Jochumsson, Matthías

Jochumsson, Matthías (mät'tēäs yok'küms-son) [key], 1835–1920, Icelandic playwright, poet, and translator. Although Jochumsson was the founder of the modern drama in Iceland, with poetic plays such as Útilegumennirnir [the outlaws] (1864), he is best known as a lyric poet. After graduating from theological school he traveled abroad, returning to Iceland to work as a translator of Shakespeare, Byron, and Ibsen. His autobiography, Sögukaflar af sjálfum mér [stories from my life], was published in 1922. Jochumsson also composed hymns, including the Icelandic national hymn.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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