Johan Ludvig Runeberg (; 5 February 1804 – 6 May 1877) was a
Finnish
Finnish may refer to:
* Something or someone from, or related to Finland
* Culture of Finland
* Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland
* Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people
* Finnish cuisine
See also ...
priest
A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in partic ...
, lyric and epic poet. He wrote exclusively in Swedish. He is considered a
national poet
A national poet or national bard is a poet held by tradition and popular acclaim to represent the identity, beliefs and principles of a particular national culture. The national poet as culture hero is a long-standing symbo ...
of Finland. He is the author of the lyrics to (''Our Land'', ''
Maamme'' in Finnish) which became an unofficial Finnish
national anthem
A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and Europea ...
. Runeberg was also involved in the modernization of the
Finnish Lutheran hymnal and produced many texts for the new edition.
Background
Childhood
Runeberg was born into a Swedish-speaking family in
Jakobstad
Jakobstad (; fi, Pietarsaari) is a town and municipality in Ostrobothnia, Finland. The town has a population of () and covers a land area of . The population density is . Neighboring municipalities are Larsmo, Pedersöre, and Nykarleby. The ...
, Finland, on the shores of the
Gulf of Bothnia. His parents were
sea captain Lorentz Ulrik Runeberg (1772–1828) and Anna Maria Malm (1782–1834).
Paternal grandfather Ludvig had moved to Finland from Sweden, and Anna Maria Malm was born to the
merchant family from Jakobstad, which probably also had their roots in Sweden.
[Helge Pohjolan-Pirhonen: ''Kansakunnan historia 3: kansakunta löytää itsensä'', p. 529–550. Helsinki: WSOY, 1973. ISBN 951-0-05774-6. (in Finnish)]
As a child, Runeberg suffered from
scrofula, which led to glandular swelling. His physical development slowed down due to illness so that he did not learn to walk until he was three or four years old.
[Merikapteenin poika](_blank)
(in Finnish) From his father, Johan inherited a manly and brisk character, and from his mother, he inherited sensitivity and artistic talent.
Education
At the age of eight, Runeberg was sent to live with his uncle and attend school in
Oulu. Runeberg studied in the city of
Vaasa
Vaasa (; sv, Vasa, , Sweden ), in the years 1855–1917 as Nikolainkaupunki ( sv, Nikolajstad; literally meaning "city of Nicholas), and later on at the
Imperial Academy of Turku, where he befriended
Johan Vilhelm Snellman
Johan Vilhelm Snellman (; 12 May 1806 – 4 July 1881) was an influential Fennoman philosopher and Finnish statesman, ennobled in 1866. He was one of the most important 'awakeners' or promoters of Finnish nationalism, alongside Elias Lönnrot an ...
and
Zacharias Topelius
Zachris Topelius (, ; 14 January 181812 March 1898) was a Finnish author, poet, journalist, historian, and rector of the University of Helsinki who wrote novels related to Finnish history.
Given name
Zacharias is his baptismal name, and this ...
. His studies concentrated mainly on the classical languages of Latin and Greek. He earned a Master of Philosophy during 1827. He served as a tutor (1822–1826), docent at the
Imperial Alexander University
The University of Helsinki ( fi, Helsingin yliopisto, sv, Helsingfors universitet, abbreviated UH) is a public university, public Research university, research university located in Helsinki, Finland since 1829, but founded in the city of Turk ...
(1830) and teacher at the Swedish-language Helsingfors Lyceum (1831–1836). From 1837 he lived in
Porvoo
Porvoo (; sv, Borgå ; la, Borgoa) is a city and a municipality in the Uusimaa region of Finland, situated on the southern coast about east of the city border of Helsinki and about from the city centre. Porvoo was one of the six medieval to ...
, where he served as professor of Latin literature in the
Borgå gymnasium. Runeberg was the tutor of
Carl Henrik Alopaeus, who would later become the bishop of Porvoo and an educator of the deaf. Runeberg also supported
Carl Oscar Malm's school for the deaf in Porvoo (which Alopaeus taught at) as well as serving on its school board. Finnish
salon hostess
Natalia Castrén (1830–1881) was a member of Runeberg's cultural circle.
Poetry
Many of his poems deal with life in rural Finland. The best known of these is , (''Farmer Paavo'', in Finnish), about a
smallholding
A smallholding or smallholder is a small farm operating under a small-scale agriculture model. Definitions vary widely for what constitutes a smallholder or small-scale farm, including factors such as size, food production technique or technology ...
peasant farmer in the poor parish of
Saarijärvi
Saarijärvi () is a town and municipality of Finland. It is located in the Central Finland region. The municipality has a population of
() and covers an area of of
which
is water. The population density is
.
Neighbouring municipalities are ...
and his determination, ''
sisu
SiSU (SiSU information structuring universe or Structured information, serialized units), is a Unix command line-oriented framework for document structuring, publishing and search.
Usage
Using markup applied to a document, or a collection of do ...
'' (guts) and unwavering faith in providence in the face of a harsh climate and years of bad harvests. Three times, a frosty night destroys his crops. Every time, he mixes double the amount of
bark into his
bark bread
Bark bread is a traditional food made with cambium (phloem) flour. It has a history of use as famine food.
