Kihnu Virve

Virve-Elfriide Köster (née Haavik; 30 January 1928 – 10 December 2022), best known as Kihnu Virve, was an Estonian folk singer. Her songs are among the top-selling folk music in Estonia.

Biography Virve Köster was born Virve Haavik in 1928 in Pärnu, Estonia, the closest large city to her home island of Kihnu. As a performer, she went by the name Kihnu Virve.

Virve lived in a log cabin on the small women-dominated island of Kihnu. She was the island's best-known songwriter and one of its most famous residents.

Virve began writing songs at age 15, and she went on to write over 300 of them. Stylistically, they resemble traditional music from her youth in the 1930s–60s. Perhaps her best-known song is "Merepidu" ("Feast of the Sea"), which was first brought to national attention through a cover by the Tallinn-based folk group Kukerpillid. She toured the country, often performing alongside her family.

A Kihnu Veeteed ferry is named after her.

Virve died on 10 December 2022, at the age of 94.