Johannes Linnankoski (originally Vihtori Johan Peltonen, 18 October 1869 – 10 August 1913) 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 ...

author and playwright, which mainly influenced writing in the

Golden Age of Finnish Art The Golden Age of Finnish Art coincided with the national awakening of Finland, during the era of the Grand Duchy of Finland under the Russian Empire. It is believed to span an era from the late 19th Century to the early 20th Century, approxima ...

. His most famous work is the romance novel, ''

The Song of the Blood-Red Flower , translator = W. J. Alexander Worster , image = Thesongofthebloodredflower 1921.jpg , caption = A hardcover of the 1921 English version , author = Johannes Linnankoski , illustrator = , cover_artist = , coun ...

'' (1905). His primary themes were guilt, punishment, and redemption as moral questions.

Life

Linnankoski was born in

Vakkola Vakkola is a village in Askola municipality in Eastern Uusimaa, Finland. It is located 5 kilometers northeast of Monninkylä along the Porvoo River, just a couple of kilometers from Askola's church village. In 2009, the Finnish Heritage Agency ...

Askola Askola () is a municipality of Finland. It is located in the Uusimaa region. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . Monninkylä is the largest village of municipality i ...

and was active in the cultural life of

Eastern Uusimaa Eastern Uusimaa or, officially, Itä-Uusimaa ( fi, Itä-Uusimaa; sv, Östra Nyland; literally "Eastern New Land") was one of the 19 regions of Finland, until it consolidated with the region of Uusimaa on January 1, 2011. It bordered the region ...

. He was one of the founders of the bank 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 medieva ...

and also founded Finnish-language schools and daily newspapers such as ''

Uusimaa Uusimaa (; sv, Nyland, ; both lit. 'new land') is a region of Finland. It borders the regions of Southwest Finland, Tavastia Proper (Kanta-Häme), Päijänne Tavastia (Päijät-Häme), and Kymenlaakso. Finland's capital and largest city, ...

'', the first Finnish-language newspaper situated outside of the major towns of Uusimaa. Linnankoski married Ester Drugg in 1899 and they had four children: Marjatta, Salama, Touko and Urmas. All his children were born under the surname Peltonen.Linnankosken syntymästä kulunut 130 vuotta
(in Finnish) In his last years he moved from Askola to the

Helsinki Deaconess Institute Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...

, in

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...

, for treatment of his poor health, and died there of

anemia Anemia or anaemia (British English) is a blood disorder in which the blood has a reduced ability to carry oxygen due to a lower than normal number of red blood cells, or a reduction in the amount of hemoglobin. When anemia comes on slowly, t ...

at the age of 43 in 1913. In 1938 a Linnankoski Museum was opened near the

sauna A sauna (, ), or sudatory, is a small room or building designed as a place to experience dry or wet heat sessions, or an establishment with one or more of these facilities. The steam and high heat make the bathers perspire. A thermometer in a ...

building where Linnankoski was supposedly born.

Film adaptations

His books have been made into numerous major feature films with the most famous and notorious being '' The Milkmaid'' (directed by T. J. Särkkä) and '' Laulu tulipunaisesta kukasta'' (directed by

Mikko Niskanen Mikko Johannes Niskanen (31 January 1929 – 25 November 1990) was a Finnish film director, actor, producer and screenwriter. He directed more than 40 films between 1956 and 1988. His most acclaimed films include '' The Boys'' (1962), ''Und ...

). ''The Song of the Blood-Red Flower'' has also been filmed in Sweden, in three different versions by directors

Mauritz Stiller Mauritz Stiller (born Moshe Stiller, 17 July 1883 – 18 November 1928) was a Swedish film director of Finnish Jewish origin, best known for discovering Greta Garbo and bringing her to America. Stiller had been a pioneer of the Swedish film ...

Per-Axel Branner Per-Axel Helge Branner (né Larsson; 25 January 1899 – 31 July 1975) was a Swedish actor, screenwriter and film director.Qvist & von Bagh p.197 Selected filmography * '' Getting Married'' (1926) * ''His Life's Match'' (1932) * '' Pettersson ...

and

Gustaf Molander Gustaf Harald August Molander (18 November 1888 – 19 June 1973) was a Swedish actor and film director. His parents were director Harald Molander, Sr. (1858–1900) and singer and actress Lydia Molander, ''née'' Wessler, and his brother was th ...

Bibliography

* ''

'' (''Laulu tulipunaisesta kukasta'', 1905) * '' The Fugitives'' (''Pakolaiset'', 1908) * ''Kootut teokset''

References

External links

* * * 1869 births 1913 deaths People from Askola People from Uusimaa Province (Grand Duchy of Finland) Fennomans Finnish writers Finnish-language writers {{Finland-writer-stub