The Royal Academy of Turku moved to Helsinki after the Great Fire of Turku in 1827, and was renamed as the Imperial Alexander University. Carl Ludvig Engel was commissioned to design a university building next to Senate Square. This building was completed in 1832. The first conferment ceremony following the institution’s move to Helsinki was held the same year.
The official wreath weaver was a new addition to the established traditions. The first holder of the position was Ida Mathilda Avellan (1817–1859, later Aminoff), the 14-year-old daughter of philosopher, Professor of History Johan Henrik Avellan. With her female friends, she was tasked with weaving all of the master’s wreaths for the conferment ceremony. From the mid-1850s onwards, wreath weavers accompanying individual graduands joined the festivities.
In the 22 conferment ceremonies held in Helsinki during Finland’s autonomy under the Russian Empire, the last of which was in 1914, the official wreath weaver was always the young daughter of a professor. Some of the best known among them include Augusta Matila Nervander (1825–1909, later Borenius), the daughter of Professor of Mathematics and Physics Johan Jacob Nervander in 1847; Aina Topelius (1846–1916, later Nyberg), the daughter of Professor of History Zachris Topelius in 1864; Cely Mechelin (1866–1950), the daughter of Professor of Political Science Leo Mechelin in 1890; and Katri Danielson-Kalmari (1879–1941, later Lehtonen), the daughter of Professor of History J.R. Danielson-Kalmari in 1900.
The first conferment ceremony during Finland’s independence was held in 1919, a little over a year after a victory parade was organised in Helsinki to mark the end of the Finnish Civil War of 1918. Its star was General Gustaf Mannerheim, who was also involved in the conferment ceremony in no fewer than three different roles: as Regent of Finland, an honorary doctor and the father of the official wreath weaver Sophie Mannerheim (1895–1963). The official wreath weaver of the next conferment ceremony, held in 1923, was also the daughter of a head of state: Elli Ståhlberg (1898–1985, later Schauman), the daughter of K.J. Ståhlberg, the first president of Finland.
Thereafter the daughters of professors served as official wreath weavers for a long time. Notable among them are Hilkka Suolahti (1907–2001, later Linkola), the daughter of Chancellor and Professor of German Philology Hugo Suolahti in 1927; Sinikka Linkomies (1929–2000, later Karhuvaara, later Linkomies-Pohjala), the daughter of Professor of Roman Literature Edwin Linkomies in 1950; and Outi Kuusi (later Lauhakangas), the daughter of Professor of Finnish and Comparative Folklore Studies Matti Kuusi in 1973. The year 1977 saw a return to a tradition observed in the early years of independence, as Salla Kekkonen, the granddaughter of President of the Republic Urho Kekkonen served as the official wreath weaver.
In 1990, the position was held by Leena Tommila (later Hukka), the daughter of Rector and Professor of Finnish History Päiviö Tommila. The first female professor’s daughter to serve as the official wreath weaver was Iris Kaimio, the daughter of Professor of Greek Language and Literature Maarit Kaimio in 1997.
Appointed in 2010, Ilmo Korhonen, the son of Vice-Rector and Professor of Finno-Ugric Linguistics Ulla-Maija Forsberg, was the first male official wreath weaver. Since then, the trend has been to use a neutral form of the title in Finnish (‘seppeleensitoja’) when referring to official wreath weavers.
The official wreath weaver is selected in a meeting of master’s graduands held in Latin in the music hall of the Old Student House on Flora’s Day. Following this procedure, they are presented in public on the steps of their parents’ home. The honorary duty of the official wreath weaver is lifelong: previous official wreath weavers have always been invited to subsequent conferment ceremonies to advise on and participate in the weaving process. The official wreath weaver is one of the key individuals in the conferment ceremony: as a matter of course, they are among the celebrants carried around in a sedan chair at the conferment ball, like the official jubilee wreath weaver from the ceremony half a century ago. New female official wreath weavers and master’s graduands’ female wreath weavers alike attend the ceremony in white gowns. Male wreath weavers wear an evening dress. Previous years’ female official wreath weavers dress in black. In 1832, the master’s graduands presented a valuable piece of jewellery to the official wreath weaver as a tribute to their contribution. This has become an enduring tradition.
Jukka Relas, PhD
This article was originally published in ‘Levätään laakereilla’, the official blog of the Conferment Jubilee in 2023 where brief entries on the conferment tradition, its history and current status were published. The blog was edited by Eva Ahl-Waris, PhD.