As " Perkele " is the no so original name for Ukko, it has a history of being used as a curse: a cry for the god for strength.

Ukko, sometimes also Äijä or Äijö ( Finnish: male grandparent, old man, also thunder ), parallel in Estonian mythology to Uku, is the god of the sky, weather, harvest and thunder in Finnish mythology.

The Finnish word for thunder, Ukkonen, is the diminutive form of the name Ukko .< ref group =" note "> Compare to English thunder (< Old English þunor ) and German donner (< Old High German donar ) both derived from Proto-Germanic * þunraz and originally synonymic with appellations of the thunder god .</ ref > Ukko is often equated with Perkele, and some hold Perkele to be the original personal name of Ukko with the name Ukko being an euphemism.

Ukko is held the most significant god of Finnish mythology, although it is disputed by scholars whether this is accountable to later Christian influence.

It is possible that the figure of Ukko is mostly Indo-European, possibly Baltic, in origin.

It is possible that when Ukko took the position of the preceding sky god Ilmarinen, Ilmarinen's destiny was to become a mortal smith-hero.

It is, however, uncertain whether these are directly connected to the figure of Ukko.

There is evidence that the rowan tree was held sacred to Ukko.

It is possible that during and after the christianisation of Finland, the figure of Ukko became conflated with that of the Christian deity.

He was also the most significant god in Finnish mythology and the Finnish word for thunder, " ukkonen " ( little Ukko ) or " ukonilma " ( Ukko's weather ), is derived from his name.

Sláine's dwarf companion is named Ukko, after the Finnish storm god.

When Slaine becomes king Ukko is appointed his jester.

Ukko argues with her all the time but it is hinted there may be some mutual attraction between them.

Ukko is interested in his valuable gold cross.

Before the advent of Christianity, the Midsummer festival in Finland, today known as Juhannus after John the Baptist ( Finnish: Johannes Kastaja ), was held in honor of Ukko and called Ukon juhla ( English: Festival of Ukko ).

Although portrayed active in myth, Ukko makes all his appearances in legend solely by natural phenomena when appealed to.

Ukko possessed a weapon, often a hammer called Ukonvasara ( English: Ukko's hammer ), sometimes also an axe ( Finnish: Ukonkirves ) or a sword, by which he struck lightning ( see thunderbolt ).

In Karelian tradition, many bonfires were burned side by side, the biggest of which was called Ukko-kokko ( the " bonfire of Ukko ").

* Akka: goddess of fertility, and wife of Ukko ; rejected by some as historically dubious

Others still, among them Martti Haavio, contend that Rauni is simply an epithet for a deity called Ukko, who may or may not be the well-known Finnish thunder god, and that the other theories are based on misreading a poem documenting Finnish Pre-Christian belief authored by Mikael Agricola.

The Spirit Of Ukko is the debut full-length studio album by the Finnish heavy metal band Kiuas, released on May 4, 2005 by Spinefarm Records.

Some researchers hold Ilmarinen and Ukko equivalent.

They were believed to be weapons of Ukko, stone-heads of striking lightnings.

She could be seen as the female side of nature, maaemonen, the " mother earth " whom Ukko fertilizes.

Ukko, the god of the sky, orders a new Sun to be made from a spark.

Some consider him to be the same as Ukko.

They were believed to be weapons of Ukko, stone-heads of striking lightnings.

Ukko (" old man ") was a god of the sky, weather, and the crops.

* Ukko (" old man ") the god of the sky and thunder, related to Thor ( Estonian Taara ).

Later on, the sky itself was called taivas ( sky or heaven ) and the sky-god Ukko.

The principal god was the god of thunder and the sky, Ukko ; other important gods included Jumi, Ahti, and Tapio.

Most of the deities ruled over a specific aspect of nature ; for instance, Ukko was the god of the sky and thunder.

* The chief god was Ukko ( also known as Perkele ), who was the ruler over the sky and thunder.

There may have been a sky and thunder god called Uku or Ukko, also called Vanaisa ( Grandfather ) or Taevataat ( Sky Father ).

* Ukko: the sky god, and chief deity in the Finnish pantheon.

Actually most Finnish neopagans consider Ukko just a god of sky rather than " chief of gods ".

According to Haavio, the name Ukko was sometimes used as a common noun or generalised epithet for multiple deities instead of denoting a specific god.

These include the Greek god Zeus, the Aztec god Tlaloc, the Mayas ' God K, Slavic mythology's Perun, the Baltic Pērkons / Perkūnas, Thor in Norse mythology, Ukko in Finnish mythology, the Hindu god Indra, and the Shinto god Raijin.

Before 1316, the summer solstice was called Ukon juhla, after the Finnish god Ukko.

Although the gradual influence of surrounding cultures raised the significance of the sky-god in a monolatristic manner, the father god " Ukko " ( Old Man ) was originally just a nature spirit like all the others.

While Ukko took Ilmarinen's position as the Sky God, Ilmarinen's destiny was to turn into a smith-hero, or the god of the rock.

He explored the Land of the Young ( Irish Tír na nÓg ) in the company of an unscrupulous dwarf called Ukko ( Finnish for " old man ", and the name of the Finnish pagan Thunder god ), fighting monsters and mercenaries in the fantasy tradition.