Finnish Americans Celebrate St. Urho’s Day

DETROIT LAKES (KDLM) – Today, March 16 is St. Urho’s Day, the day that Finnish Americans celebrate the patron saint of Finland.

John Hanson with the Salolampi Finnish Language Village in Bemidji says the tale of St. Urho dates back to the 1950s, “St. Urho is an American Finn celebration – St. Urho before the past ice age chased the grasshoppers out of Finland and saved the vineyards. The guys who dreamt it up decided Finland had to have something because they would always see the Irish celebrating on the 17th of March and they figured the 16th would be the day to do it.”

The legend of St. Urho originated in northern Minnesota in the 1950s, with conflicting stories that St. Urho’s story came from Bemidji or Virginia. St. Urho’s Day is now celebrated across the US, Canada, and even parts of Finland. Finnish-Americans celebrate St. Urho’s Day by wearing royal purple and nile green.