Editing Peko

{{Short description|Estonian and Finnish god}}
{{Other uses}}
{{More citations needed|date=February 2016}}
{{More footnotes|date=January 2022}}

[[File:Peko, Radaja seto muuseum.jpg|thumb|Carved idol of Peko. Radaja Seto Museum]]
'''Peko''' (Finnish spelling '''Pekko''', '''Pekka''', '''Pellon Pekko''') is an ancient [[Estonia]]n and [[Finland|Finnish]] god of crops, especially barley and brewing. In the area of [[Setomaa]], between Estonia and [[Russia]], inhabited by the [[Seto language]]-speaking [[Setos]], the [[Cult (religious practice)|cult]] of Peko was alive until the 20th century. Today, the [[Setos|Seto]] people (an ethnic group of Estonians in the south-east of the country) also revere Peko as their national hero and king, the name and figure are widely used as a national symbol.

==Name==
[[Magnus Olsen]] connected Peko to [[Old Norse religion|Norse]] [[Byggvir]], whose name comes from the Norse word for "barley". If Peko's name came from [[Proto-Norse]], it would require the existence of the Proto-Norse form *''beggwu'' for barley. [[Kaarle Krohn]] pointed out the Finnish connection of the name Pekka to Pietari (biblical Peter).<ref>{{cite book |last=Krohn |first=Kaarle |date=1914 |title=Suomalaisten runojen uskonto |url= |location=Porvoo |publisher=Finnish Literature Society |page=134 |isbn= |access-date=}}</ref>

==Legend==
In Finland, Peko is known as ''Pellon Pekko'' (Pekko of the field). First mentioned by bishop [[Mikael Agricola|Agricola]] in 1551 as the one who granted the growth of barley, [[Christfried Ganander]] called him the god of barley. He gave good [[wort]] called ''pellon maito'' ("milk of the field"), and drinking it was called tasting or drinking Pellon Pekko. [[Martti Haavio]] connected Pellon Pekko to [[Saint Peter]]. According to [[Uno Harva]], Finnish-Estonian Pekko is the [[haltija]] of barley and drinks made of it. He also considered Pekko to have originally been the personification of barley. [[Anna-Leena Siikala]] supported Harva's view over Haavio's.<ref>{{cite book |last=Siikala |first=Anna-Leena |date=2012 |title=Itämerensuomalaisten mytologia |url= |location=Helsinki |publisher=Finnish Literature Society |pages=404–405 |isbn=978-952-222-393-7 |access-date=}}</ref> Additionally, as beer in [[runic song]]s is often described as something which makes people festive and sing, Harva called Pekko the "ancient Finnish [[Bacchus]]" and called him the god of song and poetry as well.<ref>{{cite book |last=Harva |first=Uno |date=1948 |title=Suomalaisten muinaisusko |url= |location=Helsinki |publisher=WSOY (original), Finnish Literature Society |page=208 |isbn=978-952-222-934-2 |access-date=}}</ref>

Peko is sometimes associated with Estonian [[Pikne]] (Pitkne), Baltic [[Perkūnas]] or even Christian [[Saint Peter]]. {{Citation needed|date=April 2010}}

==Traditions==
Before [[Pentecost]] festivities, before the dawn broke, young Seto men held a ritual fight until the first drop of blood was shed. The bleeding person became the host of the next year's feast. Black candles were lit to revere wooden [[cult image|idols]] of Peko. The people chanted "Peko, Peko, come to drink the beer" and some older men called the priests of Peko made sacrifices.

The second holiday dedicated to Peko was held after the harvest. Peko was also revered during [[Candlemas]] and [[Midsummer]] feasts. The carved idols of Peko were kept hidden in granaries around the year. The head of the idol typically had holes for candles.

A third holiday was held around August 4, in which the people of Setomaa sing the local anthem, host a musical competition, and elect the next representative of Peko for the year (known as ''ülebtsootska'', the "vice-king"), before they end the celebrations with a military parade.<ref>[https://www.visitestonia.com/en/why-estonia/top-estonian-folk-festivals TOP Estonian folk festivals]</ref>

==Modern appearances==
Seto folksinger [[Anne Vabarna]] has created the epic "Songs of Peko" where Peko is depicted as a Seto hero. Peko is [[King asleep in mountain|in eternal sleep]] in the cave. When someone calls his name, he brings the rain to the fields. If people of his kin remember his advice and work hard, Peko sends them abundant crops. Peko is praised as a warrior who frees the country, as a hunter who gives bear skins to villagers and as a host of wedding feasts. He ploughs the field with a wooden plough and protects the people against evil spirits who make people to drink too much. Pekos' spirit can also fly around as a butterfly.

The supposed grave of Peko is under an old oak tree near the [[Pskovo-Pechersky Monastery]].

He also appears in the name of a song by [[Korpiklaani]], a Finnish [[folk metal]] group. The song is called "Pellonpekko" and appears in their album ''[[Spirit of the Forest]]''.

== See also ==
* [[Estonian mythology]]
* [[Finnish mythology]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}
* {{cite book |author1=Suhonen, S.  |author2=Hagu, P.  |name-list-style=amp | title=Peko | location=Kuopio | publisher=Snellman Institute | year=1995 | isbn=951-842-166-8}}

==External links==
* [http://www.folklore.ee/rl/pubte/ee/setu/anne/peko2/ The second part of the Song of Peko by Anne Vabarna (in the Seto language, with a foreword in Estonian)]

[[Category:Finnish gods]]
[[Category:Agricultural gods]]
[[Category:Estonian gods]]