author
Michaël Choraeus
1774–1806
A Finnish-Swedish poet and priest of the late Enlightenment, he left behind lyric and occasional verse that still surfaces in songbooks and literary archives. His life was brief, but his poems carried enough warmth and musicality to outlast it.
1 Audiobook
Michaël Choræi Samlade skaldestycken
by Michaël Choraeus
About the author
Born in Vörå, Finland, in 1774, Michaël Choraeus was a Finnish-Swedish writer, priest, and scholar. After losing his parents while still young, he was brought up by relatives in Sweden, studied at Uppsala, and later returned to Finland, where he worked as a tutor and eventually became a docent in rhetoric at the Academy of Åbo.
His writing is remembered for lyric poems and occasional verse, including the well-known text "Sommarnatten", which was set to music by Olof Åhlström. That link between poetry and song helped keep his work alive long after his death, and collections of his poems were published for later readers.
Choraeus later served in religious and court-related posts in Sweden, including as a preacher connected with Karlberg. He died in 1806 in Solna, only 32 years old, leaving the image of a gifted literary voice whose career ended much too soon.