Juhani Aho was a Finnish author best known for his novels Rautatie (‘Railroad’) and Juha as well as ‘Splinters’, a series of shorter texts. He was the first Finnish author to earn a living by writing. Aho began writing as a newspaper journalist, something that he continued to do through his life. Aho was also one of the founders of Päivälehti, which later became Helsingin Sanomat. He was a keen fisher and even spent his 50th birthday fishing in the Huopalankoski rapids.
Juhani “Jussi” Aho (Johannes Brofeldt until 1907)
Born September 11, 1861, Lapinlahti. Died August 8, 1921, Helsinki.
Doctor of Philosophy honoris causa 1907, Imperial Alexander University
Author, journalist and translator
Photo: Museovirasto
Written by Tero Juutilainen
Translated by Olli Silvennoinen
Johannes Brofeldt, who was later known as Juhani Aho, was born in Lapinlahti in 1861 to a family that leaned towards the Lutheran Awakening movement. His studies took him first to lyceum in Kuopio and then to the Imperial Alexander University in Helsinki, where he studied the Finnish…
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Juhani Aho’s literary output changed over the years but today he is primarily known as a representative of realism and modernism. In the early years of his career, his writing also touched on societal developments in that era and the spread of technology. His breakthrough came in 1884 with the…
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