Bishop Magnus Stiernkors (d. 1500), previously mentioned, impressed on the parish priests in Finland the importance of reading the Lord's Prayer and Ave Maria in the language of the congregation (in most cases Finnish). This was about all that was required during the Catholic period, since the laity were not allowed to read the Bible anyway.

Michael Agricola (1510-1557), a clergyman, studied at Wittenberg under the guidance of Luther and Melanchton and became Bishop of Turku. He was the first to write a primer in Finnish, followed by a comprehensive prayer book. Already in Wittenberg he had begun translating the New Testament into Finnish, which work he completed in 1543. With this he created the Finnish written language in its primordial form.

Paul Juusten (1516-76), a clergyman and Wittenberg student, wrote both historical and religious works, the latter in Finnish. He was appointed Bishop of Turku and raised to the Nobility.

Jakob Finno (c. 1540-1588), a headmaster, was the first to write hymns in Finnish (97 hymns). He edited a Finnish hymnbook, a Finnish catechism and a Finnish prayer book.

Ericus Erici (1546-1625), a clergyman, wrote a collection of sermons in Finnish (using the Finnish byname Sorolainen) and translated the church manual, two catechisms and parts of the Old Testament to Finnish. In 1583 he was appointed Bishop of Turku.

Hemming Henriksson (1550-1619), a vicar, published a hymn-book in Finnish containing both adaptations and original hymns. He also translated the medieval church songs "Piae cantiones" into Finnish.

Johannes Gezelius Sr. (1615-90), Bishop of Turku, revised the Finnish Bible (after the Old Testament had been translated by a team of linguists). He also promoted the use of devotional books in Finnish.

Johan Cajanaus Jr. (1655-81), a philologist and poet, became a professor and wrote poems in Finnish in spite of his short lifespan.

Daniel Juslenius (1676-1752), Bishop of Porvoo, produced the first Finnish dictionary, Finsk orda-boks försök (1745), containing about 16,000 words with their Latin and Swedish equivalents.

Anders Lizelius (1708-95), a clergyman, was the first to publish in 1775 a Finnish newspaper, titled Suomenkieliset Tieto-Sanomat ('Finnish-language knowledge-reports').

Henrik Porthan (1739-1804), a historian, was appointed Professor of Eloquence at the Turku University. He did research work on the history of Finland, on the Finnish language and folklore and on the superstitions of the ancient Finns. He stressed the distinctive character of the people of Finland that he believed (erroneously) to be descended in its entirety from the ancient Finns. Finnish nationalists got much inspiration from his works.

Christfrid Ganander (1741-90), an assistant vicar, folklorist and lexicographer, collected Finnish folk poetry and folk riddles, and he also published a collection of data about Finnish and Sami mythology, Mythologia fennica (1789). His principal work Nytt finskt lexikon (‘New Finnish dictionary’), although completed in 1787, was published only in 1937-40.

Erik Gabriel Melartin (1780-1847), Archbishop of Finland from 1833, was one of the founders of the Finnish Society of Literature (1831).

Jakob Judén (1781-1855), a writer and civil servant, was one of the pioneers of Finnish literature by publishing poems, tales, proverbs and plays. He was also one of the founders of Finnish as a written language by way of improving its orthography.

Zachris Topelius Sr. (1781-1831), a physician and folklorist, collected Finnish folk poetry from various regions inhabited by Finns. He discovered that the richest treasures were to be found east of the Russo-Finnish border. In this way he became the precursor and guide of Elias Lönnrot (who in spite of his Swedish name was a Finn). Topelius published a selection of the folk poems he had collected under the title Suomen kansan vanhoja runoja ynnä myös nykyisempiä lauluja ('Some old as well as some more recent songs of the Finnish people').

Gustaf Renvall (1781-1841), a vicar and linguist, published a Finnish dictionary titled Suomalainen Sana-kirja, Lexicon Linguae Finnicae I-II (1826), which became the sole source for the scientific study of Finnish for a long period to come. He also wrote a Finnish grammar, Finsk språklära. Renvall was awarded the title of Professor.

Adolf Ivar Arwidsson (1791-1858), a scholar and teacher at the Turku University, was an ardent advocate of a Finnish-national revival. In his paper Åbo Morgonblad he made demands on strengthening the official status of the Finnish language. He also published a pioneering ten-volume collection of documents enlightening the history of Finland.

Andreas Johan Sjögren (1794-1855), a linguistic researcher, made an extensive expedition in 1824-29 in order to study various Finnish tribes in north-eastern Russia. He became Academician of the Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg. His scientific work was published in German in 1861.

Carl Axel Gottlund (1796-1875), a folklorist and writer, wrote a circumstantial work, intended as the beginnings of a scientific literature in Finnish, Otava eli Suomalaisia huvituksia ('The Plow or Finnish amusements'). It contained essays on archaeology, ethnography and history. The first two parts were published in 1831-32, the third in 1929. Gottlund is regarded as one of the pioneers of the "Finnish Movement".

Samuel Bergh (1803-52), a jurist and poet, and a friend of J.V. Snellman, wrote poetry in Finnish under the pseudonym "Kallio", notably a patriotic elegy.

Clas Johan Kemell (1805-32), a clergyman, made exceptionally clever translations from Swedish (poems by Bellman) and Latin (Thomas a Kempis) into Finnish. He was the first to use the Finnish vernacular in a religious publication - perhaps in writing on the whole.

