Kultapyörä

Is this thing from the Kalevala in actual Finnish mythology?

The Kalevala is often treated as some kind of an authentic epic and portrayal of Finnish mythology. It's not. It is an 19th century work of literature formed with the ideals of the time in mind. Here, I try to explain to you to the best of my ability what kinds of themes from the Kalevala are actually in Finnish mythology and what are not. And I am talking about FINNISH ONLY, not Karelian. If something is or isn't in Karelian myth, good for them, but here I only talk about what exists in FINNISH runosongs.

1. World Creation from an egg on Ilmatar's knee
   - No, a wigeon lays an egg on Väinämöinen's knee in Kainuu. In Savo, Central Finland etc, a sparrow lays an egg on a boat.
2. Väinämöinen was born out of Ilmatar
   - No, Väinämöinen's birth is rarely described but is once said to have been from a "northern maiden".
3. Ilmatar was impregnated by waves
   - No, Louhi was impregnated by waves and gave birth to the nine diseases.
4. Sämpsä Pellervoinen planted trees
   - Yes.
5. The Great Oak
   - Yes.
6. Väinämöinen sows lands.
   - The lines exist but not necessarily done by Väinämöinen specifically. They are general farming incantations.
7. Väinämöinen VS Joukahainen
   - Yes.
8. Joukahainen offering his sister to Väinämöinen
   - Only in some versions. In others, the fight is stopped when the man from the sea appears, and Väinämöinen and Joukahainen are brothers. In anyway, Joukahainen's sister never appears, nor do we see any reaction from her to these events.
9. Väinämöinen pursuing Aino
   - No. Aino as a character does not exist in Finnish mythology at all. Väinämöinen does catch a fish that turns out to be a water maiden, though.
10. Joukahainen shoots Väinämöinen
    - Kind of. Joukahainen is not named, only called a son of Pohjola. It could be Joukahainen who shoots Väinämöinen, though it could also be put on a different Underworld related male figure.
11. Väinämöinen in Pohjola
    - Väinämöinen does end up in Pohjola, yes. He does drift there after being shot and is found by Louhi, but he also travels there on his own and is challenged by the sons of Pohjola to cross the river. He does sometimes either accompany Lemminkäinen to seek a maiden from Pohjola, or tries to get Louhi herself as his wife.
12. The Northern Maiden
    - Typically synonymous with Louhi. The maiden Väinämöinen tries to get, who gives him tasks, is actually Tuulikki though.
13. Väinämöinen's knee wound
    - Yes. This is, in fact, the mostly widely known Väinämöinen story.
14. Origin of Iron
    - Yes.
15. Ilmarinen forges the Sampo
    - No.
16. Ilmarinen marries the Northern Maiden
    - No.
17. Lemminkäinen on Saari island
    - No. These come from Ingrian runosongs focusing on the hero Kaukomieli, although him and others in this tale (Ahti, Veitikka) are mentioned by name in Finnish runosongs as well.
18. Lemminkäinen going to Pohjola
    - It is Ahti and his friend who go on a campaign but are frozen in the middle of the sea. Not connected to Lemminkäinen, who however does go to seek a maiden from the Underworld, is killed and resurrected by his mother (no Yahweh involved).
19. Ski hunt of the Moose of Hiisi
    - The hunt is performed by an unnamed Sámi man.
20. Suonetar
    - Yes, but not in context of Lemminkäinen.
21. Sämpsä's sea voyage
    - Yes.
22. Väinämöinen making a boat
    - Yes.
23. Väinämöinen travelling to Tuonela
    - In myth, Pohjola and Tuonela are synonymous, and as we already saw, Väinämöinen DID go to Pohjola and therefore Tuonela. A few lines of the ferrywoman's questions can be found from Finland. It is typically a Lady, maybe Louhi, who offers Väinämöinen or Lemminkäinen snake beer in Pohjola.
24. Antero Vipunen
    - Yes, Väinämöinen travels to the Underworld to find Vipunen (and does not simply just poke his body).
25. Competitive courting
    - No.
26. Ilmarinen's feats
    - Are given to different characters depending on the runosong, and are not connected to the same narrative.