Estonian Culture
More Information of Estonian Culture
I really like this site for additional culture info for Estonia : _ It gives multiple examples of the different ways culture is expressed across the country.
I like this site as well because it shows how Russia influenced Estonia :_
I like this site as well because it shows how Russia influenced Estonia :_
This map is showing how religion has spread across Estonia over the years. As you can see, there are different religion, but Catholic is the most popular.
http://news.err.ee/v/education/4ba1bad2-925e-46f9-8a26-f185fbe82e1d
http://news.err.ee/v/education/4ba1bad2-925e-46f9-8a26-f185fbe82e1d
Country Demographic Data
- Ethnic groups: Estonian 68.7%, Russian 24.8%, Ukrainian 1.7%, Belarusian 1%, Finn 0.6%, other 1.6%, unspecified 1.6% (2011 est.)
- Median Age total: 41 years male: 37.4 years female: 44.3 years (2013 est.)
- People with HIV/AIDS: 9,900
- Independence: August 20, 1991
- Public Debt: 6% of GDP
- Inflation Rate: 3.4%
How Estonia Has Changed
By looking at the different graphs it seems to be that Estonia has made positive changes for their country and also ones that are happening all over the world. Figure 1 represents the number of child deaths in Estonia. Considering the number of deaths went down as the population for the country increased, I think it should that the medicine for children has gotten better over time. Figure 2 shows the number of people in Estonia that have finished primary school. This is definitely a good thing that the numbers grew because it shows that Estonia values education in hopes of making their country a better place. Figure 3 represents the percentage of of streets that have been paved in Estonia between 1990 and 2005. I think this is a good investment for a country to make because it makes it easier for cars to get around. Considering the percentage more than doubled, this shows that Estonia is trying to keep their country semi modern in hopes of making life for its citizens easier. Figure 4 shows how the price of gas has grown in Estonia from 1995 to 2006. Unfortunately this is happening all over the world, so I guess it is reassuring that it is happening in a small European country. This was the biggest change for Estonia; the price increased by about 100 percent. As you can see, Estonia has progressed in just about every category that is happening all over the world.
Religion
Beginning in the eleventh century AD Christianity came to Estonia. It started in Tallinn first because that was where the majority of the population was living. In 1523, reformation began in Tallinn; over the next centuries Lutheranism became the primary and the most culturally influential religion in Estonia. In Tartu, Estonia in 1838 was the turning point of the further establishment and broadening of the Orthodox Faith Church. The Estonians turned to a different belief system during this period because of a major drought that destroyed all of their crops and knew the Bishop would be able to help them get in contact with the government.
After Reformation reached Estonia in the 1520s Lutheranism developed into the largest religious affiliation. Until the end of the 19th century Lutheran clergy, in towns as well as rural areas, were mostly German speaking. After the Revolution of 1917, at the First Lutheran Congress, the Lutheran Church was defined as the ‘free people’s church’. According to the 1934 census, about 874 000 individuals, approximately every third Estonian, belonged to the Lutheran Church. Because of their large memberships, both the Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church and the Estonian Apostolic-Orthodox Church had special juridical status from 1934 to 1940. Another sign of the relatively wide public support for Lutheranism has been the election of members of the Lutheran clergy to local administrative boards.
Throughout my research, it looks like Estonia’s sacred places are relating to natural sites throughout the country. For example, stones and trees that have been used for healing purposes are more common in western Estonia, and groves for communal prayers are more common in northern and western parts of the country. Sacred groves (hiied; hiis) are probably the best known and popular of the SNSs (sacred natural sites) in Estonia. The users of a sacred grove have historically been the inhabitants of a village, sometimes of a parish or county. Sacred stones have been brought to Estonia during the Weichsel glaciations by glaciers arriving from Scandinavia. Currently around 500 historical sacred stones are known, which can range from ten centimeters to ten or more meters. Sacred waters can be marine areas, lakes, rivers, creeks, yet most often they are springs. People go to the springs mainly for healing or for soul refreshing purposes, but also to pledge ones faithfulness, ask blessing for marriage, to tell fortunes and give name to babies.
In the 13th century Christianity was accepted in Estonia. The consequence was that the Pope ruled Estonia as highest suzerain and a Church State was established. In the 17th century Sweden ruled Estonia and reformation took place. So the Catholic Church did not exist any more in Estonia. The country got a State Church, which may be better described as Land Church. In 1918 Estonia became independent and the Constitution determined the strict separation of State and Church. With the Soviet occupation in 1940 all religious communities were totally controlled by the State and USSR law was applied. The development to an independent state in the 1990s led to a new regulation concerning religious communities and guaranteed the freedom of religion. In Estonia there does not exist a state church in constitutional terms (Article 40). The consequence is not a strict separation of State and Church, but a co-operation with the Estonian Evangelical Church. One form of cooperation not only with the Estonian Evangelical Church but also with other Christian Churches is the Estonian Council of Churches, consisting of 10 Christian Churches. The Council works together with the State in religious freedom questions.
