Puukkojunkkari

Puukkojunkkari (Swedish: knivjunkare, translated to English as knife-fighter;^[1] lit. 'knife junker') or häjy (lit. 'mean, wicked') was a term used of troublemakers who were active in the Southern Ostrobothnia region of Finland in the 19th century. Fights among puukkojunkkaris were common, and often resulted in death. Puukkojunkkaris usually made trouble at weddings, stole horses and roamed the towns and villages. They also participated in gambling and theft. The most notorious puukkojunkkaris lived in towns near the Lapuanjoki [fi] river, such as Alahärmä. The first homicides took place in the 1790s, but the infamous "golden age" of puukkojunkkaris lasted from the 1820s to the 1880s.