Popularity
Owing to its viral exposure in popular culture, Ievan Polkka has become the most famous Finnish song in the world. Even the songs Maamme and Finlandia Hymn are not as internationally well known.
Very popular after WWII, the song was almost forgotten during the late 70s and 80s. The song resurfaced after an a cappella performance by the Finnish quartet Loituma, which was first released on their debut album, Loituma, in 1995. The album was released in the United States as Things of Beauty in 1998.
A cappella version of the song acquired greater international popularity as part of an Internet meme in the spring of 2006. The flash animation "Loituma Girl" (also known as "Leek Spin") which starred the character Orihime Inoue from the Japanese anime Bleach, twirling a leek and singing along to the song. For the animation, only the second half of the fifth stanza (four lines) and the complete sixth stanza (eight lines) are used.
The song is also very popular in the Czech city of Brno, where it is played after home victories by the city's hockey club HC Kometa Brno in honor of the team's star Finnish goalkeeper, Sasu Hovi.
The song has also been sung by Vocaloid Hatsune Miku, whose version is more popular among her fans. As a nod to "Loituma Girl", she waves a leek back and forth in the video.
Furthermore, mobile ringtones based on various mixes of "Ievan Polkka" gained a wide popularity among Russian and Commonwealth of Independent States mobile subscribers in late 2006. The tune is also the theme song to the Internet sitcom Break a Leg.; it was remixed by DJ Basshunter of Sweden, DJ Sharpnel of Japan, and Beatnick of Poland; and a version of the song was part of a Ready Brek television advert aired in the United Kingdom. Also, some videos show a Farfetch'd spinning a leek.
The "Dolly Song" by Holly Dolly is used as the theme song of a Greek TV series called Η οικογένεια βλάπτει (I oikogeneia vlaptei) shown by Mega Channel.
A version of the song was used in a commercial of Dutch energy giant Eneco in 2008 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68Ephntzlw8)
Popular with Goonswarm, an EVE Online alliance part of the Something Awful Forums. The song is part of the leekspin meme
The song also appears in Korpiklaani's 2012 album, Manala.
Read more about this topic: Ievan Polkka
Famous quotes containing the word popularity:
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