Today Hancock celebrates Finland’s 108th year of independence. The small country has had a large influence on the city nearly 4,000 miles away. History and heritage continue to inspire Hancock’s residents to keep connecting in the community by keeping up Finnish and Finnish American traditions.
In 2026, the city celebrates the title as the Finno-Ugric capital of culture, the first designation outside of traditional homelands in Europe. Finno-Ugric refers to a group of related languages, namely Finnish, Hungarian and Estonian, developed around the Baltic Sea and Ural Mountains. The ethnic group also includes Finnish peoples, Hungarians, Finland’s native Sami people, as well as ethnic groups found within Russia such as the Mari, Komi and Khanty peoples.
President of Copper Country Finns and Friends’ chapter Jim Kurtti says Hancock has embraced Finnish culture and created something unique to the Copper Country by keeping traditions and heritage alive in exciting ways. Heikinpaiva was inspired by Finland’s name day celebrations and is named for the country’s patron saint, Saint Henrik. The midwinter festival has captured the attention of many people, even those without Finnish heritage in their family. Kurtti attributes the popularity of the event and other programs to renewed interest in cultural identities and traditions.
“And the Finnish American community, I’m proud of the fact that they’re always surprised that anyone outside of their group would be interested in them. And so, if anyone expresses any interest in being Finnish American, they suddenly are. Finnish American is kind of a state of mind rather than a lineage thing. And so a lot of our newer members of our group have no Finnish roots at all, but they like these expressions of history, identity and uniqueness,” said Jim Kurtti, president of Copper Country Finns and Friends.
Kurtti says the chapter will host many events and programs throughout the year with four fixture events to anchor the celebration of Finno-Ugric culture, peoples and languages. Kicking off the year will start with a representative from the 2025 capital of culture Narva, Estonia, visiting the community during Heikinpaiva. Followed by celebration of life at the summer solstice for Juhannus. In the fall, the Finns and Friends will join Michigan Tech’s students at the parade of nations. And in about one year, the chapter will end Hancock’s designation as the Finno-Ugric capital of culture by celebrating the 109th year of Finland’s independence.
Kurtti says people can get involved with planning and running events and programs in many ways. And he encourages anyone interested in Finnish culture, regardless of their own backgrounds, to support heritage programming in the community. Learn more about the Finno-Ugric capital of culture online.
Those interested in celebrating Finland’s Independence Day with the Copper Country Finns and Friends can join the community at the Finnish American Heritage Center tonight. The annual Independence Day program will begin at 5:30 pm. The program features a keynote address from broadcast professional, Mandy Koskela. Find more details for tonight’s program here.
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