Sylvi Kekkonen ( Uino; 12 March 1900 — 2 December 1974) was a Finnish writer and the longest-serving First Lady of Finland.

Personal life and family

Sylvi Uino was born to a middle-class family, as the fourth child of a chaplain (later

vicar A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English p ...

), Kauno Uino, and Emilia Salome Stenberg. After her father's death, the family moved to

Mikkeli Mikkeli (; ; ; ) is a List of cities and towns in Finland, city in, and the regional capital of, South Savo, Finland, located in the Finnish Lakeland. The population is approximately , while the Mikkeli sub-region of Southern Savonia has a populat ...

, where she went to school. She later moved to Helsinki with the intention of studying law, but dropped out and took a job instead. In 1926, she married

Urho Kekkonen Urho Kaleva Kekkonen (; 3 September 1900 – 31 August 1986), often referred to by his initials UKK, was a Finnish politician who served as the eighth and longest-serving president of Finland from 1956 to 1982. He also served as Prime Minister ...

; they had met while working at a central law enforcement agency ''Etsivä keskuspoliisi'' (now the

Finnish Security Intelligence Service The Finnish Security and Intelligence Service (, ; , ), formerly the Finnish Security Police and Finnish Security Intelligence Service, is the Security agency, security and intelligence agency of Finland in charge of national security, such as Co ...

). Two years later, the couple had twin sons, Matti and Taneli. She was a small and fragile person physically, but known for her strength of character. She died at Meilahti Tower Hospital on 2 December 1974.

First Lady of Finland

Sylvi Kekkonen considered her main duty as the First Lady to support her husband, the President. She was also active as a patron of various events and other initiatives, although in later life her health deteriorated and she was forced to cut down on her public appearances. She is the longest-serving First Lady, with 18 years in the role, and is likely to remain so as the tenure of Presidents of Finland is now limited to a maximum of two consecutive six-year-terms.

Writing career

Kekkonen's main literary output comprises two

novel A novel is an extended work of narrative fiction usually written in prose and published as a book. The word derives from the for 'new', 'news', or 'short story (of something new)', itself from the , a singular noun use of the neuter plural of ...

s, ''Käytävä'' (1955) and ''Amalia'' (1958); and two

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...

collections, ''Kotikaivolla'' (1952) and the autobiographical ''Lankkuaidan suojassa'' (1968) which is considered to be her best in literary terms. Of these, ''Amalia'' was translated into eight languages. Her writing often deals with impressionist themes and juvenile perspectives. She also wrote

essay An essay ( ) is, generally, a piece of writing that gives the author's own argument, but the definition is vague, overlapping with those of a Letter (message), letter, a term paper, paper, an article (publishing), article, a pamphlet, and a s ...

s; her debut publication, ''Kiteitä'' (1949), was an essay collection. She is also known to have edited and critiqued many of her husband's writings. To commemorate her, an annual literary

symposium In Ancient Greece, the symposium (, ''sympósion'', from συμπίνειν, ''sympínein'', 'to drink together') was the part of a banquet that took place after the meal, when drinking for pleasure was accompanied by music, dancing, recitals, o ...

, ''Sylvi Symposiumi'', has been held since 2000 in Pieksämäki, where there is also a park named after her.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kekkonen, Sylvi First ladies and gentlemen of Finland Urho Kekkonen 20th-century Finnish writers 20th-century Finnish women writers People from Pieksämäki 1900 births 1974 deaths