Karl Gustaf Larson (5 June 1873 – 2 December 1948), better known as Larin-Kyösti, was a Finnish poet. Many of his poems have been set to music by

Yrjö Kilpinen Yrjö Henrik Kilpinen (4 February 18922 March 1959) was a Finnish composer. He was born in Helsinki, and in 1907 he started his studies in the Helsingin Musiikkiopisto (later named Sibelius Academy). In 1910 Kilpinen moved to Vienna to continue ...

or by

Jean Sibelius Jean Sibelius (; ; born Johan Julius Christian Sibelius; 8 December 186520 September 1957) was a Finnish composer of the late Romantic music, Romantic and 20th-century classical music, early modern periods. He is widely regarded as his countr ...

(e.g. ''Kaiutar'', op. 72 no. 4).

Biography

Larson was born in

Hämeenlinna Hämeenlinna (; ; ; or ''Croneburgum'') is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Kanta-Häme. It is located in the southern interior of the country and on the shores of Vanajavesi, Lake Vanajavesi. The population of Hämeenlinna is appr ...

, Finland. His parents, Gustaf Israel Larson and Sofia Vilhelmina Skog, were both born in Sweden. His father, who operated a restaurant, committed suicide in 1884. Larson started a course of study at the

University of Helsinki The University of Helsinki (, ; UH) is a public university in Helsinki, Finland. The university was founded in Turku in 1640 as the Royal Academy of Åbo under the Swedish Empire, and moved to Helsinki in 1828 under the sponsorship of Alexander ...

in 1895. In 1897, he published his first collection of poems, derived from Finnish folk life and nature. Larin-Kyösti's depression was often reflected in his writing. In 1906, he attempted suicide on his way to Italy and was sent to a mental hospital in Florence. He remained a lifetime bachelor. In 1912, he established a residence at

Oulunkylä Oulunkylä (, also known as ''Ogeli'') is a suburb and a neighbourhood of Helsinki, the capital of Finland. It is located north from the center of the city. It has been inhabited since the 13th century. Earlier an independent municipality, it ...

, a suburb and a neighbourhood of

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

where he lived for the rest of his life. He died in Oulunkylä in 1948. Larson was buried next to his parents at the Hämeenlinna Cemetery.

References

External links

*
Biography at Runeberg.org in an old Finnish biography
Finnish male poets 1873 births 1948 deaths 20th-century Finnish poets 20th-century Finnish male writers 19th-century Finnish poets 19th-century Finnish male writers People from Hämeenlinna {{Finland-poet-stub