Patriarhaalne kord

Patriarchal order

The next song is about a mother who kills her daughters. Usually, the song begins with an explanation for the mother’s action: the son, returning home from an unsuccessful marriage proposal, complains that he cannot get a wife because his mother has too many daughters in need of a dowry - nobody wants to give their daughter into such a household. Songs about killing daughters (“Killer of daughters”) or about the mother’s rebellion against the family’s expectations (“Daughter into water”) are known all over Estonia. In the versions of “Killer of daughters” from Võrumaa, the mother’s reason is lack of work suitable for so many daughters (the actual reason behind this motif could be lack of food).

Songs express the preference for male children over female, which can be connected to the patriarchal societal order, where power and property mostly belonged to men. Without exploring the issue more closely, it is hard to determine whether this is a story that has travelled to us from other cultures, whether it interprets the patriarchal order implemented by foreign rulers or whether the song reflects Estonians’ own ways of family planning. The popularity of the song indicates that the topic has certainly spoken to and touched singers.