Larin Paraske - Runic Singer
Larin Paraske was a runic singer from Ingria (now Russia) who played an important role in Finnish folk poetry. She could recite over 32,000 verses of poetry. Adolf Neovius put her verses on paper in the 1880s, documenting some 1200 poems, 1750 proverbs and 336 riddles, along with several Finnic lamentations (itkuvirsi), which include sobbing and crying.
Larin gave birth to nine children, three of whom survived to adulthood, and she cared for 50 orphans from St. Petersburg.
Paraske is considered to be one of the ‘100 Greatest Finns’ and her image can be found on the Finnish stamp.
Original Photograph
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Restored Photograph
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Photo Information
Original photo courtesy of the Finnish Heritage Agency
Photographer: Natalia Linsén
Year: 1890s
Link to original photo here
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