Helena Patursson

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Helena Patursson

Helena Patursson as young lady in 1889 at the premiere of her play Veðurføst.
Born August 27, 1864
Kirkjubøur, Faroe Islands
Died December 15, 1916 (aged 52)
Kirkjubøur

Súsanna Helena Patursson (born 27 August 1864 in Kirkjubøur; died 15 December 1916 in Kirkjubøur) was a Faroese actress and writer, and the first political feminist in the country. She also wrote the first play in the Faroese language. Her brothers Sverre Patursson and Jóannes Patursson were also well-known.

Helena Patursson is the daughter of the king's farmer Poul Peder Pedersen and Ellen Cathrine Djonesen. She grew up on the king's farm Kirkjubøargarður, where she got private lessons together with her brothers. Later she went to Copenhagen, where she learned piano and handiworks. She worked there as paralegal until 1904, when she returned to the Faroes.

Like her brothers Helena Paturson was an activist, ever since the Christmas meeting of the Faroe Islands 1888, where the nationalist movement was founded. Her activities are addressed to women. In 1889 wrote she the first play in Faroese, Veðurføst (feminine form of veðurfastur = unable to move from a place because of weather conditions, "weather fastened"), from which unfortunately only fragments are preserved. It is about women's role in the national awakening and teaching Faroese at home, which had at this time no official status as a language.

She also write in the papers Føringatíðindi (Faroese's Times) and Fuglaframi (Bird's = the Faroese people's furtherance) of her brothers Jóannes and Sverre. In Copenhagen she was organised in a women's union and in 1896 persuaded the Faroese Association there to affiliate with women.

Back on the Faroes, Helena Patursson founded her own magazine Oyggjarnar (the Islands), which was not only the first paper for Faroese women, but also at its time (1905-1908) the only periodical in Faroese language. Thus Oyggjarnar had several importance in the history of the Faroe Islands. It was not only addressed to women, but most articles were about feminine jobs and education, their role in the national awakening, and recipes for good meals, which was considered as a national request in that time. For instance Oyggjarnar emphasized that girls get the same good food as boys. A new women's role became popular, where parts of the old farmer's culture were preserved, but got a new quality. The traditional wool processing now became a decorative handicraft, etc.

A compilation of her articles came out 1909 in Matreglur fyri hvørt hús (Meals for every house), which was the first Faroese cookbook. Fríðka um búgvið (Home's beautification) was the second book in 1912. But by 1908 the paper Oyggjarnar had been discontinued because she received less support by her famous brothers.

Súsanna Helena Patursson's biographer, the Faroese professor for literature Malan Marnersdóttir, supposes that it was a sign of the times that a single woman's voice was missed in that time, when men dominated the political scene of the national movement. However, Helena Patursson was a pioneer, and her work and ideas were continued in 1952, when the Kvinnufelagið (Women's Union) was founded.

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