Joukahainen

Joukahainen (Finnish pronunciation: [ˈjou̯kɑˌhɑi̯nen]) is a figure in Finnish mythology who appears as a rival or companion of Väinämöinen. There has been debate among scholars if he should be categorized as a god, a hero, an evil being, or something else. His name has multiple different variations in runic songs, including Jokkahas, Jompainen, Joukava, Joukkaha, Joukkahas, Joukkama, Joukamoinen, Joukavainen, Joukkahainen, Joukkavainen and Joutavoinen. Emil Nestor Setälä connected Joukahainen's name to Sámi words related to snowfall and solidifying and called him a god, the haltija of ice and snow, who was defeated by water haltija Väinämöinen. Kaarle Krohn considered Joukahainen to be a human hero and speculated if his name had a connection to the Estonian jõud 'power' or Finnish joukea 'slender, large-sized'. As the name Joukahainen has been connected to joukainen 'swan', Risto Pulkkinen called Joukahainen the shaman of a swan clan. In some runic songs, Joukahainen is mentioned to be a brother of Väinämöinen, though this is not the case in all versions, as White Karelian poems refer to Väinämöinen as Joukahainen's aunt's son, and some poems also refer to Joukahainen as an inhabitant of Pohjola. In his 1782 book De superstitione veterum fennorum, Christian Erici Lenqvist called Joukahainen a god. Christfried Ganander called him a giant in his 1789 book Mythologia Fennica. Joukahainen appears in a myth which describes the runic singing battle between him and Väinämöinen.