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Kivutar

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Kivutar
Maiden of Pains
Other namesKiputyttö, Vaivatar, Vaiviotar, Vammatar, Vammotar
GenderFemale
Ethnic groupFinns, Karelians

Kivutar (lit. 'Lady Pain'), Kiputyttö (lit. 'Pain Girl') or Vammatar[1] (lit. 'Lady Injury') is a spirit or goddess in Finnish mythology who is asked take the pains and injuries of humans to herself. She lives on Kipumäki/Kipuvaara ("Pain Hill") or Kipuvuori ("Pain Mountain"), and is often called a maiden of the underworld (Tuonen neito).

She is the remover of illnesses and ruler of pain who takes pains back to where they originate from.[2]

In runic songs

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Kivutar appears in runic songs used as spells to illeviate some kind of pain, such as a burn wound or pain caused by a rock. She is typically described to be sitting on a pain rock (kipukivi) on Kipumäki, on a hill on Kipuvuori ("Pain Mountain"), which is at the confluence of three rivers[3] or rapids.[4] Pains can be moved into stones, as they don't feel pain,[3] which she can gather for herself into a container[2] or a glove,[5] and even throw them in the pitch black sea.[3] A runic song tradition connected to North Ostrobothnia and Kainuu also describes her as boiling pains in a pot.[6]

Kainuu songs of the origin of iron state: "It is aching to be in pain, / Ailing to live in injury. / Pain belongs to Kivutar, / Ailment to the daughter of injury!" ("Kipiä on kivussa olla, / Vaiva vammassa elää. / Kipiä on Kivuttarelle, / Vaiva vamman tyttärelle!")[7]

She also helped with the pains of giving birth.[2]

Interpretations

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Cup marked stone in Hartola, Finland.

Christfried Ganander called Kivutar Väinämöinen's daughter[8] and called Vaavutar or Vauvutar her sister.[9] The former claim is based on the fact that Kivutar is called Väinän tytär ("daughter of Väinä"). Seto poetry also features this epithet (Väänä tütär) with the clear meaning of a "female inhabitant at the river Daugava" (in Finnish, Väinä river).[10]

Kivutar has sometimes been mixed with Virgin Mary in runic songs due to Christian influence. Kaarle Krohn believed Kivutar was always Virgin Mary from the very beginning. Anna-Leena Siikala instead believed Kivutar existed in Finland before the arrival of Christian influence, and while she did get features associated with Mary, the idea of a mother of pain who lives in the underworld is common in Eurasian religions. She thought Kivutar had more in common with the Norse Menglöð than Mary.[2] Martti Haavio believed she was a translation of something such as hē mḗtēr tōn pathēmátōn ("mother of pains"), who was sent by the Devil to harm people in a Byzantine spell. A 1514 Danish magic spell also mentions alle vndeskabs modher ("mother of all pains"), who in turn has been connected to Lilith.[11]

The pain rock Kivutar sits on is said to have a hole in it which pain can be banished to. This is why it has been theorized the pain rock would mean a cup marked stone which were used for offerings in earlier tradition.[1]

