Finland

Famous Finnish People: Finnish Artists, Scientists, Leaders, Musicians, Politicians and Athletes

At first glance a traveler may think that Finland is a very cold country as it is famous for its ski resorts, not to mention the winter polar nights, the summer midnight sun and the fantastic light show from the aurora borealis. However, the country is actually an exciting place to be, where the western and eastern influences have blended through generations and resulted in a truly unique Finnish culture. Finland competes with the rest of the world when it comes to famous people and personalities that helped shape their nation and carved their own niche in the fields of science, the arts, sports and high technology. These are just some of many famous Finns who have lifted Finland’s name worldwide and made a difference in our world. Their purpose and stories inspired awe if not greatness.

:: List of Famous People from Finland ::

Aino Aalto

She trained to be an architect but became known for her designs and her work on several glass sculpture pieces. She was born in Helsinki on January 25, 1894 as Aino Mandelin. Her family’s last name was later changed to Marsio. She married architect Alvar Aalto in whose architectural office she worked for after stints with the offices of Oiva Kallio and Gunnar A. Wahlroos. She and her husband Alvar were the first Finnish architects to adopt the functional architectural style in their works. Later Aino designed special glassware pieces for Iitalla. One of her most internationally-known piece, created in collaboration with her husband is the Aalto Vase or more popularly known as the Savoy Vase. It is a free-form glass vase with a wavy design and several sides. Aino succumbed to cancer in 1949.

Alvar Aalto

Born in Helsinki on February 3, 1898, Hugo Alvar Henrik Aalto was a designer and an architect, whose design concept had always been along the lines of creating a total work of art, from the exterior to the interior as well as the furniture, furnishings, glassware and lamps that will go into a building or house. Aalto’s career coincided with the economic growth of Finland during the first half of the 20th century. Most of his clients were industrialists and his building designs reflected different style influences he used throughout his career – from Nordic Classicism that have simple and clean geometric lines; to National Romanticism, a reaction to industrialization and going back to medieval style of architecture with towers and spires; to Functionalism or the modern style that subscribed to the idea that a building should be designed based on its purpose. Most of the buildings he designed are found in his home country, in Denmark, Switzerland and Estonia. He was the designer of MIT’s Baker House in Cambridge, USA. Aside from designing buildings, Aalto was also famous for his glassware and furniture pieces that are still manufactured today. Apple Stores around the globe use his Stool E60 and High Stool when there are special events and product workshops.

Wäinö Valdemar Aaltonen

Wäinö Aaltonen, a leading sculptor and artist from Marttila, Finland was born on March 8, 1894 to a tailor father. He showed interest in the arts as a child due to his being deaf. He studied painting for several years and traveled to Italy where he was exposed to futurist and cubist art forms. While he studied painting, his sculpting skills were self-taught. He became a nationalist icon in Finland during the First World War for sculpting busts and monuments of his countrymen. Most of his sculptures were cast in bronze. Some of the most notable pieces of Aaltonen are The Hero’s Grave or the Savonlinnan sankaripatsas in Finnish, started in 1919 and finished in 1921. He also created the Myrsky as a monument for the fifty-three victims that died while in the torpedo boat S2 that was caught in a violent storm on October 4, 1925 and sank near Reposaari, Pori, an island in Finland.

Bernhard Henrik Crusell

Before Jean Sibelius came into the music scene there was composer, translator and clarinetist Bernhard Henrik Crusell. He was born on the 15th of October in 1775. He was the most significant and internationally known classical music composer from Finland. Although he was not born to a musical family he had an innate affinity to music and was able to play his friend’s clarinet by ear at the age of eight. As he grew older he received training from the regimental band of Nyland. Officers who were impressed with his skills helped him become a volunteer member of the Sveaborg military band. He and his family were given a place to stay in the area and Crusell received an education, excelling in languages and music. He went with the military officer who took him in, Major O. Wallenstjerna who was assigned to Sweden and there Crusell stayed for the rest of his life. He continued his studies in Stockholm, performed as a solo clarinetist and was appointed as the director of the regimental band at age sixteen. He traveled extensively to perform in Hamburg, Berlin, Paris and England. While he made Sweden his home, he never forgot that he was a Finn although he was able to return to his birth country only once and gave a performacne. While gaining international recognition as a solo clarinetist and a composer, Crusell was also a gifted linguist and did the translations of operas written in French, German and Italian to Swedish for performances in his adopted country.