To conclude, although Estonia does have a religious background, it is not an overly religious country. I can tell this because there aren’t any sacred places of worship in country; they just use natural sites found on the land because only 14 percent of the country declares religion being a part of their daily life. However, of the people that practice religion on a daily basis, Lutheranism is the most popular religion practiced.
Works Cited:
European studies on religion and state interaction. (2007, 10 31). Retrieved from http://www.euresisnet.eu/Pages/ReligionAndState/ESTONIA.aspx
Inari. (2013, 03 25). Conserving sacred natural sites in estonia. Retrieved from http://www.maavald.ee/prindi.html?id=4671
Ringvee, R. (2000, 10 10). Lutheranism. Retrieved from http://www.estonica.org/en/Culture/Religion/Lutheranism/
Stephanos. (1998). Presentation of eoc. Retrieved from http://www.orthodoxa.org/GB/estonia/documentsEOC/historyEAOC.htm
IIves, T. (n.d.). Estonia's history. Retrieved from http://estonia.eu/about-estonia/history/estonias-history.html
After Reformation reached Estonia in the 1520s Lutheranism developed into the largest religious affiliation. Until the end of the 19th century Lutheran clergy, in towns as well as rural areas, were mostly German speaking. After the Revolution of 1917, at the First Lutheran Congress, the Lutheran Church was defined as the ‘free people’s church’. According to the 1934 census, about 874 000 individuals, approximately every third Estonian, belonged to the Lutheran Church. Because of their large memberships, both the Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church and the Estonian Apostolic-Orthodox Church had special juridical status from 1934 to 1940. Another sign of the relatively wide public support for Lutheranism has been the election of members of the Lutheran clergy to local administrative boards.
Throughout my research, it looks like Estonia’s sacred places are relating to natural sites throughout the country. For example, stones and trees that have been used for healing purposes are more common in western Estonia, and groves for communal prayers are more common in northern and western parts of the country. Sacred groves (hiied; hiis) are probably the best known and popular of the SNSs (sacred natural sites) in Estonia. The users of a sacred grove have historically been the inhabitants of a village, sometimes of a parish or county. Sacred stones have been brought to Estonia during the Weichsel glaciations by glaciers arriving from Scandinavia. Currently around 500 historical sacred stones are known, which can range from ten centimeters to ten or more meters. Sacred waters can be marine areas, lakes, rivers, creeks, yet most often they are springs. People go to the springs mainly for healing or for soul refreshing purposes, but also to pledge ones faithfulness, ask blessing for marriage, to tell fortunes and give name to babies.
In the 13th century Christianity was accepted in Estonia. The consequence was that the Pope ruled Estonia as highest suzerain and a Church State was established. In the 17th century Sweden ruled Estonia and reformation took place. So the Catholic Church did not exist any more in Estonia. The country got a State Church, which may be better described as Land Church. In 1918 Estonia became independent and the Constitution determined the strict separation of State and Church. With the Soviet occupation in 1940 all religious communities were totally controlled by the State and USSR law was applied. The development to an independent state in the 1990s led to a new regulation concerning religious communities and guaranteed the freedom of religion. In Estonia there does not exist a state church in constitutional terms (Article 40). The consequence is not a strict separation of State and Church, but a co-operation with the Estonian Evangelical Church. One form of cooperation not only with the Estonian Evangelical Church but also with other Christian Churches is the Estonian Council of Churches, consisting of 10 Christian Churches. The Council works together with the State in religious freedom questions.
To conclude, although Estonia does have a religious background, it is not an overly religious country. I can tell this because there aren’t any sacred places of worship in country; they just use natural sites found on the land because only 14 percent of the country declares religion being a part of their daily life. However, of the people that practice religion on a daily basis, Lutheranism is the most popular religion practiced.
Works Cited:
European studies on religion and state interaction. (2007, 10 31). Retrieved from http://www.euresisnet.eu/Pages/ReligionAndState/ESTONIA.aspx
Inari. (2013, 03 25). Conserving sacred natural sites in estonia. Retrieved from http://www.maavald.ee/prindi.html?id=4671
Ringvee, R. (2000, 10 10). Lutheranism. Retrieved from http://www.estonica.org/en/Culture/Religion/Lutheranism/
Stephanos. (1998). Presentation of eoc. Retrieved from http://www.orthodoxa.org/GB/estonia/documentsEOC/historyEAOC.htm
IIves, T. (n.d.). Estonia's history. Retrieved from http://estonia.eu/about-estonia/history/estonias-history.html
Cultural Diversity in Estonia
Like most countries, Estonia has been experiencing cultural diversity for a while. Cultural diversity is the quality of diverse or different cultures akin to cultural decay. In Estonia, there are a few causes for cultural diversity and even things being put in place to help preserve cultural diversity.
