Sisu
Sisu is one of those ‘untranslatable’ terms that refer to a whole cluster of traits, in this case courage, resilience, grit, determination, tenacity and perseverance. In the family of Nordic word exports (think ‘lagom’ and ‘hygge’, among others), sisu would be the obvious Finnish contribution. It is a favourite word of ours, and the concept colours our worldview in a surprising number of ways. A simple definition that I personally like is ‘cheerful determination’. Sisu is something to be desired. It communicates an outlook on life that is curious and selfassured.
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