Jörn Johan Donner

Helsinki-born Jörn Johan Donner, saw the light of day on February 5, 1933. He is a Finn who wears many hats. He is a film director, actor and producer, and the founder of the Finnish Film Archive and had been a director of the Swedish Film Institute while living and working in Sweden. At the same time he is also a writer and received the 1985 Finlandia Prize for his novel Far och son, Father and Son in English. Donner is also associated with many political parties and held parliamentary positions in Finland and Europe. Donner’s most notable work was the movie masterpiece of Ingmar Bergman, the 1981 film Fanny and Alexander which won four Academy Awards, for which he served as producer.

Albert Gustaf Aristides Edelfelt

Albert Edelfelt was born in Porvoo, a medieval town in Finland near Helsinki on July 21, 1854. The residents in his hometown speak Swedish. Edelfelt was the founder of the Realist art movement in the country. He studied painting for one year in Antwerp; spent four years studying art in Paris and finally went to St. Petersburg for another year of study. He was one of the early Finnish painters who have achieved international success and Edelfelt had held many exhibitions in Paris. He was married to Baroness Ellan de la Chapelle who bore him one child. Most of his paintings depicted Finnish history and one of his most notable works were the illustrations for The Tales of Ensign Stål, an epic poem written by celebrated Finnish poet, Johan Ludvig Runeberg.

Mikael Kaj Forssell

Mikael Kaj Forssell is considered as one of the most successful football players from Finland. He was born in Germany on March 15, 1981 and currently plays as a striker for English team Leeds United as well as for Akseli Gallen-Kallela, the national football team of Finland. Forssell started his youth career with one of the most successful clubs in Finland, HJK, short for Helsingin Jalkapalloklubi, a football club in Helsinki. Internationally the club is known as HJK Helsinki. His debut was at age 16. After a year with the youth club he was snapped up by Chelsea because of his goal-scoring skills. He stayed with the club for seven years and went on loan to Crystal Palace, Borussia Mönchengladbach and Birmingham City. When his contract with Chelsea expired, he finally moved to Birmingham City where he played for three years before joining Hannover 96. After three years with Hannover 96, he is now with Leeds United. Since getting a call up from the Finnish national football team, Forssell has made 78 international appearances and has kicked a total of 26 goals, even doing hat tricks when Finland played Macedonia in 2006 and San Marino in 2009.

George Gaynes

George Gaynes is his international name but he was born as George Jongejans in Helsinki on May 16, 1917. His father was a Dutch businessman and his mother was an artist. He made a name for himself as a stage, TV and film actor in the Untied States. If the name does not ring a bell, perhaps it is because he became very popular as Commandant Eric Lassard in the movie series, Police Academy. On television, he was the cantankerous and stubborn Henry Warnimont in the Punky Brewster series. In the TV series General Hospital, he was the mob boss named Frank Smith. While he has made several films and TV shows, he started his career as a musical drama and comedy performer in Broadway during the 1940s and the 1950s.

Veikka Gustafsson

His full name is Eero Veikka Juhani Gustafsson, born on January 14, 1968 in Espoo before his family moved to Tuupovaara. He is one of four children. His claim to fame is being the first ever man from Finland to reach the summit of Mount Everest, a feat that he made in 1993. What makes his feat more important and historical is that he repeated it in 1997, this time without the use of bottled oxygen, and became one of only ten people who have climbed the fourteen 8,000-foot mountains without using bottled oxygen to help them breathe easier. Even Tenzing Norgay and Sir Edmund Hillary used bottled oxygen during their climb to the top of the highest summit in the world.

Mika Häkkinen

Mika Pauli Häkkinen is from Vantaa in Helsinki where he was born on September 28, 1968. Now retired from Formula I racing, Häkkinen started his sport with karting when he was five years old. At age seven he had already won his first race and continued to win several karting championships since he was eleven years old. Häkkinen was world champion for seven times and won the Formula I World Championships title in 1998 and 1999 for team McLaren. His special helmet reflects the colors of the flag of Finland and he signs autographs with the words ‘The Flying Finn” below his signature. His first and last wins in Formula I were in the United States Grand Prix. He currently resides in Monte Carlo.

Tarja Kaarina Halonen

Tarja Kaarina Halonen, born on the 24th of December 1943 is Finland’s first woman president. She assumed the presidency on March 1, 2000. She was a law graduate from the University of Helsinki and had worked in several non-governmental offices and trade unions before her entry into politics. She was elected to the Finnish parliament in 1979 where she served until her election as president. She is a human rights advocate, especially on the issue of women’s rights and is an active member of the Council of Women World Leaders. It is a network of international women prime ministers presidents, both former and current whose mission is to mobilize these women leaders into action to promote the issues regarding women’s rights. Halonen is being considered as the next Secretary General of the United Nations although she said that she wants to finish her presidential term before she considers other positions.

