Keel ja Kirjandus (Nov 2023)
Loomislaul alguste kiigel
Abstract
"The song of creation on the swing of new beginnings". The Estonian myth recounting the creation of the world and heavenly bodies has been recorded as a Kalevala-metric epic song (regilaul) that has parallels in other Finnic traditions. Various connections emerge within Estonian folklore between the Creation song and the popular practice of swinging at Easter or Pentecost, and the beginning of the summer season. In light of the cyclical conception of time, we can interpret the practice of singing the Creation song while on a swing as a part of the spring ritual marking the beginning of the year. In order to test this hypothesis, the article presents an analysis of the links between variants of the Creation song and the practice of swinging, based on materials from the Estonian Folklore Archives housed at the Estonian Literary Museum. Out of the 258 texts examined using source criticism, 230 could be verified as authentic representations of folklore obtained from oral tradition, either through written records or audio recordings. The earliest recorded text in the sample dates back to the 1820s. For an analysis of variation in folk song, a modified version of the historical-geographic method of the Finnish school was employed, using the concepts of type and variant as the foundation for comparing and organizing the extensive corpus of the texts of Creation originating from oral tradition. In using this approach, the author has strived to avoid the idea of monolithic folk song types and a somewhat mechanistic view of the evolution of orally transmitted texts which have been characteristic of the Finnish school. The archive contains Estonian variants of Creation that can be grouped into an older, Kalevala-metric version and a more recent version that represents a hybrid form of folk song incorporating features from both the more archaic alliterative Kalevala-metric singing tradition and the more modern European-style rhymed folk songs. Swinging is associated with the older version, variants of which have been recorded from the 19th century to the first half of the 20th century in peripheral regions of northern and western Estonia, as well as to some extent in central Estonia – that is, in an area where the archaic Northern Estonian Kalevala-metric singing tradition shares certain common features. The same region is the traditional area for the custom of swinging on large communal village swings that resemble Finnish and Ingrian swings. The more modern version, used in conjunction with a circle game, represents a newer tradition originating in Pärnu County, although this circle game may have been played during festivities at swing sites. The connection between the Kalevala-metric Creation song and swinging becomes apparent through shared features in lyrics and melodies found in variants of the Creation type as well as swinging songs (occasionally, performers or collectors have also added explicit comments to song variants mentioning swinging). These common elements may have developed as a result of the songs being sung while singing. On the other hand, the older version of Creation is rarely associated with other activities or specific melodies. More than a third (38 per cent) of all the variants of the Kalevala-metric Creation feature text motifs or melodies intertwined with swinging songs, indicating that these variants have traditionally been sung while swinging or in close proximity to swinging. Texts of Creation linked to swinging form two main versions: Nest on the Swing (a bird weaves its nest on the swing shaft) and Narrow Swing (the swing is described using metaphors of the world tree). Although other epic Kalevala-metric songs have occasionally been sung on swings, their association with swinging is far more sporadic. There are also reports of singing Creation on a swing from Ingria. The links between the Estonian Creation song and swinging allow us to at least hypothesize the existence of a past spring ritual conducted on swings. This ritual likely aimed to restore order to the world and ensure the fertility of humans and nature by singing about the rebirth of heavenly bodies. The swing may have directly symbolized the rotating cosmos, the world tree, or a model of the world.
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