One of the greatest influence on Middle-Earth is the Finnish epic Kalevala, in particular the tale of Kullervo. Similarities can be seen in the tale of Túrin Turambar: both are tragic heroes, commit incest with their sister who then kills herself after discovering it and both heroes kill themselves.

If in The Lord of the Ring the events are centred around the One Ring, in the Kalevala we have the magical item called Sampo, which provide its owner with great fortune but never makes clear its nature. The Sampo and the One Ring have a similar story: both are cause of the fight between the forces of good and evil and are destroyed nearly at the end of the story.

The Kavala main charcater Väinämöinen shares with Gandalf immortal origins and wise nature and at the end they departure on a ship to lands beyond the mortal world. The Finnish language was also used by Tolkien as a base for the Quenya Elvish language.