Heikki Vihtori Hasu

Nordic skier Heikki Vihtori Hasu was born in Sippola on the 21st of March 1926. He competed in the Olympics during the late 40s and in the 50s. He won the gold in Nordic combined skiing in 1948 and the silver medal in 1952. Hasu also won the title in the 4 x 10 kilometer cross country skiing in 1952. Hasu had been a considered medal winner, winning two medal during the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Lake Placid in 1950, a gold medal in the Nordic combined and a silver in the 4 x 10 kilometer cross country. In 1953 he also won these events in the Holmenkollen ski festival and even garnered the Holmenkollen medal, the first Finn to win the medal in 1952. The medal is the highest award given by Norway to exemplary Nordic skiing competitors with top standings in international events. Hasu is honored with a statue erected in Anjalankoski now part of the greater municipality of Kouvola.

Sami Tuomas Hyypiä

Sami Tuomas Hyypiä is a retired Finnish soccer player. He was born in Porvoo on October 7, 1973. Playing as a center back, the 6’5” tall Hyypiä started his youth career with Kumu in 1977, learning the ropes until he was 15. He then moved to senior team MyPa where he played for four years then spent the next four years with Willem II Tilburg. He established himself as a worthy player when he joined Liverpool and became captain of the club. He was under contract with Liverpool for 10 seasons and then transferred to Bayer 04 Leverkusen, playing in the German Bundesliga until his retirement in May 2011. While retired from playing professional football, he is the current captain of the national football team of Finland. He has represented his country 105 times since his first call up in 1992 and has kicked five goals. He is now part of the coaching staff of Leverkusen and Finland’s national football squad.

Knut Fredrik Idestam

Knut Fredrik Idestam, a mining engineer and businessman was born in Tyrväntö on October 28, 1838. He was the founder of Nokia Limited, which is named after a town and municipality in Pirkanmaa, west of the city of Tampere, which is in the southern part of Finland. Idestam constructed a groundwood paper mill in Tampere and started its production in 1866. A new paper mill was later constructed in Nokia. He and his partner, Leo Mechelin made a success of their business venture and were able to sell their paper products to their largest consumer, the Russian market. Idestam also founded the Finnish Paper Association and made several innovations and advancement in the country’s paper industry. Through diversification, Idestam’s paper mill business became the world’s largest producer of mobile phones, contributing a major share in Finland’s economy.

Volmari Fritijof Iso-Hollo

Finnish athlete Volmari Fritijof Iso-Hollo was born in Ylöjärvi on May 1, 1907. His specialty was steeplechase. His first Olympic gold in the event was in 1932 Summer Olympics, that was not able to establish a world record because the lap counter was looking at the decathlon pole vault and failed to ring the bell at the end of the last lap, therefore the participants continued running, ending the laps at 3,460 meters instead of the 3,000-meter regulation. He won his second Olympic gold in the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin. Iso-Hollo had established world records in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. He ran 9.09.4 in Lahti in 1933 and broke his own record in Berlin Olympics by finishing at 9.03.8 as well as winning a bronze medal in the 10,000 meters. Iso-Hollo was one of the runners from Finland that were dubbed as the Flying Finns for their speed and excellence in distance running.

Tove Marika Jansson

Tove Marika Jansson was a multi-talented author of the world-famous Moomin books, a children’s book that featured characters called Moomin, white and round trolls that look more like hippos. Jansson was born on August 9, 1914 in Helsinki. She was not only an author, she also illustrated the characters for her Moomin series and at the same time was also a painter and an author of comic strips. Her second Moomin book entitled Comet in Moominland and the succeeding one, Finn Family Moomintroll, published in 1946 and 1948 respectively became global successes. She wrote a total of six Moomin books and won the Hans Christian Andersen Award in 1966. The Moomin books have been translated into 33 languages and one of Finland’s most translated books after the Kalevala, the country’s epic poetry. Her Moomin books are regarded as a reflection of her family’s bohemian lifestyle and their tolerance for the peculiar characteristics of other people. Jansson lived with a female companion, Tuulikki Pietilä, a graphic artist who is said to be the inspiration for the Too-ticky character in her Moomin books. Jansson died on the 27th of June 2001.

