History of the Sauna

The Finnish sauna is a massive part of Finnish culture. There are over 3 million saunas in Finland and 5 million people in total, that’s an average of one per household! Finnish people find that the sauna is a place to relax with friends and family, and a place for physical and mental relaxation. In the past Finnish mothers gave birth to their children in saunas, because the heat made it a sterile environment. The sauna in Finland is an old phenomenon and its roots are difficult to trace, but its earliest versions are believed to be from 7000 BC. One of the first written mentions of what is believed to be the sauna customs of the forefathers of the Finns was written by the Nestor the Chronicler in 1112. With such a cold climate in the winter, the sauna has been seen as a pleasurable way to warm up and has also been used as a cure to many pathologies such as the common cold.