Comments on: Happy St. Urho’s Day!

By: Erin

Erin — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 14:09:00 +0000

Criminy, I just told someone Happy St. Urho’s day and they didn’t know what it was. So don’t worry AB, you’re not the only one. I didn’t realize how localized it was, also I thought it was a Norwegian thing. Oops. Now that I know it’s an overgrown inside joke, it’s even better.

By: Karl

Karl — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 09:29:00 +0000

Maybe the state of Minnesota should make St. Urho’s Day a state holiday together with St. Patrick’s day. Even though St. Urho is a little fictional. I have a few questions:

1. Is St. Urho really real & what denomination is he???

2. Do state governments in the US have the power to institute state holidays??? You know like when, for example, Wisconsin made June 14 their state holiday & everyone doesn’t have to go to school or work.

By: jabsonik

jabsonik — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 09:10:00 +0000

Not wanting to spoil your party here, but I’m quite sure the name of the St. Urho’s pub refers to the legendary Finnish president Urho Kaleva Kekkonen too.

Probably the founder of the pub heard about St. Urho’s Day and felt it hilariously resembled Urho Kaleva Kekkonen – who actually _was_ more like an omnipotent supernatural being than a president of a democratic country.

The place is located two blocks from the Finnish parliament house, too. Another reference to Finnish politics.

Not to mention the place’s nickname is “Urkki” which was also UKK’s nickname.

(Click the sig for the pub’s home page.)

By: em

em — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 07:16:00 +0000

as a 4th generation Finn- yay for St. Urho’s day!
you gotta wear purple if you’ve got sisu!
they also celebrate st. urho’s (though less formally) in the upper penninsula of michigan. back when copper and iron mining were the main money-maker up there, a lot of Finns settled there. In Hancock, Michigan all of the street signs are in Finnish and English, and there’s a private college called Finlandia.

no one ever talks about Finns, so I have to toot our horn a bit.

By: AB

AB — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 18:46:00 +0000

AWESOME! Thanks for spreading St. Urho’s Day awareness!

Growing up near Bemidji with Finnish heritage, I always thought SHD was just as well-known as St. Patty’s Day. My rude awakening came in high school when, upon asking several people why they weren’t adorned in festive purple for the big day, I got only blank stares.