Epithets

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Epithet Epithet meaning Regions
Kivutar, kipiä neito[12]
Kivutar kipuinen neito[4]
Kivutar, kipiä neitoh[13] 		'Kivutar, painful maiden' South Savo
Kivutar kipujen vaimo[14] 'Kivutar wife/woman of pains' North Savo
Kivutar kipujen eukko[5]
Kivutar, kipuin eukko[15] 		'Kivutar old woman of pains' North Karelia, White Karelia
Kivutar kipuin neito[4]
Kivutar, kipeän neiti[16] 		'Kivutar, maiden of pain(s)' Kainuu, South Savo
Kivutar kauhia emäntä[17] 'Kivutar dreadful mistress' Ostrobothnia, South Savo
Kivutar hyvä emäntä[3] 'Kivutar good mistress' Forest Finns, Ladoga Karelia, North Karelia, White Karelia
Kipulan neito[18] 'Maiden of Kipula' Ladoga Karelia, Ostrobothnia
Kipumäen iso emäntä[19] 'The Great Mistress of Kipumäki' Ostrobothnia
Kiputyttö Tuonen neito[14]
Kiputyttö Tuonen neitsy[17]
Kiputyttö, Tuonen tyttö[20]
Kiputyttö, Tuonen neiti[21] 		'Kiputyttö, Maiden of Tuoni' Central Finland, Ingria, Kainuu, Ladoga Karelia, North Karelia, North Savo, Ostrobothnia, South Savo
Kiputyttö, tyyni neiti[22] 'Kiputyttö, calm maiden' North Karelia
Kiputyttö, ilman neiti[23] 'Kiputyttö, maiden of air' North Karelia
Kiputyttö, neiti Kiire[24]
Kiputyttö, kiijän neiti[25] 		'Kiputyttö, a maiden in a hurry' Kainuu, Olonets Karelia, White Karelia
Note: Ganander explained "kiire" in this context to refer to kiirastuli ("purgatory") instead of hurry.[26]
Kiputyttö, nuori neito[27] 'Kiputyttö, young maiden' North Savo
Kiputyttö, vuoren neiti[28] 'Kiputyttö, maiden of mountain' North Karelia
Kipunatar kiltti piika[29] 'Kipunatar kind maid' Ladoga Karelia
Vaiviotar, vanha vaimo[30] 'Vaiviotar, old woman/wife' Unknown
Vammatar valio vaimo[29] 'Vammatar outstanding wife/woman' Ladoga Karelia, North Karelia, White Karelia

References

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  1. ^ a b Pulkkinen, Risto; Lindfors, Stina (2016). Suomalaisen kansanuskon sanakirja. Gaudeamus. p. 132. ISBN 978-952-495-405-1.
  2. ^ a b c d Siikala, Anna-Leena (2012). Itämerensuomalaisten mytologia. Helsinki: Finnish Literature Society. pp. 294–295. ISBN 978-952-222-393-7.
  3. ^ a b c d "SKVR VII5 Metsäs. 227". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1880. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  4. ^ a b c "SKVR VI2 4059". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1818. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  5. ^ a b "SKVR I4 515". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1846. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  6. ^ "SKVR XV 295". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1786. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  7. ^ "SKVR XII1 4234". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1836. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  8. ^ "SKVR XII2 5281". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1789. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  9. ^ "SKVR XII1 4503". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1789. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  10. ^ Krohn, Kaarle (1914). Suomalaisten runojen uskonto. Porvoo: WSOY and Finnish Literature Society. p. 330.
  11. ^ Haavio, Martti (1967). Suomalainen mytologia. Helsinki: WSOY (original), Finnish Literature Society. p. 388. ISBN 978-951-858-026-6.
  12. ^ "SKVR VI2 liite III 4". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1819. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  13. ^ "SKVR VI1 3337". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1820. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  14. ^ a b "SKVR VI2 4075". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1858. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  15. ^ "SKVR VII4 loitsut 2106". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1828. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  16. ^ "SKVR XII1 4588". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1913. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  17. ^ a b "SKVR VI1 3014". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1733. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  18. ^ "SKVR XII2 5280". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1789. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  19. ^ "SKVR XII1 3974". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1789. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  20. ^ "SKVR VII3 loitsut 527". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1906. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  21. ^ "SKVR VII3 loitsut 743". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1884. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  22. ^ "SKVR VII3 loitsut 1217". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1893. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  23. ^ "SKVR VII3 loitsut 1410". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1885. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  24. ^ "SKVR I4 87". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1839. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  25. ^ "SKVR XII1 4616". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1888. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  26. ^ "SKVR XV 227". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1786. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  27. ^ "SKVR VI1 3217". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1820. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  28. ^ "SKVR VII3 loitsut 1155". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1892. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  29. ^ a b "SKVR XIII3 9040". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1880. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
  30. ^ "SKVR XV 255". skvr.fi. Finnish Literature Society. 1786. Retrieved 2025-04-14.
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