Eero Erik Nikolai Järnefelt

Born on November 8, 1863 in Viipuri, Finland, Eero Erik Nikolai Järnefelt was one of the country’s realist painters. Finnish composer Jean Sibelius was his brother-in-law, married to Järnefelt’s sister, Aino. His most famous painting that hangs at the Finnish National Gallery was done in 1893. It depicts the slash-and-burn technique of agriculture in a rural town. The painting is called Kaski or Raatajat rahanalaiset in Finnish, and The Wage Slaves in English. Eero Erik Nikolai Järnefelt died in 1937, seven days after his 74th birthday.

Joulupukki

In English, Joulupukki means Yule Goat and although he may not be a real person, he is a very significant Christmas figure in Finnish tradition and is still being practiced in some parts of the country, just like its American counterpart, Santa Claus. There is a house and workshop located in Korvatunturi and he comes to the houses on Christmas eve, knocking on doors and greeting the people inside with “Onkos taalla kiltteja lapsia?”, which in English means that he is asking if there are well-behaved children in the house. He comes dressed in red clothes, carries a walking stick and rides a sleigh pulled by several reindeer. Like Santa Claus, Joulupukki also has a wife named Joulumuori or Old Lady Christmas.

Jean Sibelius

Finnish composer of the Romantic period Johan Julius Christian Sibelius was born in Hämeenlinna on December 8, 1865. He was fondly called by his family as Janne but he later changed the spelling to Jean when he saw the name on his uncle’s business card. He started as a violin virtuoso at the age of 15 and was able to perform in public playing the last two movements of Mendelssohn Violin Concerto. He started taking up law at university but soon left because his heart was already set on pursuing a music career. He drew inspiration from nature, which he loved and composed a set of seven symphonies, each one a progression on his style of composing. Aside from symphonies, Sibelius also composed several musical pieces such The Swan of Ruonela, Finlandia, Valse Triste, Violin Concerto in D minor and Karelia Suite, as well as songs for voice and piano, incidental music, chamber music, choral music and operas. The musical works of Sibelius helped shape the national identity of Finland and are still being performed worldwide.

Linus Benedict Torvalds

Can one imagine what it would have been like if the Linux kernel was not developed by Linus Torvalds? Limus Benedict Torvalds is a software engineer born in Helsinki on December 28, 1969. He graduated with a master’s degree in computer science from the University of Helsinki. He was exposed to UNIX during his student days and wrote his thesis entitled Linux: A Portable Operating System. He modified the operating system of a Sinclair QL and wrote the program for an assembly language as well as a text editor for it though his real work on the development of Linux began when he received a copy of MINIX, an open-source computer operating system similar to UNIX. He also created Git, software that tracks version revisions of a computer program. While many developers have contributed to the Linux kernel, Torvalds owns the trademark which uses a penguin as its icon. He became a citizen of the United States in 2010.

Aleksis Kivi

Considered as one of Finland’s greatest authors, Aleksis Kivi was born in Nurmijärvi on October 10, 1834 to a family of tailors. He studied literature at the University of Helsink and got interested in theater, driving him to write several plays. His first one was based on a tragedy in the Kalevala to which he gave the title Kullervo. Kivi also wrote poetry and a novel in the Finnish language entitled Seitsemän veljestä or the Seven Brothers in English. It took Kivi ten years to finish this novel. It was a portrayal of the not-so-virtuous life in rural Finland that was not immediately accepted by critics, because it was written in the Finnish dialect used in the southwest that critics considered rude and because the depiction is far from their ideal view of rural life. Nummisuutarit or the Cobblers of the Heath was a comedy he wrote that garnered the State Prize in 1865. The comedy is still being performed to this day. The lukewarm reception to his books led Kivi to drink heavily. He later developed schizophrenia, purportedly as a result of the advanced stages of Lyme disease. He lived in poverty and died at the age of thirty-eight.

Johan Ludvig Runeberg

Finland’s national poet who wrote in the Swedish language, Johan Ludvig Runeberg was born in Jakobstad on February 5, 1804. He studied Greek and Latin classical languages and taught Latin literature in Porvoo. One of his best known poems is the tale of Farmer Paavo, describing the struggles of the farmer to survive several years of bad harvests and harsh climate, mixing bark into the bread mix to survive until finally being able to have a decent crop. It also tells of farmer Paavo’s concern for his fellow farmers and neighbors. Runeberg also wrote what is considered the best epic poem of Finland and the most famous of his works, Vänrikki Stoolin tarinat (Finnish), Fänrik Ståls sägner in Swedish or The Tales Ensign Stål in English. It took Runeberg about 12 years to finish the epic poem It contained several tales of what occurred during the Finnish War with Russia and showcased the heroism and bravery of the citizens of Finland. Contained in the tale is the first poem entitled Maamme or Our Land, which eventually became the national anthem of Finland. February 5 of each year is celebrated as Runeberg’s Day.

