Julius Krohn

Julius Leopold Fredrik Krohn (19 April 1835 – 28 August 1888) was a Finnish folk poetry researcher, professor of Finnish literature, poet, hymn writer, translator and journalist. He was born in Viipuri and was of Baltic German origin. Krohn worked as a lecturer on Finnish language in Helsinki University from the year 1875 and as a supernumerary professor from 1885. He was one of the most notable researchers into Finnish folk poetry in the 19th century. His native language was German.

Life

Krohn's mother was Julie Dannenberg, a daughter of the Baltic German family at Kiiskilä manor near Vyborg. The versatile and talented Julie spoke eight languages and played the piano brilliantly. The other half of Dannenberg's family was of Ingrian background.

From 1857 he taught Finnish at Elisabeth Blomqvist's girls' school, and that same year he co-founded one of the first Finnish-language primary schools in the country together with a group of friends.

Children

Apart from Krohn's son Kaarle, mentioned above, his son Ilmari became a composer of church music. His daughter Aino married the Estonian nationalist Oskar Kallas and was known as a writer by the name Aino Kallas. His daughter Helmi Krohn, also an author, married Eemil Nestor Setälä, later the acting head of state of Finland in November 1917, after the abdication of Nicholas II of Russia.

Publications

Krohn, Julius (February 1981). Kaarle Krohn (ed.). Folklore Methodology: Formulated by Julius Krohn and Expanded by Nordic Researchers (Paperback). Roger L. Welsch (translator). Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press. p. 192. ISBN 0-292-72432-2.