Finnish Saunas
A Short History of Finnish Saunas
The sauna is, indeed, one of the oldest forms of bathing the world has ever
known. While archaeologists cannot confirm or deny the origins of the sweat
bath, most people have attributed this fine luxury to the people of Finland.
The Nordic people’s unique sweat bath began to gain notoriety during the Reformation,
when European bath houses were almost no longer existent. In the 1500s Klaus
Magnus wrote: "Nowhere on earth is the use of the bath so necessary, as it is
in the Northern lands."
But the old Finnish Saunas were not as luxurious as you might guess. Most of
Finland’s population worked in agriculture and made little money. The upper
classes - not the working classes, and certainly not the peasants - mainly used
by Finnish saunas. However, the Finnish sauna was still a large part of Finnish
culture: when there was a sauna available for the common folk, they would gather
because it provided warmth, shelter, and water.
The Finnish sauna gained spiritual significance in later years. It was revered
like a church and many rites of passage took place in saunas, like giving birth.
Twentieth Century Saunas
After a decline in the popularity of the sauna for many years, the Finnish
saunas resurgence came during World War II. As leisure time became few and far
between, many soldiers would use the sauna to relax, meditate, and boost their
morale. During this time, Finnish doctors and architects began doing extensive
research on saunas to see how they could be improved to maximize their function.
The more compact and fuel-efficient sauna was created and soon afterwards, groups
of worldly Finns began building, marketing and selling their personal saunas
to people all over the world.
Originally, Finnish saunas were housed in a separate building from a person's home. Generally, these sauna buildings consisted of one room that was not only used for warming up but also for washing. However, as indoor plumbing and running water became a more common place feature of the home, the washing room moved into the main house and became separate from the sauna. But the Finns were not willing to give up their saunas. Instead, they incorporated the hot room into their bathroom.
Today, the Finnish sauna is the most renowned sweat bath in the world. Over
300 companies manufacture sauna stoves today, although only a handful produce
10,000 or more stoves yearly.
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