Johan Vilhelm Snellman (1806-81), a publicist, philosopher and statesman, became impressed by the "Finnish Movement" and was among the founders of the Finnish Society of Literature (1831). He thought that a prerequisite of the future of Finland was that the Finnish-speaking population should become aware of its distinctive character and that there should exist a national literature and culture in Finnish. He feared that Russian would soon replace Swedish as the official language of Finland if not Finnish could establish itself as the replacement even sooner. He also thought that a common language for the whole population was a condition for a sentiment of national unity. Therefore, he wanted the Finland-Swedish persons of rank to transform themselves to Finns. Snellman initiated several reforms. One was the language decree of 1863, which opened the road for Finnish to be placed on a par with Swedish. Another was the monetary reform of 1865, which granted Finland its own currency, the Finnish Mark. Snellman was raised to the Nobility in 1866.

Mathias Alexander Castrén (1813-52), a philologist and ethnographer, together with J. Budenz founded the Finno-Ugric philology. Castrén made two expeditions to Lapland and Carelia and several ones to various Finno-Ugric tribes in Russia and Siberia supported by the Russian Academy of Sciences. He collected a rich ethnographic material and became the first Professor of Finnish at Helsinki University (1851).

Gustaf Cannelin (1815-85), a clergyman and teacher, translated excellently the Code of Laws of the Swedish Realm into Finnish (1865). In 1869-75 he contributed to the eminent Finnish-Swedish dictionary edited by Elias Lönnrot.

Anders Ingman (1819-77), a clergyman, translated the whole Bible anew into Finnish, using a style of the Kalevala type. He also wrote the first exegetic work in Finnish.

August Ahlqvist (1826-89), a linguist and writer, founded the first Finnish periodical, Suometar, to deal with important cultural matter. He inquired into the Finnish language by means of expeditions to the Baltic Provinces, Carelia, Russia and Siberia. He also wrote lyric poetry in Finnish.

Agathon Meurman (1826-1909), a politician and author, wrote diligently for the Finnish press, especially for the Uusi Suometar that promoted the "Finnish Movement". He wrote the first (somewhat faulty) encyclopedia in Finnish, titled Sanakirja yleiseen sivistykseen kuuluvia tietoja varten ('A book of reference for information belonging to general knowledge').

Georg Zacharias ("Yrjö") Yrjö-Koskinen (1830-1903, né Forsman), a historian and politician, served as a professor of history, became a member of the Parlament and of the Senate (i.e. the Government). As Head of the "Ecclesiastical Expedition" he worked for the strengthening of the position of the Finnish language within the educational system. He was raised to the Nobility in 1884 (assuming the name Yrjö-Koskinen) and became a Baron in 1897. He is also known as the leading champion of compliance with the Russification policy.

Theodolinda Hahnsson (1838-1919), was the first woman author of Finnish literature. She wrote mostly idyllic rural pictures in a moralising style.

Johan Reinhold Aspelin (1842-1915), an archeologist, performed pioneering research concerning the archeology of the Finnish tribes and their arrival in Finland (which he dated to A.D. 600-700). He also published the illustrated work Antiquités du Nord Finno-Ougrien.

Karl Johan Bergbom (1843-1906), theatre manager and writer, was taken in as a youth by the "Finnish Movement", went over to write in Finnish (mostly plays), and supported other playwrights. He initiated the setting up of a permanent Finnish theatre in 1872, and was the obvious candidate for its director.

Minna Canth (1844-97), an authoress and businesswoman, wrote novels and plays in Finnish and is considered one of the pioneer users of Finnish as a literary language. There are statues of her in Kuopio and Tampere.

Arvid Genetz (1848-1915), a linguist, performed several expeditions to Carelia, the Kola Peninsula and eastern Russia. He published several grammars and vocabularies of Finno-Ugric languages and became the first Professor of Finno-Ugric Philology in Helsinki.

Axel Heikel (1851-1924), an archaeologist and ethnographer, made extensive expeditions among Finno-Ugric tribes in Russia. He published several ethnographic works, e.g. Die Volkstrachten in den Ostseeprovinzen und in Setukesien ('The folk costumes in the Baltic provinces and in Setukesia').

Uno Holmberg (1882-1949), a scholar specialised in religion, ethnosociology and folklore, made several expeditions to Finno-Ugric tribes in Russia and Siberia. He became Professor of Sociology at the Turku University and exchanged his Swedish family name for the Finnish sounding Harva. After a number of scientific works he published in 1948 the huge Suomalaisten muinaisusko ('The ancient belief of the Finns')

Hjalmar Nordling (1860-1931), a doctor, using the pen name "Hj. Nortamo", wrote humorous stories in the vernacular of the small seaport of Rauma, a kind of Finnish interspersed with twisted Swedish words. Most noted of his books is the Uussi raumlassi jaarituksi ('New Rauman chatter'). For this "phoney" literature he became esteemed enough to earn himself the title of Professor, to be appointed honorary citizen of Rauma and to have a bust of himself erected in the same town.

Sweden (and later Finland) is not unique in having contained an (initially) almost illiterate ethnic group side by side with a culturally more developed one. Ireland, Palestine, Greenland and South Africa are other examples. The Finland-Swedes are rather unique, however, in having devoted such efforts to the levelling out of this initial difference.