News of the week in plain Finnish | Saturday 30.5.2026

Summer hymn and school spring celebrations

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Topic of the week

This time the topic is the Summer Anthem and school spring celebrations.

In Finland, there is a long tradition of singing the Summer Anthem at school spring celebrations.

Now the song has become a big argument in Espoo.

We will now tell you more about this dispute and Suvivirre.

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The Summer Anthem is usually sung at spring celebrations in Finnish schools. Photo: Petri Niemi / Yle

Summer Hymn

The summer hymn is an old song that tells of the beginning of summer.

For many Finns, it is an important sign that the school summer vacation is beginning.

The Finnish Parliament has decided that schools will be allowed to sing at the Summer Solstice celebration.

Parliament says that one song does not make a celebration a religious occasion.

However, there are students in schools who belong to different religions or who do not belong to any religion.

Complaint

A big argument started over the summer holidays when a father from Espoo complained about the school party.

The father does not approve of his non-religious child listening to religious songs at school.

The child had to listen to the Summer Hymn at the school’s spring party and the Christian Christmas carol: The Sparrow on Christmas Morning at the Christmas party.

The father says this violated the child’s rights.

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Schools are now informing families that the summer hymn will be sung at school celebrations. Photo: Jere Sanaksenaho / Yle

Equality

The Equality Board is the authority that investigated the father’s complaint.

The board decided that the City of Espoo discriminated against the student.

The board imposed a fine of 10,000 euros on the City of Espoo.

Many Finns wonder about the fine, because the Summer Solstice is such an important part of Finnish culture.

Tapio Luoma also speaks on the matter. He is the archbishop, or supreme leader, of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland.

The Archbishop says that the Summer Song is part of common Finnish culture and tradition.

The Archbishop says that one song does not make a celebration a religious occasion.

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Archbishop Tapio Luoma says it is a richness to encounter different religions and views. Photo: Juha Metso / AOP

Information

Schools have now organized spring celebrations as usual.

However, schools must inform families in advance if the celebration will include religious songs, such as the summer hymn.

Schools must also offer other programs for students who do not want to sing or hear religious songs.

Repetition

The topic of this week’s news was the Summer Anthem and school spring celebrations.

Let’s repeat the most important things.

The authority has imposed a large fine on the city of Espoo because a non-religious child participated in a spring festival where the Summer Hymn was sung and a Christmas festival where a Christian song was heard.

The father filed a complaint because the school did not inform him about the songs in advance.

Many Finns are surprised by the fine, because Suvivirsi is an old tradition at spring celebrations.

This was the news of the week in plain Finnish. See you again, bye!