Some Estonian folk songs, myths, and poetry suggest it is only natural that the Baltic countries successfully expressed their desire for national independence in 1988 by a “singing revolution” ("Cultural diversity –," 2008). At that time several thousands of Estonians came to the capital, Tallinn, to take part in a traditional song festival. Their aim was to protest peacefully, by singing, against the ruling Soviet regime - a public expression of the Estonian national consciousness that had been suppressed for much too long. Prior to that, the country had seen nearly eight centuries of almost continuous and often changing foreign rule. Danish, Swedish, German, Polish and Russian people had eternalized themselves as leading ethnic groups in the Estonian history. When the downfall of the “Soviet empire started, it became evident that Estonians can finally start ruling their own country” ("Cultural diversity –," 2008). On August 20, 1991 Estonia declared independence. Thus the cultural diversity and consciousness for traditions can be considered very important driving forces behind the Estonian regaining of autonomy. The first signs of Estonian national consciousness appeared already in the 19th century when Estonian people started to turn back to their own language and culture. Since then, there have always been outstanding cultural figures in Estonia. Many of them have been engaged in the research of local myths and legends, which were often handed down from generation to generation only orally.
Throughout Estonia’s existence, different nationalities have always lived together in Estonia. Before World War II, Estonia was a relatively homogeneous society – national minorities constituted about 12% of the population. The largest minority groups in 1934 were Russians, Germans, Swedes, Latvians, Jews, Poles, Finns, and Ingrians. Although many non-Estonians supported the re-establishment of an independent Estonia, their new psychological situation in the 1990s can best be described as "seeking an identity" (Estonian Ministry of Culture, 2008). Therefore Estonia's integration into Europe and the global world is taking place parallel to integration within Estonia, which aims at creating an open multicultural society. All minorities living in Estonia are guaranteed opportunities for the preservation of their language and cultural distinctiveness, above all through the organization of education and social activities in their mother tongue. Also, Estonia is one of the few European Union countries where there is a multi-lingual publicly financed school system as part of the public educational system.
Deciding what to teach kids in school is becoming harder and harder with cultural diversity. Today, the problem facing a pluralistic and democratic society like Estonia is maintaining linguistic diversity. Language expresses, embodies, and symbolizes cultural reality: people view their language as a symbol of their social identity, and this is an especially poignant point for a country like Estonia, force-fed a diet of Russian language and culture for so many years.
In order to help preserve the cultural diversity, Estonians have been trying to preserve historic sites throughout the country. Even though the total area of Estonia is only “47 000 square kilometers,” (Kaasik, 2012) it includes a number of unique native linguistic and cultural regions. There are regional differences also in the types of SNSs. For example, stones and trees that have been used for healing purposes are more common in western Estonia, and groves for communal prayers are more common in northern and western parts of the country. The unique funeral tradition of cross-trees has only survived in southeast Estonia. These sacred sites are important to preserve the cultural diversity in Estonia because certain cultures go to certain areas for prayer and when these sites are gone their culture will slowly diminish as well.
Some Estonian folk songs, myths, and poetry suggest it is only natural that the Baltic countries successfully expressed their desire for national independence in 1988 by a “singing revolution” ("Cultural diversity –," 2008). At that time several thousands of Estonians came to the capital, Tallinn, to take part in a traditional song festival. Their aim was to protest peacefully, by singing, against the ruling Soviet regime - a public expression of the Estonian national consciousness that had been suppressed for much too long. Prior to that, the country had seen nearly eight centuries of almost continuous and often changing foreign rule. Danish, Swedish, German, Polish and Russian people had eternalized themselves as leading ethnic groups in the Estonian history. When the downfall of the “Soviet empire started, it became evident that Estonians can finally start ruling their own country” ("Cultural diversity –," 2008). On August 20, 1991 Estonia declared independence. Thus the cultural diversity and consciousness for traditions can be considered very important driving forces behind the Estonian regaining of autonomy. The first signs of Estonian national consciousness appeared already in the 19th century when Estonian people started to turn back to their own language and culture. Since then, there have always been outstanding cultural figures in Estonia. Many of them have been engaged in the research of local myths and legends, which were often handed down from generation to generation only orally.
