Saint Urho Welcomes You! St. Urho is said to have chased the grasshoppers out of Finland, thus saving the grape crop. The legend of St. Urho originated in Northern Minnesota in the 1950s. However, there are differing opinions as to whether it began with the fables created by Sulo Havumaki of Bemidji, or the tongue-in-cheek tales told by Richard Mattson of Virginia. Either way, the legend has grown among North Americans of Finnish descent to the point where St. Urho is known and celebrated across the United States and Canada, and even in Finland. St. Urho's Day is celebrated on March 16th, the day prior to the better known feast of some minor saint from Ireland, who was alleged to have driven the snakes from that island. The legend of St. Urho says he chased the grasshoppers out of ancient Finland, thus saving the grape crop and the jobs of Finnish vineyard workers. He did this by uttering the phrase: "Heinäsirkka, heinäsirkka, mene täältä hiiteen" (roughly translated: "Grasshopper, grasshopper, go to Hell!"). His feast is celebrated by wearing the colors Royal Purple and Nile Green. St. Urho is nearly always represented with grapes and grasshoppers as part of the picture.

Saint Urho has been recognized with proclamations in all 50 states. Minnesota Governor Wendell Anderson issued a proclamation in his state, the unofficial home of Saint Urho, in 1975.

We hope you enjoy our effort to honor this mythical Finnish-American hero. Please feel free to share your St. Urho experiences and celebrations by clicking on the phrase below and sending a note to the webmaster. Tim "Timo Winkenen" Winker

Randy "Uncle Toivo" Jokela Saint Urho's Day Celebrations Many communities in the United States, Canada, and other parts of the world hold festivals and parades in honor of Saint Urho's Day. Some of the better known are in Finland, MN; Finlayson, MN; Menagha, MN; Thunder Bay, ON; Butte, MT; Hood River, OR. There is another web site that catalogs St. Urho's Day activities each year, StUrhosDay.com, so we have decided to let them handle the annual list. Finland, MN, St. Urho page on Facebook. Share your Saint Urho's Day photos on Flickr.

Was St. Urho a Failure? A book arrived in the mail recently at SaintUrho.com HQ that indicates the grasshopper population in Finland is thriving. The book is titled Suomen heinäsirkat ja hepokatit (The Grasshoppers and Crickets of Finland). Dr. Sami Karjalainen has written a 200 page book full of color photos of Finnish grasshoppers. The book includes a CD with grasshopper calls. Read more here. Comment on SaintUrho.com