Jaan Kärner was an Estonian poet and writer. He is known especially for his nature poetry. Many of his poems were set to music by Estonian composers of choral music. Kärner also wrote numerous novels, plays, literary criticism, and scientific literature and historical treatises. He translated works from German and Russian, most notably the poems of Heinrich Heine

Heinrich Heine

Christian Johann Heinrich Heine was one of the most significant German poets of the 19th century. He was also a journalist, essayist, and literary critic. He is best known outside Germany for his early lyric poetry, which was set to music in the form of Lieder by composers such as Robert Schumann...

 into Estonian in 1934.

Life and work

Jaan Kärner was born the son of a farmer. He attended Uderna school from 1901 to 1906 (Rõngu). From 1910 Kärner worked in various magazines in Tallinn. 1911/12 and 1914 he studied at the City People's University "AL Schanjawski" in Moscow. From 1917 Kärner was also politically active and in 1919 editor of the trade union newspaper Töö hääl (Labor voice).

Since the early 1920s Kärner worked as a freelance writer. From 1927 to 1929 he worked as an editor at the magazine Looming

Looming (journal)

-Literary journal:Looming was founded in 1923 by the Estonian writer Friedebert Tuglas. Its purpose was the publication and popularization of Estonian contemporary literature...

, 1936-1938 for the magazine Tänapäev

Tänapäev

Tänapäev is an Estonian publishing house established in 1999 and headquartered in Tallinn. The main subjects it publishes are translated and original fiction, history, politics, biographies and children literature. In the year 2000, Tänapäev published 45 books. It published 60 books in 2001, 70...

. A left-winger, he supported the 1940 Communist seizure of power in Estonia. During the German occupation of Estonia (1941-44) Kärner lived in the Soviet Union

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

. With the Soviet occupation of Estonia in 1944, he returned to his homeland and joined the Communist party. He then worked in publishing as an editor at various newspapers and magazines. In 1946, Kärner descended into insanity and died in 1958 in Tartu.

Poetry collections

• Aja laulud (1921)
• Lõikuskuu (1925)
• Õitsev sügis (1926)
• Inimene ristteel (1932)
• Sõna-sütega (1936)
• Käidud teedelt (1939)
• Kodumaa käsk (1942)
• Viha, ainult viha (1944)

Fiction

• Naine vaesest maailmast (1930)
• Soodoma kroonika (1934)
• Tõusev rahvas (2 volumes, 1936/1937)
• Pidu kestab (1938)