Let’s descend into the hiisi! – The sacred places of Hämeenlinna
The Hämeenlinna region contains numerous natural sites where village communities once gathered to make offerings to various gods and the spirits of the dead, hoping for better fortune. These sacred places, mostly established during the late Iron Age, were known as hiidet. With the arrival of Christianity, their original meaning was forgotten, and in people’s minds they became the dreaded dwelling places of giants, trolls, and devils.
The best-known hiidet in Hämeenlinna
1. Utterinvuori in Hauho
Utterinvuori in Hauho is a medieval boundary site, on top of which grew an old pine known as Tupsumänty. Pieces of iron were struck into the trunk of Tupsumänty as offerings to the goddess Tupsujumalatar.
Location: Utterinvuori in the village of Porras, Hauho.
2. Hiisivuori in Pyhäjärvi
Hiisivuori, which rises steeply from Lake Pyhäjärvi, is known, among other things, for the boulders that the hiisi giants once hurled at Hauho Church.
Location: Hiidenkallio, on the border between Sotjala and Tuulos, north of Lake Pyhäjärvi.
3. Hiidenhoilo in Lammi
Hiidenhoilo in Lammi is an old sacrificial grove and a former stomping ground for ancient seers. A path running through the hoilo leads to an Iron Age hillfort.
Location: A path to Hiidenhoilo begins at the Lovonjärvi rest area in Lammi.
4. Hiilenmäki in Hattelmala
On Hiilenmäki in Hattelmala stands a cup-marked stone where offerings were left for the community’s departed. Coins still appear in the cup marks to this day.
Location: Hattelmala, on the western edge of Hiilenmäki (Hiidenmäki), near the edge of a field.
5. Lusikkaniemi on Lake Aulanko
Lusikkaniemi, a headland jutting into Lake Aulanko, was formerly known as Hiitiönniemi. The name likely refers to a sacrificial site once located on the headland.
Location: Aulanko Nature Reserve
6. Katumajärvi
Katumajärvi is the setting of many legends. Their origins are linked to the cup-marked stones, burial sites, hillfort, and sacrificial spring found along the lake’s shores.
Location: Katumajärvi, east of Hämeenlinna city centre
7. Käräjämäki in Renko
Käräjämäki in Renko served as the community’s cult centre, where common matters were settled with the help of the ancestors. The judges’ circle once located on top of the hill was originally a burial site.
Location: Renko village centre, western shore of Lake Kirkkojärvi
8. Pyhämäki in Kutila
Today, Pyhämäki in Kutila is sacred above all to the people who live in the area. In earlier times, mourners would stop at the hill to make offerings on behalf of the deceased being carried to church.
Location: Kalvola, Pyhämäki in Kutila
Welcome on a literary tour of the hiidet of the Hämeenlinna region!
We begin by immersing ourselves in the atmosphere of sacred places in 17th-century Hauho.
Next, we set out to explore places where similar rain rituals may have been performed over a thousand years ago. Our first stop is Hiisivuori.
Now we travel to the legendary Hattelmala ridge and discover a stone whose cup marks still gather coins to this day.
We continue along the Hattelmala ridge road and find strange, open-to-interpretation places along the way. Eventually we arrive in Janakkala, where we drop a coin into Taaranlähde spring.
In the earlier parts of this series, we have seen that the primary purpose of the rituals held at the hiidet was to ensure the fertility of the fields. Next, we travel to Lammi to find out what else went on at these sacred sites. Along the way, we stop for a drink at Kapakanmäki in Tuulos.
Today, the word käräjät mainly refers to the workings of the judicial system. In prehistoric times, the word was understood more broadly. People gathered at the käräjät not only to administer justice and settle disputes, but also to decide on matters of common concern to the whole community. Rengon Käräjämäki, for example, was likely the site of just such gatherings. But what became of the käräjä stones that once stood on the hill?
In the earlier parts of this series, we have seen that many of the most important activities of late Iron Age Häme communities took place at the hiidet. In this final part of the series, we travel via the Häme karsikko trees to the shores of Lake Katumajärvi. There we discover what became of the hiidet when Christianity arrived in Häme.