FINLAND AND ESTONIA IN EACH OTHER’S IMAGES OF PREHISTORY: BUILDING NATIONAL MYTHS

Abstract

How has the prehistoric relationship between Finland and Estonia been used as a means to construct Finnish or Estonian identity in these countries? Have these neighbours represented similarity or difference to one another? On what kind of premises have interpretations been based? How have Finland and Estonia and their inhabitants been represented in the prehistory myths of the neighbouring country and people? This paper presents an overview of the main trends of development from the 1880s to the1940s concentrating mainly on general publications of prehistory. The methodological framework of the study consists of archaeology, the history of ideas and cultural semiotics.