Pietari Päivärinta

Pietari Päivärinta (18 September 1827 in Ylivieska – 26 July 1913) was a Finnish writer and Diet member. His depictions of peasant life, quickly translated and published in Germany and Scandinavia, are among the first examples of modern Finnish literature.

He was born in Ylivieska, the eldest son of day labourers. His parents' ill health often obliged him to beg for the family's food. On his marriage to Liisa Tuomikoski he bought a small farm, but was at first unable to make it pay and began a career as an itinerant singer. In 1856 he obtained a post as an assistant clerk, and slowly furthered his career in the administration before entering politics. After his first wife's death he married Anna-Liisa Koskela.

He began writing for newspapers in 1858. His autobiography, My Life, dates from 1877, and was written to pass the time during forced bedrest after breaking his leg. He participated in the Diets of 1882, 1885, 1888 and 1891, and the Synod in 1876, 1886 and 1893.