the dispora. It is our sincerest wish to see our country thrive.

As a small nation, Estonia's interconnectedness with the international community is absolutely critical for the country's survival. The vast majority of Estonians are fiercely proud of their culture, language, heritage and growing list of success stories. Respect for our roots and cultural uniqueness makes us naturally speak well of our country and there is no better promotion than word of mouth. Estonia is a country with a lot to offer and, for those interested in learning more, we are happy to share our knowledge.

Today in history

Today, 145 years ago, Estonian conductor, pianist, organist and composer Otto Hermann was born in Tartu (13. December 1878 - 17 October 1933). He was the first  music director of Estonian theater from 1906-1908. Hermann organised and conducted the first symphony concerts in Tallinn. One of his most famous music pieces is “Spring Symphony” (Kevade sümfoonia, 1924).

Otto Hermann

105 years ago today, the national flag was raised for the first time atop Pikk Hermann Tower

On the 12th of December 1918, Estonia's beloved blue-black-white national flag was raised for the first time on top of Pikk Hermann Tower. The location has since become its most symbolic site of display. May the beautiful Estonian flag always fly proudly and freely! 

'Smoke Sauna Sisterhood' wins Best Documentary at European Film Awards

The Estonian film Smoke Sauna Sisterhood by Anna Hints has won Best Documentary at the European Film Awards in Berlin. Congratulations to Anna and her team, they have made Estonia so proud! This is Estonia's first European Film Academy Award. Smoke Sauna Sisterhood delves into the cultural tradition of Vana-Võromaa’s smoke saunas in South Estonia and how they are unique spaces for healing and community. Smoke Sauna Sisterhood / Savvusanna sõsarad is currently attracting full houses at cinemas worldwide.

 

 

I have yet to see this documentary but going by Anna Hint's acceptance speech,  it's inspiration enough for me to go and see this multi awarding-winning film.

 

Tallinn: Photo flashback

Before World War Two, there was a building located on this triangular plot, that was destroyed during the bombing by the Red Army in 1944. I wonder how many people remember this building. Fascinating.

Estonia is a winter wonderland!

Estonian meteorologist Kairo Kiitsak recently spent hours travelling around Estonia to take these stunning winter photographs. These images were taken in Sirevere in Lääne-Viru County, in northeastern Estonia. Such natural beauty!

 

Estonian 15-year-olds are the smartest in Europe

The PISA 2022 educational survey was published today and shows that the knowledge and skills of Estonian 15-year-olds are at the absolute top in Europe and seventh place in the world ranking. Student from 81 countries were tested for their proficiency in reading, science and mathematics. What a fantastic result for Estonia!

To learn more about 2022 PISA results, please click here.

Nami-Nami's Christmas Calendar

Every day in the month of December Estonia's popular recipe website 'Nami-Nami' will share a new Christmas idea. This is the ninth year Nami-Nami has created the Christmas calendar that is full of delicious treats. Be prepared to be inspired! You can view it here.

 

 

Heavy snowfall across Estonia and Europe

The impact of this year's El Niño is currently being felt across the Northern Hemisphere. 60% of Europe is covered in snow at the moment, there hasn't been snow cover like this since 2010.  I woke up this morning to find snow 40 cm deep outside my house. Snow may be beautiful to look at but it can be problematic when it comes to mobility.

 

Map of snow cover in Europe on December 1, the worst since 2010.

In Tallinn, the capital has been transformed into a winter wonderland due to the recent snowfall. The Tallinn Christmas Market officially opened yesterday and many stunning images have started to emerge on social media, including this one of Viru Gate. The photograph was taken by Michael Huang who has captured many beautiful images of Tallinn over the years.

Tallinn is truly magical during the winter months when the city is covered in a blanket of snow.

Surviving winter - the Estonian way

My cousin recently sent me this amusing picture. When I think back to the times when our ancestors had to brave the cold and harsh winters in Estonia, it really makes me appreciate what comforts we have today. But then again, I have slipped over on the ice in Tallinn despite wearing sturdy winter boots, it's simply hard to avoid. All we can really do is, rug up, slow down and do our best.