Aleksis Kivi

Aleksis Kivi (Finnish pronunciation: [ˈɑleksis ˈkiʋi] (listen); born Alexis Stenvall; 10 October 1834 – 31 December 1872) was a Finnish author who wrote the first significant novel in the Finnish language, Seitsemän veljestä ("Seven Brothers") in 1870. He is also known for his 1864 play Heath Cobblers. Although Kivi was among the very earliest authors of prose and lyrics in Finnish, he is still considered one of the greatest. Kivi is regarded as a national writer of Finland and his birthday, 10 October, is celebrated as Finnish Literature Day.