Wedding Songs and the Wedding Feast as Formative Elements of the Kalevala

The wedding celebration between Ilmarinen and Pohjan tytär (Daughter of the North) occupies a central position in all editions of the Kalevala. This article argues that it was precisely the wedding song material and the very idea of the wedding that not only enabled the creation of the epic but also significantly influenced Lönnrot's imaginative contributions, as evident in his editorial decisions from the earliest stages. Changes in the portrayal of the wedding event across Lönnrot's different drafts and publications illuminate how Pohjola, the North, first became the center of the events, and how Lönnrot then created another center, Kalevala, directing the focus of the epos on their relations.