Daniel Juslenius

Who was Daniel Juslenius?

Daniel Juslenius was a Finnish writer and bishop. He was a professor of Hebrew, Greek and theology at the Royal Academy of Turku.

Juslenius is considered Finland's first Fennoman and a firm advocate of Finnishness. In his works, he presented completely overblown images of the past of the Finnish people. He wrote, for example, Aboa vetus et Nova, in which he claimed that the civilisations of Rome and Ancient Greece originated in Finland. He also wrote Vindiciae Fennorum. Both works represent homeland images which were fashionable to write about in the late 17th century. The purpose of this depiction was to make an inventory of the possessions during Sweden's time as great power.