Theodolinda Hahnsson

Sofia Theodolinda Hahnsson (née Limón; 1 February 1838 – 20 April 1919) was a Finnish writer and translator. She is the first known female author to write in Finnish. She was a significant figure in the literary society of Hämeenlinna. She had published several popular short stories, novels, and social plays, some of which appeared in newspapers.

Life Theodolinda was born on 1 February 1838, in Tyrvää, Satakunta, Finland. She was the daughter of pastor Karl Magnus Limón, and his wife Maria Kristina Mollin. She did not attend academic schooling, but was homeschooled by her father. She was married to Johan Adrian Hahnsson in 1864, and moved with his family to Hämeenlinna in 1871 when he got a teaching post at a school in the city. She had a daughter, née Hahnsson, who would also become a writer. Upon the death of her husband in 1888, Theodolinda moved to Helsinki in 1892 and married Senator Yrjö Sakari Yrjö-Koskinen.

Writing Theodolinda's writing represented a romantic idealism tinted with Christianity and patriotism. Her writings also raised social issues such as poverty, and the power of the father in deciding the marriage of the daughter. She is best known for her 1887 novel Huutolaiset, where she describes the lives of two girls caught in the vendue system of auctioning the poor out to families. She was most active during the 1870s and 1880s with her writing. After her second marriage, she did translations.

Selected works