Ilmarinen
| Ilmarinen | |
|---|---|
Eternal Hammerer God of the sky, air and weather | |
Statue of Ilmarinen at the Old Student House, Helsinki by Robert Stigell, 1888 | |
| Other names | Central Finland: Ilimarinen, Ilmari, Ilman rinta Ingria: Ilmari, Ilman rinta, Ilmarinta, Ismaro, Ismaroinen Kainuu: Ilimari, Ilimarinen, Ilmari, Ilman rinta, Ilmarunen, Ilmola, Ilmorini, Imnarinen, Kopsu? Karelia: Ilimari, Ilimarinen, Ilmari, Ilman rinta, Ilman ukko, Ilmarinta, Ilmola, Ilmollinen, Ilmollini, Ilmorinen, Ilmorini Lapland: Ilmari, Ilman rinta, Ilmarinta Ostrobothnia: Ilmalainen, Ilmari, Ilman rinta, Ilmola Savonia: Ilimari, Ilimarinen, Ilmari, Ilman ukko, Ilmarinta Torne Valley: Ilmari |
| Symbol | Bellows |
| Equivalents | |
| Sámi | Biegga-galles |
| Udmurt | Inmar |
| Komi | Jen |
Ilmarinen (pronounced [ˈilmɑrinen]) is a god and archetypal artificer from Finnish mythology. He is immortal and capable of creating practically anything. In addition, he is described as working the known metals of the time, including brass, copper, iron, gold, and silver. The great works of Ilmarinen include the crafting of the dome of the sky and the forging of the Sampo.
Ilmarinen is the successor of the original sky god from West Uralic mythology, as well as the personification of the sky. In runic songs, many of his roles were later shifted to the new sky god Ukko, but both became less important than the new Odin-resembling hero Väinämöinen. While Ukko gained the role of a controller of rain and weather for the purposes of agriculture, Ilmarinen continued to be regarded as a wind god.
In the Kalevala, he is a blacksmith and an inventor. His usual epithet in the Kalevala is seppä or seppo ("smith"), which is the source of the given name Seppo.