In the small Estonian town of Orissaare, football players dribble around a 150-year-old oak tree standing impossibly in the middle of their soccer field or "stadium." What seems like a quirky local oddity became a symbol of national pride when this tree won the 2015 European Tree of the Year, beating much larger countries like Hungary, Spain, and the UK.
How did an unknown Estonian oak outcompete all of Europe? The answer involves brilliant PR, ancient folklore, a fierce independence forged by centuries of foreign invasion, and a profound connection to forests rooted in animism. Could a tree resist the Soviets? Learn about its inspiring legend that captured the attention of tree-lovers around the world.
Guests
Aliide Naylor
Journalist and Author
London, UK
The Shadow in the East: Vladimir Putin and the New Baltic Front
aliidenaylor.com
Heiki Hanso
Arborist
Orissaare, Estonia
Andla Rüütel
Manager, Orissaare Sports Hall
Orissaare, Estonia
Voiceover Reading for Andla Rüütel
Martha Douglas-Osmundson
LinkedIn Profile
Songs (in order)
"Saaremaa valss," Georg Ots
"Ma vaatan paadist kiikriga," Boris Lehtlaan
"Metsavendade laul (sõnadega) - Forest Brothers' Song," Untsakad
"Isegi unes," Stig Rästa (permission from FAAR Music)
Other References
"The Favours of the Sacred Tree," Estonian Folk Tales: the Heavenly Wedding,
Piret Paar and Anne Turnpu, authors, 2005.
Silence of the Gods: The Untold History of Europe's Last Pagan Peoples, Francis Young, 2025.
Theme Music
"This Old Tree," Diccon Lee, www.deeleetree.com
Artwork
Dahn Hiuni, www.dahnhiuni.com/home
Website
thisoldtree.show
Transcripts available.
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This Old Tree podcast is a sponsored project of New England ISA. To support This Old Tree and New England ISA, click here.
We want to hear about the favorite tree in your life! To submit a ~4 or 5 minute audio story for consideration for an upcoming episode of "Tree Story Shorts" on This Old Tree, record the story on your phone’s voice memo app and email to:
doug@thisoldtree.net
This episode was written in part at LitArts RI, a community organization and co-working space that supports Rhode Island's creators.
litartsri.org
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