Swiping a few apples may have ended in a beating in 19th century Estonia
Nowadays, those caught pilfering peas or apples from someone else's field or garden may justify it as a folk tradition. In the 19th century, however, getting caught meant a trip to court and a sound thrashing as punishment.
The first apple orchards began appearing on farms 150 years ago and establishing one was a very expensive undertaking at the time. That was also why farmers kept a close eye on their apples. While fences kept animals away from the valuable produce, they were no help against people.
"A very common practice was to plant apple trees near the windows so they could be watched from inside the house. There were also dogs in the yard, of course, and some farmers would stand guard themselves," gardening history researcher Anneli Banner said.
Pilfering apples could land someone in court. In 1874, for example, boys aged 13 to 14 were caught stealing apples in Piilsi village near Avinurme — some took eight, others 10 and one 17.
"This was a time when punishment was either a fine or corporal punishment, meaning a birching. The boys' fathers refused to appear in court because they were afraid they themselves might receive corporal punishment," Avinurme local historian Piret Haav said.
That left the mothers with no choice but to go to court themselves and then carry out the punishment, giving their sons 10 strokes with a birch rod. It was quite unusual for parents, rather than the court, to have to administer the punishment. An adult would not have gotten off so lightly.
"The number of strokes varied, as did the fines. They ranged from 50 kopecks to a couple of dozen rubles, or from 10 to 30 strokes with a birch rod," Haav said.
While pea growers are now the ones who mainly have trouble with people helping themselves to their crops, the Estonian term raksus käima originated in apple orchards and comes from the cracking sound made when branches break.
"The word raks is an onomatopoeic word referring to a sudden cracking sound and the expression is presumably based on that comparison. Going out to pilfer or steal is an emotionally charged activity and emotionally charged activities tend to have many synonyms. These are often based on comparisons and one way of forming them is through onomatopoeia," Estonian Language Institute vocabulary researcher Iris Metsmägi said.
But while such pilfering was considered theft in the past, how is it viewed today?
"I suppose nowadays it is, whereas in the past it wasn't really seen that way. When you were a child and took an apple from a neighbor's garden, you didn't feel like much of a thief, although maybe you did feel a little twinge of guilt inside, but..." Ülle said.
"It's like going into a pea field, secretly eating a few peas there and taking a few with you. Or going into your neighbor's garden to eat a few apples — that sort of thing," Liisa said.
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Editor: Marcus Turovski
