I went to the Seurassaren Joulupolku yesterday. There were straw bundles on the trees, and animal shapes made of straw on the ground. What are their names in Finnish? What are the purposes of them?
Answer
The bundle made of straw is called 'lyhde' or 'olkilyhde' in Finnish. It is traditionally for feeding birds in winter. For example in this website you can see a picture of olkilyhde:
http://www.finlit.fi/tietopalvelu/juhlat/joulu/lyhde.htm
The animal shape is typically a billy coat and it is called 'olkipukki'. It is a traditional Finnish Christmas decoration and is still popular in many homes.
Some information about traditional Finnish christmas for example in this website:
http://www.dlc.fi/~marian1/gourmet/xmas_4.htm
Information about The Seurasaari Christmas Path (Joulupolku) in English you can see here:
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