# Question about a Finnish song: "Säkkijärven Pollka" **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 29, 2019, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-a-finnish-song-sakkijarven-pollka/837791 "2019-07-29T03:21:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CoastalMaineiac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e8c25b/32.png) [@CoastalMaineiac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CoastalMaineiac)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-a-finnish-song-sakkijarven-pollka/837791/1 "2019-07-29T03:21:13Z")
Link to a version of the song on Youtube here: [- YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLRZHGGLjR4) So I was reading that the Finns actually broadcast this song continuously for a long period of time during World War II. Supposedly it could jam Soviet Radios and cause Soviet mines to explode? Is that true or just a legend? If true, how would that work? ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-a-finnish-song-sakkijarven-pollka/837791/2 "2019-07-29T03:32:17Z")
Moved to Cafe Society. Colibri General Questions Moderator ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-a-finnish-song-sakkijarven-pollka/837791/3 "2019-07-29T06:41:11Z")
Wikipedia claims it was to do with discovering that Soviet landmines exploded when particular combinations of frequencies activated their sensors, and that this song could be used to achieve that effect. But the claim appears to be unsupported by specific citations. > **[Säkkijärven polkka](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/S%C3%A4kkij%C3%A4rven_polkka)** > > Säkkijärven polkka (Finnish pronunciation: \[ˈsækːiˌjærʋen ˈpolkːɑ\]; "the Säkkijärvi polkka"), also called the "Karelian-Finnish polkka," is a well-known folk tune from Finland that is very popular with Finnish accordionists. It was especially popularized by Viljo "Vili" Vesterinen (1907–1961). The tune was first recorded in Säkkijärvi (now Kondratyevo in the Leningrad Oblast, Russia), and the lyrics sometimes sung with the tune, stating that while Säkkijärvi itself might have been lost (ceded to ... ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Tan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/charlie_tan/32/12582_2.png) [@Charlie\_Tan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Tan)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 8:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-a-finnish-song-sakkijarven-pollka/837791/4 "2019-07-29T08:32:06Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > Moved to Cafe Society. > > Colibri > General Questions Moderator Did you read the OP. Or was your “let’s move this” trigger pinged by the words “song” and “polka?” Because ISTM that this is not about arts and entertainment, but a question that might have a factual answer. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 10:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-a-finnish-song-sakkijarven-pollka/837791/5 "2019-07-29T10:58:23Z")
> [@CoastalMaineiac](#): > > Link to a version of the song on Youtube here: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLRZHGGLjR4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLRZHGGLjR4) > > So I was reading that the Finns actually broadcast this song continuously for a long period of time during World War II. Supposedly it could jam Soviet Radios and cause Soviet mines to explode? Is that true or just a legend? If true, how would that work? Just to correct a point, as far as I understand it. The Soviets could detonate the mines remotely by radio. The purpose of broadcasting the tune was to block the signal, and make them NOT explode. It needed continuous broadcast for months until the mines’ batteries ran down, rendering them safe. Also, the song was only played for the first three days of that time, after which they found other ways to jam the signal. I don’t know if the story is true. > **[How the Finns stopped the Soviets with this polka song](https://www.wearethemighty.com/popular/how-the-finns-stopped-the-soviets-with-this-polka-song/)** > > There's a subsection of YouTube dedicated to playing the same song on repeat, over and over again, for hours at a time. Parents think it's just a part o… ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 11:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-a-finnish-song-sakkijarven-pollka/837791/6 "2019-07-29T11:23:01Z")
I found a discussion of the event, with some photos of the actual mines in a museum. Warning- link is possibly not safe for work. The forum is called Axis History. It doesn’t appear to be pro-Nazi, and holocaust denial is specifically banned on the forum. All the same, you might not want to be explaining this point to your boss. Two click rule : [Säkkijärven Polkka- the song that saved Viipuri? - Axis History Forum](https://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?t=129919) ---
**Author:** ![sohvan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/96bed5/32.png) [@sohvan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sohvan)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-a-finnish-song-sakkijarven-pollka/837791/7 "2019-07-29T16:20:09Z")
Here’s an article on the subject from Finland’s national public broadcasting company. Finnish only I’m afraid, but you might be able to google translate it. It includes an interview in 1969 from someone who served in the war. > **[Suomalaisten suosikkipolkka kelpasi jopa miinantorjuntaan](https://yle.fi/aihe/artikkeli/2013/12/02/suomalaisten-suosikkipolkka-kelpasi-jopa-miinantorjuntaan)** > > Hanuriklassikko Säkkijärven polkan tarina. The article says that the Finnish discovered that certain Soviet mines were set to explode with a specific three-note chord played on a specific frequency. The Finnish started playing the song on the same frequency to jam the signal. Some sources say that the song was played on repeat for 5-months, and some say 3-days. The details aren’t clear, but the story seems to be true.