Throughout Estonia’s existence, different nationalities have always lived together in Estonia. Before World War II, Estonia was a relatively homogeneous society – national minorities constituted about 12% of the population. The largest minority groups in 1934 were Russians, Germans, Swedes, Latvians, Jews, Poles, Finns, and Ingrians. Although many non-Estonians supported the re-establishment of an independent Estonia, their new psychological situation in the 1990s can best be described as "seeking an identity" (Estonian Ministry of Culture, 2008). Therefore Estonia's integration into Europe and the global world is taking place parallel to integration within Estonia, which aims at creating an open multicultural society. All minorities living in Estonia are guaranteed opportunities for the preservation of their language and cultural distinctiveness, above all through the organization of education and social activities in their mother tongue. Also, Estonia is one of the few European Union countries where there is a multi-lingual publicly financed school system as part of the public educational system.
Deciding what to teach kids in school is becoming harder and harder with cultural diversity. Today, the problem facing a pluralistic and democratic society like Estonia is maintaining linguistic diversity. Language expresses, embodies, and symbolizes cultural reality: people view their language as a symbol of their social identity, and this is an especially poignant point for a country like Estonia, force-fed a diet of Russian language and culture for so many years.
In order to help preserve the cultural diversity, Estonians have been trying to preserve historic sites throughout the country. Even though the total area of Estonia is only “47 000 square kilometers,” (Kaasik, 2012) it includes a number of unique native linguistic and cultural regions. There are regional differences also in the types of SNSs. For example, stones and trees that have been used for healing purposes are more common in western Estonia, and groves for communal prayers are more common in northern and western parts of the country. The unique funeral tradition of cross-trees has only survived in southeast Estonia. These sacred sites are important to preserve the cultural diversity in Estonia because certain cultures go to certain areas for prayer and when these sites are gone their culture will slowly diminish as well.
Works Cited:
Cultural diversity – backbone of the estonian identity. (2008). Retrieved from http://www.estlandia.de/en/country-people.html
Estonian Ministry of Culture. (2008). Population by nationality. Retrieved from http://estonia.eu/about-estonia/country/population-by-nationality.html
Jarve, K. (2014, 03 28). Estonia is a small country. Retrieved from http://www.chess.com/blog/kjarve/estonia-is-a-small-country
Kaasik, A. (2012, 03 25). Conserving sacred natural sites in estonia. Retrieved from http://www.maavald.ee/eng/uudised.html?rubriik=50&id=4671&op=lugu
Cultural diversity – backbone of the estonian identity. (2008). Retrieved from http://www.estlandia.de/en/country-people.html
Estonian Ministry of Culture. (2008). Population by nationality. Retrieved from http://estonia.eu/about-estonia/country/population-by-nationality.html
Jarve, K. (2014, 03 28). Estonia is a small country. Retrieved from http://www.chess.com/blog/kjarve/estonia-is-a-small-country
Kaasik, A. (2012, 03 25). Conserving sacred natural sites in estonia. Retrieved from http://www.maavald.ee/eng/uudised.html?rubriik=50&id=4671&op=lugu
Food in Estonia
Pictured below are the popular foods in Estonia. The Estonians pretty similar foods as we do here in the US. They sure love their meat and potatoes! The first dish Karttuliporsad. Which is just a combination of meat inside potatoes. Next, is sausage. When I went to Estonia, I had their sausage and it was delicious. Third, if you are living near a coast you will generally eat more fish. Fourth is a dessert called kissel that is more of a sweet drink and 5th is another dessert called kama which is a rice based custard. I chose these foods because they are common among the estonians for what they eat on a daily bases.
Famous Dish
http://thanksgiving.food.com/recipe/estonian-barley-skillet-bread-307165
Estonian barely skillet bread has been around for quite a while. On one site, it said this was one of the most common food dishes that estonians miss when they leave the country. This bread was very common during World War 2 because it was pretty easy to make and all ages love it.
Estonian barely skillet bread has been around for quite a while. On one site, it said this was one of the most common food dishes that estonians miss when they leave the country. This bread was very common during World War 2 because it was pretty easy to make and all ages love it.
Food and Religion
Considering a lot of Estonians are Christian in some way, they all celebrate Christmas. With this comes a lot of traditions with food. The most common Christmas food in Estonia is the Christmas Sausage or pork and sauerkraut dishes. The Estonians say having a big meal during Christmas will symbolize have plenty of food for the coming year. Some Estonians believe in magical trees called Taaras in which they will bring food to which is a symbol of respect.
Food Production
Food production is a big source of money for Estonia's economy. The majority of food comes from locally grown farms and manufacturing plants. The government in Estonia feels it is important to produce a lot of their food in their country in order to keep the farmers in business and help stimulate their economy. However, of course Estonia wants to be a part of the world trading factor so they do buy and sell a lot of things to Russia.