Kalevipoeg
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Kalevipoeg.jpg
The main material is taken from Estonian legends and folklore of a giant hero named Kalevipoeg ("Kalev's Son"). These myths mainly interpret various natural objects and features as traces of Kalevipoeg's deeds and have similarities with giant stories from neighbouring regions, including Scandinavia.
In Estonian (mainly East Estonian) legends, Kalevipoeg carries stones or throws them at enemies, and also uses planks as weapons, following the advice of a hedgehog. He also forms surface structures on landscape and bodies of water and builds towns. He walks through deep water. Kalevipoeg eventually dies from having his feet cut down.
Kalevipoeg was one of the sons of Kalev and Linda. Alevipoeg, Olevipoeg and Sulevipoeg were his relatives.
The character only rarely appears in folk songs. In literature, he was first mentioned by Heinrich Stahl in the 17th century.
In 1839, Friedrich Robert Faehlmann read a paper at the Learned Estonian Society about the legends of Kalevipoeg. He sketched the plot of a national romantic epic poem. In 1850, after Faehlmann's death, Kreutzwald started writing the poem, interpreting it as the reconstruction of an obsolete oral epic.
The first version of Kalevipoeg (1853; 13,817 verses) could not be printed due to censorship. The second, thoroughly revised version (19,087 verses) was published in sequels as an academic publication by the Learned Estonian Society in 1857–1861. The publication included a translation into German. In 1862, the third, somewhat abridged version (19,023 verses) came out. This was a book for common readers. It was printed in Kuopio, Finland.
The epic is written in old Estonian alliterative verse. Approximately one eighth of the verses are authentic; the rest are imitation.de:Kalevipoeg et:Kalevipoeg (eepos) fr:Kalevipoeg it:Kalevipoeg fi:Kalevipoeg sv:Kalevipoeg tr:Kalevipoeg