True, true, and he was no Germanophile either.
But yeah, the Finns are the best example, especially since the Professor knew their mythology so extensively.
And if you think about it, it makes sense for all these people who descended from hunter-gatherers living in forests to worship bears. After all, if you live in the forest, what is probably the most dangerous thing to come across as a human... a bear! So, as a not so intelligent prehistoric man you make up stories and legends to explain yourself the power of the bear and you pass them on to your children and so on.
Bears ftw!