Editing Finnish sauna (section)

== Customs ==
[[File:Sauna ladle and bucket 2016 (cropped).jpg|left|thumb|200px|Sauna ladle and bucket]]
[[File:Finnish Vasta (Vihta).jpg|thumb|upright|Finnish {{Lang|fi|vihta}} ({{Lang|fi|vasta}} in Eastern Finland), made of [[birch]]. It is used in traditional sauna-bathing for massage and stimulation of the skin.]]
[[File:In de sauna. Slaan met berkentakken, Bestanddeelnr 920-4683.jpg|thumb|Women using [[Bath broom|{{Lang|fi|vihta|cat=no}}s]]]]
Saunas are an integral part of the way of life in Finland.<ref name="WAPO1994"/> They are found on the shores of Finland's numerous lakes, in private apartments, corporate headquarters, at the [[Parliament House, Helsinki|Parliament House]] and even at the depth of {{convert|1400|m|ft}} in [[Pyhäsalmi Mine]]. The sauna is an important part of the national identity<ref name="WAPO1992SaunaBarrier"/><ref name="WAPO1994"/><ref>Valtakari, P.: ''[http://www.sauna.fi/in-english/sauna-information/articles-about-sauna/finnish-sauna-culture/ Finnish Sauna Culture - Not Just a Cliché]''. The Finnish Sauna Society.</ref> and those who have the opportunity usually take a sauna at least once a week. The traditional sauna day is Saturday.<ref>Korhonen, N.: [http://www.helsinki.fi/lehdet/uh/498b.htm The sauna - a sacred place]. ''Universitas Helsingiensis'', 4/1998, Helsinki University, Helsinki.</ref>

The sauna tradition is so strong that whenever Finns go abroad, they relish the chance to have a good sauna: even the Finnish Church in [[Rotherhithe]], London, has its own sauna. Finnish soldiers on peacekeeping missions are famous for their saunas; even on the [[UNMEE]] mission in [[Eritrea]], a sauna was one of the first buildings to be erected.<ref>Aurén, V.: ''[http://www.rauhanturvaajaliitto.fi/lehti/4_03/kirjat.htm Barettiyhdistyksiltä Eritrean Sacristin kirjat (Finnish)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191113112719/http://www.rauhanturvaajaliitto.fi/lehti/4_03/kirjat.htm |date=13 November 2019 }}''. Finnish Peacekeepers.</ref> A [[Second World War]]-era Finnish military field manual states that a break of eight hours is all that is required for a [[battalion]] to build saunas, warm them and bathe in them.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} Saunas, even in the military, are strictly egalitarian places: no titles or hierarchies are used in the sauna.

Taking a sauna begins with having a wash (usually a shower), followed by a sit in the sauna room, the room being typically warmed to {{convert|80|-|110|C|F}}. Water is thrown on the hot stones topping the {{Lang|fi|kiuas}}, a special stove used to warm up the sauna. This produces great amounts of steam, known as {{Lang|fi|löyly}}, increasing the moisture and the [[apparent temperature]] within the sauna.<ref name="Tribune1970"/> Only the word {{Lang|fi|löyly}} is used for this particular type of steam; the Finnish word {{Lang|fi|höyry}} ('steam, vapour') is never used for it except in a scientific sense. Equivalents for {{Lang|fi|löyly}} can be found in the [[Finnic languages]] such as the [[Karelian language|Karelian]] {{Lang|fi|löyly}}, the [[Estonian language|Estonian]] {{Lang|et|leil}}, the [[Votic]] ''leülü'', the [[Veps language|Veps]] ''l'öl''' and the [[Livonian language|Livonian]] ''löul''. Its original sense signified 'spirit, breath, soul' and this is still seen in the [[Uralic languages]]--for example, the [[Udmurt language|Udmurt]] ''lul'', the [[Komi language|Komi]] ''lol'', the [[Mansi language|Mansi]] ''läl'' ('life'), the [[Khanty language|Khanty]] ''lil'' and the [[Hungarian language|Hungarian]] {{Lang|hu|lélek}}.<ref>{{cite book |author=Häkkinen, Kaisa |title= Nykysuomen etymologinen sanakirja |year= 2005|orig-year=2004 |publisher= WSOY|language= fi |isbn= 951-0-27108-X|page= 657}}</ref>

[[File:Sausage, beer and cake at Uusi Sauna.jpg|thumb|right|Sausages and beer are traditional refreshments after having a sauna.]]
Occasionally one uses a bunch of leafy, fragrant [[silver birch]] called a {{Lang|fi|[[Sauna whisk|vasta]]}} ({{Lang|fi|vihta}} in Western Finland) to gently beat oneself.<ref name="NationalGeographic1973"/> This supposedly has a relaxing effect on the muscles and also helps to soothe the irritation from mosquito bites. When the heat begins to feel uncomfortable it is customary to jump into a lake, sea, or a swimming pool, or to have a shower. In the winter, rolling in the snow or even swimming in a hole cut in lake ice, an {{Lang|fi|[[Ice swimming|avanto]]}}, is sometimes used as a substitute. Often after the sauna it is a custom to sit down in the dressing room or on the porch of the sauna to enjoy a sausage, along with beer or [[soft drink]]s.

After cooling down from the first bath, one goes back into the hot room and begins the cycle again.<ref name="Tribune1970"/> The number and duration of hot room-cooling down cycles varies from person to person based on personal preference. Usually one takes at least two or three cycles, lasting between 30 minutes to two hours. In Finland's numerous summer cottages bathing might go on well into the night. This is especially true in the summer when there's virtually no darkness at night. The sauna session itself is finished off with a thorough wash.

For someone brought up in Finland, the rules are instinctive but they are difficult to put into words. Depending on the size, composition, relationships, and the age structure of the group three basic patterns can emerge: Everyone can go to the sauna at the same time, men and women may take a sauna separately, or each family can go to sauna separately. Mixed saunas with non-family members are most common with younger adults, and are quite rare for older people or on more formal occasions. It is common for teenagers to stop going to sauna with their parents at some point.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} 

In the sauna it is a [[wikt:faux pas|faux pas]] to wear clothing in the hot room, although it is acceptable to sit on a small towel or {{Lang|fi|[[pefletti]]}}, a disposable tissue designed to endure heat and humidity (it can be mandatory in a public sauna, such as at a public swimming pool). While cooling off it is common to wrap a towel around the body. For a typical Finn the sauna is, with few exceptions, a strictly non-sexual place; [[nudity]] in the sauna is a very normal state of affairs among Finns without any connection with sexual intercourse.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.myhelsinki.fi/en/see-and-do/activities/quick-guide-to-finnish-sauna-etiquette|title=Quick guide to Finnish sauna etiquette|publisher=My Helsinki|access-date=15 November 2022}}</ref> In Finland, a "sauna" means only a sauna, not a brothel, sex club, or such. In public saunas, swimsuits are banned from the hot room for health reasons: in many indoor swimming pools, chlorine is added to the water for hygiene reasons; if swimwear used in such water is brought to the hot room, the chlorine will vaporize and cause breathing problems for people with [[asthma]] or [[allergy|allergies]].{{Citation needed|reason=This claim needs a reliable source.|date=October 2012}}

In private homes or summer residences, the sauna is usually warmed to honor the guest and refusal may be more difficult. However, Finns will not typically be very offended if their guest declines. This is particularly common if going to sauna would require a lot of effort from the guest (such as re-applying complex make-up afterwards), socially inconvenient (feeling uncomfortable about nudity or a mixed-sex sauna), or otherwise inconvenient (should the guest not have a change of clothes or if the sauna would take place late at night, et cetera).