Erlendur Patursson was a Faroese

Faroe Islands

The Faroe Islands are an island group situated between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, approximately halfway between Scotland and Iceland. The Faroe Islands are a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, along with Denmark proper and Greenland...

 politician and writer.

Erlendur was born in 1913 in Kirkjubøur

Kirkjubøur

Kirkjubøur is the southernmost village on Streymoy, Faroe Islands and the country's most important historical site.It is located on the west coast and has a view towards the islands Hestur and Koltur.-History:...

. He was the son of the politician Jóannes Patursson

Jóannes Patursson

Jóannes Patursson was a Faroese nationalist leader and poet.He was the great-grandson of the Faroese national hero Nólsoyar Páll. His brother Sverre Patursson was an important writer and his sister Susanna Helena Patursson the first feminist of the Faroe Islands.-Background:Jóannes was born in...

.

He became cand.pol.

Cand.polit.

Candidatus rerum politicarum , Candidata rerum politicarum , abbreviated cand.polit., is an academic degree within the fields of social sciences issued under the old education system in Denmark and Norway.-Denmark:...

 in 1940 and was one the founders of Tjóðveldisflokkurin, the Faroese Republican Party, in 1948. The Republicans are a left-wing Faroese political party in favor of national independence from Denmark

Denmark

Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...

. He was a member of the Faroese parliament — the Løgting

Løgting

Løgting is the unicameral parliament of the Faroe Islands, a self-ruling dependency of Denmark.The name literally means "Law Thing" - that is, a law assembly - and derives from Old Norse lǫgþing, which was a name given to ancient assemblies. A ting or Þing has existed on the Faroe Islands for over...

 — from 1958 to 1966 and again in 1970–86. From 1963 to 1967 he was minister of fishery and finance, and from 1973 to 1977 a member of the Danish parliament – the Folketing

Folketing

The Folketing , is the national parliament of Denmark. The name literally means "People's thing"—that is, the people's governing assembly. It is located in Christiansborg Palace, on the islet of Slotsholmen in central Copenhagen....

.

Patursson came up with the idea for the Nordic House in the Faroe Islands

Nordic House in the Faroe Islands

The Nordic House is the most important cultural institution in the Faroe Islands. Its aim is to support and promote Nordic and Faroese culture, locally and in the Nordic region- History :...

. In the Nordic council

Nordic Council

The Nordic Council is a geo-political, inter-parliamentary forum for co-operation between the Nordic countries. It was established following World War II and its first concrete result was the introduction in 1952 of a common labour market and free movement across borders without passports for the...

 he agitated for independence for Greenland

Greenland

Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...

 and Åland.

As a writer Patursson has been honoured for his work concerning Faroese fishermen from 1850–1970. In 1981 he received the Faroese Literature Prize

Faroese Literature Prize

Faroese Literature Prize, also known as the M. A. Jacobsens Heiðursløn, is a prize for Faroese literature that began in Tórshavnar kommuna in 1958. Its winners include Heðin Brú and Jákup Pauli Gregoriussen.- List over Faroese Literature Prize Winners :...

, M. A. Jacobsens Heiðursløn, for these writings.