page_title: Folk music
section_title: Nordic folk music
hierarchical_section_title: Folk music / Traditional folk music / National and regional forms / Europe / Nordic folk music
caption_attribution_description: Suomi: Maria Gasolina Faces-etnofestivaaleilla 2008
context_page_description: Folk music includes traditional folk music and the genre that evolved from it during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted orally, music with unknown composers, or music performed by custom over a long period of time. It has been contrasted with commercial and classical styles. The term originated in the 19th century, but folk music extends beyond that.
  Starting in the mid-20th century, a new form of popular folk music evolved from traditional folk music. This process and period is called the folk revival and reached a zenith in the 1960s. This form of music is sometimes called contemporary folk music or folk revival music to distinguish it from earlier folk forms. Smaller, similar revivals have occurred elsewhere in the world at other times, but the term folk music has typically not been applied to the new music created during those revivals. This type of folk music also includes fusion genres such as folk rock, folk metal, and others. While contemporary folk music is a genre generally distinct from traditional folk music, in U.S.
context_section_description: Nordic folk music includes a number of traditions in Northern European, especially Scandinavian, countries.  The Nordic countries are generally taken to include Iceland, Norway, Finland, Sweden and Denmark. Sometimes it is taken to include Greenland and historically the Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
  The many regions of the Nordic countries share certain traditions, many of which have diverged significantly.  It is possible to group together the Baltic states (or, sometimes, only Estonia) and parts of northwest Russia as sharing cultural similarities, contrasted with Norway, Sweden, Denmark and the Atlantic islands of, Iceland and the Faroe Islands.  Greenland's Inuit culture has its own musical traditions, influenced by Scandinavian culture.  Finland shares many cultural similarities with both the Baltic nations and the Scandinavian nations.  The Saami of Sweden, Norway, Finland and Russia have their own unique culture, with ties to the neighboring cultures.
  Swedish folk music is a genre of music based largely on folkloric collection work that began in the early 19th century in Sweden. The primary instrument of Swedish folk music is the fiddle.  Another common instrument, unique to Swedish traditions, is the nyckelharpa.  Most Swedish instrumental folk music is dance music; the signature music and dance form within Swedish folk music is the polska.  Vocal and instrumental traditions in Sweden have tended to share tunes historically, though they have been performed separately.  Beginning with the folk music revival of the 1970s, vocalists and instrumentalists have also begun to perform together in folk music ensembles.
caption: Maria Gasolina performing at 2008 Faces Festival in Raseborg, Finland
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