June 20 is the longest day of summer in Finland

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The longest summer day holiday in Finland (Johannus) is celebrated on Saturday between June 20 and 26. Houses and city streets are decorated with birch twigs, and national costumes are made from the huts. The fun begins in the evening. In the evening, folk songs are played to the accompaniment of the national instrument "cantele", and the audience dances "tanhut", polka and waltz. At midnight, the ‘coco’ firing ceremony begins - a huge flax stalk, gathered very close to the prepared traditional water. The torch is brought by an elderly local man. Many traditions and ceremonies associated with this holiday were celebrated by the people of Finland as a holiday of fertility and light, typical of the pagan period (Johannus), and "coco" was their symbol. The Christian Church made many attempts to get rid of paganism and combined the celebration of the longest day of summer with the Christmas of St. John the Baptist, resulting in the appearance of John (John). The holiday, which embodied the idea of ​​fertility, was a popular time for weddings: applications for the ceremony are submitted a year in advance. On the night of John, the girls place a bouquet of nine different flowers tied with grass nine times under the pillow, hoping to see their future spouse in a dream at night. Johannus is also Finland’s national flag day.