Armi Helena Kuusela

Armi Kuusela, born in Muhos on the 20th of August 1934 was the first ever Miss Universe title holder, officially Miss Universe 1953 due to postdating even if the event was held in Long Beach, California on June 29, 1952. Kuusela was only 17 years old when she was crowned Miss Universe. While on a world tour in the early part of 1953 as part of her duties as Miss Universe she met Virgilio Hilario, Filipino businessman and decided to give up her crown to get married. Their wedding was held in Tokyo on the 4th of May 1953 and they settled in the Philippines. Kuusela had five children with Hilario who died of a heart attack in 1975. Kuusela later married American diplomat Albert Williams in 1978 and settled in San Diego, California.

Lauri Pihkala

Lauri Pihkala, fondly called Tahko was born on 5 January 1888 in Pihtipudas. He was an avid fan of many sports and had developed a fair amount of games, most notable of which is what is considered as Finland’s national sport, pesäpallo. It is a variant of baseball, with a complicated set of rules, but is a faster game than regular baseball. Vertical pitching is one of the main differences of pesäpallo to American baseball. While he participated in several sports to varying degrees of success, Pihkala supported far right political activism and had been known to be a propaganda leader in the White Guard unit called the Devils of Kuhmoinen, a group that had committed several war crimes, particularly the summary execution of children living in concentration camps. He also supported the idea of creating a superior warrior race for Finland through eugenics and his creation of the pesäpallo had its origin to the racist idea of using the game in military training.

Kimi Räikkönen

Kimi-Matias Räikkönen is another successful Finnish Formula I racecar driver. He was born in Espoo on October 17, 1979. Räikkönen is known in the car racing world as the Iceman. He began his Formula I career in 2001 as one of Sauber-Petronas’ regular drivers and was issued his Super License, given by the FIA (Fédéracion Internationale de l’Automobile) upon the performance delivery promise issued by Peter Sauber. In 2002 he was with McLaren Mercedes and had good results. He was already a title contender as he was the runner up in 2003 and 2005 to Michael Schumacher of Germany and Spain’s Fernando Alonso, respectively. He eventually gained success, taking the 2007 Formula One World Drivers’ Championship when he was racing for the Ferrari team. His move to the Ferrari team in 2007 also made him the highest paid race car driver as his estimated annual salary amounted to S51 million. His nickname was derived from his cool, calculating, calm and relaxed demeanor in and out of car racing. Räikkönen is currently with the ICE 1 Racing team competing in the World Rally Championship.

Kaarlo Juho Ståhlberg

Kaarlo Juho Ståhlberg was the first president of the Republic of Finland. He was born in Suomussalmi on January 28, 1893. He was an academic as well as a jurist who had a major contribution in the drafting of Finland’s Constitution in 1919. He was a Senate presenter and planner earlier in his political career while Finland was still a Grand Duchy of Russia. He was with the Diet of Finland from 1904 to 1905 and was appointed Senator, tasked with trade and industry responsibilities. He helped in the creation of the Parliament of Finland but resigned from the Senate when the bill for the prohibition of alcohol was not passed. He then resumed his career in academics but was lured back into politics in 1914 as Speaker of Parliament. When Finland finally gained independence in 1917, Ståhlberg became involved in drafting a constitution. He supported the creation of a republic rather than the more popular constitutional monarchy during that time. Almost all his proposals made it to the constitution. He was elected as the first president of the Republic of Finland on July 25, 1919 and assumed office the following day.

Tapio Wirkkala

Sculptor and designer Tapio Wirkkala was born on June 2, 1915. He was a prolific artist and his designs ranged from plastic bottles, glassware, metalware, plywood and ceramics. He was the designer of the Finlandia vodka bottle that was in use from 1970 to 2000 and the markka banknotes, Finland’s currency from 1860 to 2002 before they were replaced by the euro. Wirkkala also worked using different mediums to create sculptures as well as stoneware, furniture, jewelry and glassware. He designed a series of kitchen glasses with a dripping icicle look for Finland’s Iittala, a specialty houseware company.

References:

http://www.en.wikipedia.org
http://www.finland.fi/public/default.aspx?nodeid=41797&contentlan=2&culture=en-US
http://www.hakkinen.com/biography.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Formula_One_World_Drivers%27_Champions
http://www.kansallisbiografia.fi/english/?id=4296