History
Bark bread seems to be a primarily Scandinavian tradition. Mention of it is found in medieval literature, and it may have an even ...
to stave off
starvation and works ever harder to dry off marsh into dryer land that would not be as exposed to the night frost. After the fourth year, Paavo finally gets a rich crop. As his wife exults, thanks God and tells Paavo to enjoy full bread made entirely out of grain, Paavo instructs his wife to mix bark into grain once more, because their neighbour's crop has been lost in a frost and he gives half of his crop to the needy neighbour.
Selected works
Runeberg's main works included the idealist poem "" (Elk Hunters, 1832) and the epic (King Fjalar, 1844). The heroic poem (
The Tales of Ensign Stål
''The Tales of Ensign Stål'' (Swedish language, Swedish original title: , fi, Vänrikki Stoolin tarinat, or year 2007 translation ) is an epic poem written in Swedish by the Finland-Swedish author Johan Ludvig Runeberg, the national poet of Fin ...
, in
Finnish
Finnish may refer to:
* Something or someone from, or related to Finland
* Culture of Finland
* Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland
* Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people
* Finnish cuisine
See also ...
) written between 1848 and 1860 is considered the greatest Finnish
epic poem
An epic poem, or simply an epic, is a lengthy narrative poem typically about the extraordinary deeds of extraordinary characters who, in dealings with gods or other superhuman forces, gave shape to the mortal universe for their descendants.
...
outside the native
Kalevala
The ''Kalevala'' ( fi, Kalevala, ) is a 19th-century work of epic poetry compiled by Elias Lönnrot from Karelian and Finnish oral folklore and mythology, telling an epic story about the Creation of the Earth, describing the controversies and ...
tradition and contains tales of the
Finnish War
The Finnish War ( sv, Finska kriget, russian: Финляндская война, fi, Suomen sota) was fought between the Kingdom of Sweden and the Russian Empire from 21 February 1808 to 17 September 1809 as part of the Napoleonic Wars. As a re ...
of 1808–09 with
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
. In the war,
Sweden ignominiously lost Finland, which became a
Grand Duchy
A grand duchy is a country or territory whose official head of state or ruler is a monarch bearing the title of grand duke or grand duchess.
Relatively rare until the abolition of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, the term was often used in the o ...
in the
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
. The epic, which is composed episodically, emphasizes the common humanity of all sides in the conflict, while principally lauding the heroism of the Finns. The first poem (''Our Land'', ''
Maamme'' in Finnish) became the
Finnish National Anthem.
Personal life
He was married to his second cousin
Fredrika Runeberg, née Tengström, who wrote poems and novels. They were the parents of eight children, including the sculptor
Walter Runeberg, who was their eldest son. He also had several emotional affairs throughout his life, most notably with Maria Prytz and the younger poet
Emilie Björkstén.
Legacy
![Runebergintorttu](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6b/Runebergintorttu.jpg)
Runeberg Day (Finnish: ) is celebrated annually on 5 February, the day of Runeberg's birth. A pastry flavored with almonds called
Runeberg's torte (Finnish: ; Swedish: ) is generally available in stores from the beginning of January until 5 February.
There is a statue of Johan Ludwig Runeberg by his son
Walter Runeberg on
Esplanadi
Esplanadi ( sv, Esplanaden), colloquially known as Espa, is an esplanade and urban park in downtown Helsinki, Finland, situated between the Erottaja square and the Market Square. It is bordered on its northern and southern sides by the Pohjoisesp ...
in the heart of
Helsinki
Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the capital, primate, and most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of Uusimaa in southern Finland, and has a population of . The city ...
.
Runeberg Township in
Becker County,
Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
was also named after Runeberg.
The
Runeberginkatu street in central Helsinki is named after him.
Runeberg was selected as the main motif of the Finnish commemorative coin, the €10
Johan Ludvig Runeberg and Finnish Poetry commemorative coin. It was minted in 2004 celebrating the 200th anniversary of his birth. The obverse of the coin features a stylized portrait of Runeberg's face. The reverse features an 1831 font sample from the Swedish-language newspaper , since Runeberg wrote most of his work in Swedish.
See also
*
List of Swedish-language writers
*
MS ''J. L. Runeberg''
*
Project Runeberg
Project Runeberg ( sv, Projekt Runeberg) is a digital cultural archive initiative that publishes free electronic versions of books significant to the culture and history of the Nordic countries. Patterned after Project Gutenberg, it was founded ...
*
Runeberg Prize
*
Runeberg torte
*
Sven Dufva
References
External links
''Vårt land'' (Maamme)at
Project Runeberg
Project Runeberg ( sv, Projekt Runeberg) is a digital cultural archive initiative that publishes free electronic versions of books significant to the culture and history of the Nordic countries. Patterned after Project Gutenberg, it was founded ...
Johan Ludvig Runeberg at Swedish Wikisource*
*
*
*
ttps://books.google.com/books?id=GzpcAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA56 Runeberg translationsby
Charles Wharton Stork, pp. 56–80
''Anthology of Swedish lyrics from 1750 to 1915''at the
Internet Archive
The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Runeberg, Johan Ludvig
1804 births
1877 deaths
19th-century Lutherans
People from Jakobstad
Writers from Ostrobothnia (region)
Finnish Lutherans
Finnish poets in Swedish
Finnish writers in Swedish
Finnish Lutheran hymnwriters
Swedish Lutheran hymnwriters
Lutheran poets
Lutheran writers
National anthem writers
National symbols of Finland
Swedish-speaking Finns