Edith Södergran

Who was Edith Södergran?

Edith Irene Södergran was a Swedish-speaking Finnish poet. She was one of the first modernists within Swedish-language literature and her influences came from French Symbolism, German expressionism and Russian futurism. At the age of 24 she released her first collection of poetry entitled Dikter. Södergran died at the age of 31, having contracted tuberculosis as a teenager, and did not live to experience the world wide appreciation of her poetry. Her poetry has influenced many lyrical poets, and Södergran is today considered to have been one of the greatest modern Swedish-language poets. Södergran continues to influence Swedish-language poetry and musical lyrics, e.g. in the works of Mare Kandre, Gunnar Harding, Eva Runefelt and Eva Dahlgren.