Jaakko Syrjä (7 March 1926[2] – 22 May 2022) was a Finnish writer.[3] He served as the president of the Union of Finnish Writers from 1975 to 1980.[1]
Syrjä was born in Pälkäne, the son of Martta née Niemiö and Juho Nestori Syrjä, who were both cattle traders and farmers.[2] At the age of seven, he and his family moved from Hirsilä to Korkeakoski.[2] Syrjä then moved to Tampere,[2] where he worked for the railroad equipment and steam locomotive manufacturing company Lokomo.[4] In 1953 his story "There came the Bear" won the Best Short Story prize in the Pirkanmaa Writing Competition.[2]
Syrjä (left) with his wife, Kirsi Kunnas and their two children
In 1957, Syrjä married poet and children's literature author Kirsi Kunnas.[6]
Syrjä was a member of the Union of Finnish Writers from 1970 to 1975,[2] and president from 1975 to 1980.[1] He worked with novelistKalle Päätalo adapting works for publication.[4] Syrjä was a member of the Väinö Linna Society.[2]
Syrjä won the City of Tampere Literature Prize three times from 1956 to 1988.[7] He also was a winner of the Thanks for the Book Award in 1966.[7] Syrjä was nominated for the Finlandia Prize in 1988.[1] He was a winner of the Väinö Linna Prize in 2005.[7] In 2016, Syrjä was awarded the Pirkanmaa Art Prize by the Pirkanmaa Arts Council.[8]
Kunnas died in her sleep at home in Ylöjärvi on 8 November 2021, at the age of 96.[9] Six months later, on 22 May 2022, at a care home in Ylöjärvi, Syrjä died of COVID-19, also at the age of 96.[1]
