Eeva Irmeli Ahtisaari (née Hyvärinen, born June 18, 1936) is a Finnish teacher and historian who was the First Lady of Finland from 1994 to 2000. She was married to the late 10th

President of Finland The president of the Republic of Finland (; ) is the head of state of Finland. The incumbent president is Alexander Stubb, since 1 March 2024. He was elected president for the first time in 2024 Finnish presidential election, 2024. The presi ...

Martti Ahtisaari Martti Oiva Kalevi Ahtisaari (, 23 June 1937 – 16 October 2023) was a Finnish politician, the tenth president of Finland, from 1994 to 2000, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, and a United Nations diplomat and mediation, mediator noted for his inte ...

. Their son is the musician Marko Ahtisaari.

Life

Eeva Ahtisaari graduated from the

University of Helsinki The University of Helsinki (, ; UH) is a public university in Helsinki, Finland. The university was founded in Turku in 1640 as the Royal Academy of Åbo under the Swedish Empire, and moved to Helsinki in 1828 under the sponsorship of Alexander ...

in 1962 and worked as a history teacher in

Kuopio Kuopio ( , ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of North Savo. It is located in the Finnish Lakeland. The population of Kuopio is approximately , while the Kuopio sub-region, sub-region has a population of approximately . It is the mos ...

Rovaniemi Rovaniemi ( , ; ; ; ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Lapland (Finland), Lapland. It is located near the Arctic Circle in the northern interior of the country. The population of Rovaniemi is approximately , while the Rovaniemi su ...

and

Espoo Espoo (, ; ) is a city in Finland. It is located to the west of the capital, Helsinki, in southern Uusimaa. The population is approximately . It is the most populous Municipalities of Finland, municipality in Finland. Espoo is part of the Helsi ...

. In 1974–1989, Ahtisaari lived in

Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t ...

and

Namibia Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country on the west coast of Southern Africa. Its borders include the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south; in the no ...

as her husband Martti Ahtisaari worked as a diplomat and UN Special Representative. Ahtisaari's autobiography ''Juuret ja siivet'' (Roots and Wings) was published in 2002. On 21 March 2020, it was announced that Eeva Ahtisaari was tested positive for the

coronavirus Coronaviruses are a group of related RNA viruses that cause diseases in mammals and birds. In humans and birds, they cause respiratory tract infections that can range from mild to lethal. Mild illnesses in humans include some cases of the comm ...

. She attended the

International Women's Day International Women's Day (IWD) is celebrated on 8 March, commemorating women's fight for equality and liberation along with the women's rights movement. International Women's Day gives focus to issues such as gender equality, reproductive righ ...

concert on 8 March at the

Helsinki Music Centre The Helsinki Music Centre (, ) is a concert hall and a music center in Töölönlahti, Helsinki. The building is home to Sibelius Academy and two symphony orchestras, the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra. ...

while infected. The former President of Finland

Tarja Halonen Tarja Kaarina Halonen (, born 24 December 1943) is a Finns, Finnish politician who served as the 11th president of Finland, and the first and to date only woman to hold the position, from 2000 to 2012. She first rose to prominence as a lawyer wit ...

was also present at the concert but she was not infected.

Honours

National honours

* Grand Cross of the

Order of the White Rose of Finland The Order of the White Rose of Finland (; ) is one of three official orders in Finland, along with the Order of the Cross of Liberty, and the Order of the Lion of Finland. The President of Finland is the Grand Master of all three orders. The ...

(1994)

Foreign honours

*: Grand Cross of the

Order of the Dannebrog The Order of the Dannebrog () is a Denmark, Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V of Denmark, Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the Order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single cla ...

*: First Class of the

Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana The Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana (, also the Order of the Cross of St. Mary's Land) was instituted by the President of Estonia, Lennart Meri, on 16 May 1995 to honour the independence of the Estonian state. (The Latin name ''Terra Mariana'' ...

(1995) *: Grand Cross of the

Order of the Falcon The Order of the Falcon () is the only order of chivalry in Iceland, founded by Christian X of Denmark, King Christian X of Denmark and Iceland on 3 July 1921. The award is awarded for merit for Iceland and humanity and has five degrees. Nowaday ...

(26 September 1995)Icelandic Presidency Website (''Icelandic''), Order of the Falcon
Martti & Eeva Ahtisaari
, 26 September 1995, Grand Cross with Collar & Grand Cross respectively *: Member Grand Cross of the

Royal Order of the Polar Star The Royal Order of the Polar Star ( Swedish: ''Kungliga Nordstjärneorden''), sometimes translated as the Royal Order of the North Star, is a Swedish order of chivalry created by King Frederick I on 23 February 1748, together with the Order o ...

(1994) *: Honorary citizenship (1992)

Literal works

*''Yksi kamari – kaksi sukupuolta: Suomen eduskunnan ensimmäiset naiset'', Helsinki; Parliament of Finland, 1997. *''Juuret ja siivet'', Helsinki; WSOY, 2002. *Eeva Ahtisaari, Maija Kauppinen, Aura Korppi-Tommola: ''Tavoitteena tasa-arvo: Suomen Naisyhdistys 125 vuotta'', Helsinki; Finnish Literature Society, 2009.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ahtisaari, Eeva 1936 births Living people People from Varkaus Finnish schoolteachers 20th-century Finnish historians First ladies and gentlemen of Finland Finnish expatriates in Tanzania Finnish expatriates in Namibia Finnish women historians University of Helsinki alumni