Little Walpurgis

Hello again in this colorful autumn! One year has passed again and now it is time for Lilla wappen. Now you may wonder what that means exactly. Don’t worry I got you covered!

You may have heard of wappen or vappen, or May day in english. If you do not know about May Day you can read more on this site. Otherwise the chance to experience it may show up faster than you expect. The reason that I mention May Day so much is that they are related to each other. On May Day, we celebrate the beginning of summer and after the May Day celebrations, you have the right to wear your graduation hat. As the Swedish song goes Sommartider hej hej. A great song to listen to when summer comes around

However, the leaves are now yellow and it is time to cozy up and enjoy a nice warm cup of cocoa (preferably with a hint of mint…). When darker and colder times starts creeping up on you, it is time for Lilla Wappen or Little Walpurgis. Little Walpurgis is celebrated the last day of September to welcome the autumn. Usually we celebrate the festivities with a three – course meal. At the end of the evening the Chair of the Board of the Student Union gives a more relaxed speech and asks the students to put their hat upside down. This shows the inside of the graduation hat. The students will then wear the hat upside down as long as the night keeps going and after that they put the hat away until the next May. This tradition has taken different forms throughout the years, this form has been a working concept the last years.

Lukas Akantu

Board member (Studentculture)

 Student Union of Åbo Akademi University