The Juhannes may not be a widely known term in the United States, but it is quite well-known in Europe. This is a term that many Europeans associate with the word “midsummer,” that time of the year around the summer solstice, when the day is at its longest. An important feature of Juhannus is the white night and the midnight sun, during which the nights are very short or non-existent.
Juhannus is about the celebrations that accompanies the arrival of the actual solstice every year, which usually take place between June 21 and June 24. It also includes the festivities held during the preceding evening. The date of the celebration is never exact, and they differ between cultures. Though the when and the how of celebrating the midsummer festival, it is uniformly seen as a very important event in many European cultures, almost at par with Christmas.
The festival of Juhannus is a hundreds-old tradition. Before the year 1317, it was a summer solstice celebration called “Ukon juhla,” named after the Finnish god Ukko. To celebrate this, numerous bonfires were burned side by side in Karelian tradition. In Finnish celebrations, the bonfires are burnt usually near lakes and seas. Two young birch trees known as koivu are also usually placed on either side of the front doors of houses to welcome visitors. Another part of the celebration was by putting up midsummer maypoles. After the celebration was Christianized, it was renamed “Juhannus,” after John the Baptist.
Juhannus is a pretty magical time, according to many cultures. In folk magic, this is the time for many small rituals. These magical events are mostly reserved for young maidens seeking a lover of husband or for men and women wishing to be fertile. Many of the midsummer celebrations take place on midsummer eve when many workplaces are closed and shops must close their doors at noon.