Accessibility links

Subscribe
All RFE/RL sites
site logo site logo
Previous Next
Breaking News
Photo Galleries

Being Finnish: A Guide For Soviet Spies

An archived booklet reveals how communist spooks were instructed to blend in with Finnish locals, with careful advice on the behavior, clothing, and table manners of Finns.

Pages from the Cold War-era training document, Life, Morals, And Customs Of The Population Of Finland was first posted online in early 2020. Although not attributed, historian and Soviet archive expert Eduard Andryushchenko says the manual is almost certainly authentic.

Andryushchenko believes the document was probably made in the 1950s or early 1960s and appears to have been leaked by someone with access to a Soviet library but without permission to publish such material.

The scanned pages are shown below with English translations of the Russian text.
Use of a napkin -- place it on the knees, not in the collar. You can use it to wipe your hands and lips.   This is how they eat with a fork (do not assist yourself with a knife).  
1 Use of a napkin -- place it on the knees, not in the collar. You can use it to wipe your hands and lips.
 
This is how they eat with a fork (do not assist yourself with a knife).
 
Take bread with your hands, then put in on a plate on the left. A knife and fork on either side of the plate indicates the guest is still eating.   While eating, bread is taken with butter. Balls of butter are on a plate on the right. A ball of butter is taken with a knife from the left plate, put on the bread and spread, then the knife must be returned to its original place.
2 Take bread with your hands, then put in on a plate on the left. A knife and fork on either side of the plate indicates the guest is still eating.
 
While eating, bread is taken with butter. Balls of butter are on a plate on the right. A ball of butter is taken with a knife from the left plate, put on the bread and spread, then the knife must be returned to its original place.
This is how a glass is held (not by the stem). Wine, vodka, and other alcoholic drinks are drunk in sips (2-3 doses per glass). [Finns] don’t clink glasses but raise them to the level of their mouths to give toasts. After eating, the spoon and fork are placed on the plate together, indicating the guest has finished eating. The waitress will bring the next dish.
3 This is how a glass is held (not by the stem). Wine, vodka, and other alcoholic drinks are drunk in sips (2-3 doses per glass). [Finns] don’t clink glasses but raise them to the level of their mouths to give toasts. After eating, the spoon and fork are placed on the plate together, indicating the guest has finished eating. The waitress will bring the next dish.
Cafe with a buffet:   The price for lunch is 400-500 markkas (the Finnish currency used before its replacement with the euro in 2002).… It is not recommended to put a lot of food on the plates, it is better to make several trips to the table.   Outdoor cafe:   It is obligatory to remove your hat. It is not customary to hurry waiters here. Wait patiently: after all, you came here to rest.  
4 Cafe with a buffet:
 
The price for lunch is 400-500 markkas (the Finnish currency used before its replacement with the euro in 2002).… It is not recommended to put a lot of food on the plates, it is better to make several trips to the table.
 
Outdoor cafe:
 
It is obligatory to remove your hat. It is not customary to hurry waiters here. Wait patiently: after all, you came here to rest.
 
A table setting for coffee: There is a sugar spoon in the sugar bowl. They take sugar with the spoon, but do not stir it in their cup.   Don’t touch the coffee pot – it’s the waiter’s job. Sit – they will pour you a drink.  
5 A table setting for coffee: There is a sugar spoon in the sugar bowl. They take sugar with the spoon, but do not stir it in their cup.
 
Don’t touch the coffee pot – it’s the waiter’s job. Sit – they will pour you a drink.
 
If there is no spoon or tongs, sugar is taken with the hands. It is not customary to take sugar from the bowl with your own spoon.   Stirring coffee: Do not clink with a spoon, do everything quietly and do not draw attention to yourself.
6 If there is no spoon or tongs, sugar is taken with the hands. It is not customary to take sugar from the bowl with your own spoon.
 
Stirring coffee: Do not clink with a spoon, do everything quietly and do not draw attention to yourself.
Clothing:   Tying a tie: Please note that the knot must be small.   Reading a book: don’t sprawl, keep yourself humble.  
7 Clothing:
 
Tying a tie: Please note that the knot must be small.
 
Reading a book: don’t sprawl, keep yourself humble.
 
The sweater: Don’t tuck it into your pants.   A sweater should be buttoned but worn with a tie.
8 The sweater: Don’t tuck it into your pants.
 
A sweater should be buttoned but worn with a tie.
At a bus stop: Pay attention to people’s clothing and behavior. The usual headwear of rural locals is a flat cap with a “stem.”   At the market, even while dressed in a good suit they carry backpacks.  
9 At a bus stop: Pay attention to people’s clothing and behavior. The usual headwear of rural locals is a flat cap with a “stem.”
 
At the market, even while dressed in a good suit they carry backpacks.
 
Moving around the country:   A tram: Get on the tram where others board, usually at the back platform. It is customary to walk on the right on the sidewalk. You should walk slowly, waddling a little.   A bicycle is a common form of transportation in rural areas and small towns. This is how bicycles are left on the street if there are no bike stands.       
10 Moving around the country:
 
A tram: Get on the tram where others board, usually at the back platform. It is customary to walk on the right on the sidewalk. You should walk slowly, waddling a little.
 
A bicycle is a common form of transportation in rural areas and small towns. This is how bicycles are left on the street if there are no bike stands.   
 
 
A ferry: Note how bicycles and personal belongings are attached to the bus (on the roof).   On the bus: There is a mesh shelf at the top where you can put things -- a hat, a newspaper, a magazine, gloves, etc., but not a suitcase. There is a special compartment for a suitcase at the back of the bus. Before you sit next to someone you should ask permission.  
11 A ferry: Note how bicycles and personal belongings are attached to the bus (on the roof).
 
On the bus: There is a mesh shelf at the top where you can put things -- a hat, a newspaper, a magazine, gloves, etc., but not a suitcase. There is a special compartment for a suitcase at the back of the bus. Before you sit next to someone you should ask permission.
 
16x9 Image

RFE/RL

RFE/RL journalists report the news in 27 languages in 23 countries where a free press is banned by the government or not fully established. We provide what many people cannot get locally: uncensored news, responsible discussion, and open debate.

Back to top
XS
SM
MD
LG