Jens Pauli Heinesen

Jens Pauli Heinesen (2 November 1932 in Sandavágur −19 July 2011 in Tórshavn) was a Faroese writer. He was one of the most important novelists of the Faroe Islands. Four times he received the Faroese Literature Prize and one time the Faroese Cultural Prize. There were only a few Faroese novelists before him, there were several poets, but only a few novelists. The Faroese literature was quite new; the first novel in Faroese language was published in 1909. William Heinesen and Jørgen Frantz Jacobsen wrote in Danish, other Faroese writers, who wrote novels in Faroese were born thirty years before Jens Pauli Heinesen: Heðin Brú (1901–87) from Skálavík on Sandoy and Martin Joensen (1902–66) from Sandvík in Suðuroy. Jens Pauli Heinesen wrote in his own way, more like the spoken Faroese and not so much like the Faroese from the dictionary. As he said, he had to write in his own dialect, he couldn't write in the Sandoy dialect or in the Suðuroy dialect. He wrote about the Faroese society on its way from the old society to a modern society. He wrote critically about political issues. Sometimes he wrote partially autobiographical like in the seven-volume series of novels "Á ferð inn í eina óendaliga søgu" (On a journey into a never ending story) from 1980–92. Jens Pauli Heinesen was president of the Association of Writers of the Faroe Islands from 1968 to 1975 (Rithøvundafelag Føroya)
Biography.
Jens Pauli Heinesen's parents were Petur Heinesen á Lofti, a farmer from Sandavágur, and Anna Maria Malena Heinesen (born Johannesen) from the small island Hestur. He grew up in Sandavágur. Only 14-year-old he moved to Tórshavn where he first worked at an office, but after a short time he went back to school. He finished high school in 1954. He published his first book while he went to high school, he published "Degningsælið" in 1953, it was a collection of short stories. After finishing high school he went to Denmark, where he graduated from Emdrupborg Statsseminarium as a school teacher in 1956. His wife Maud Heinesen (born Brimheim) later became a writer herself, a children's writer.
Family life.
In August the 1956 he married Maud Brimheim from Klaksvík (she died on 7 September 2005). They had two daughters: Elin Brimheim Heinesen (born 1958, a singer and editor) and later they adopted Marianna from Korea. The family moved back to the Faroe Islands in 1957.
Bibliography.
Novels.
He published his first novel shortly after moving back to the Faroes, "Yrkjarin úr Selvík og vinir hansara", (The poet from Selvík and his friends) was published in 1958. He worked as a teacher in Tórshavn until 1970, he wrote his books in his spare time. In the 1960s he published the novel "Tú upphavsins heimur" which was in three volumes, published in 1962, 1964 and 1966. In 1970 he decided to quit working as a teacher be a full-time writer, but a few years before that he took leave from his work and moved to live in Spain with his family in 1968–69, he wrote most of Frænir eitur ormurin, while living there. He published many novels in the following years, in 1973 he published "Frænir eitur ormurin" (The serpent's name is Fraenir). The novel won the Faroese Literature Prize. Two years later he published "Rekamaðurin" (The man with the drift woods). Rekamaðurin has been very popular in the Faroe Islands and several times people could listen to the story in the Faroese radio, read by Oscar Hermansen. In the 1980s and 1990s he published his main work a series of seven novels, the row is called "Á ferð inn í eina óendaliga søgu", each novel has its own title.
The poem Eitt dýpi av dýrari tíð.
Jens Pauli Heinesen's daughter Elin Brimheim Heinesen has composed a melody to one of his poems, a beautiful poem called "Eitt dýpi av dýrari tíð" (An Abyss of Precious Time), which Elin released in 1988 together with Kári Jacobsen on the album Nalja. The song became very popular and has become and evergreen in the Faroe Islands, often sung when people come together. Jens Pauli Heinesen wrote the poem when he was only 21 years old in 1953, while being unhappily in love. He has so far been the most productive Faroese writer, he has been writing novels, short stories, poems, plays, one children's book and he has translated books from foreign languages into Faroese. Very few Faroese writers dare to become a full-time writer as he did, when he was 38.
Translated into Faroese.
Tórshavn: Føroya Lærarafelag in co-operation with Illustrationsforlaget, [1958]. – 24 s. (Glæstribøkurnar ; 4)
Prizes.
Jens Pauli Heinesen has four times received the Faroese Literature Prize (Mentanarvirðisløn M. A. Jacobsens) and one time the Faroese Cultural Prize (Mentanarvirðisløn Landsins).