Juhan Smuul was an Estonia

Estonia

Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...

n writer. Until 1954 he used the given name Johannes Schmuul.

Career

Smuul was born in Muhu

Muhu

Muhu , is an island in the Baltic Sea. With an area of 198 km² it is the third largest island belonging to Estonia, after Saaremaa and Hiiumaa....

. He wrote several novels, often based on life in his native island. He also authored several travelogues. His most famous is The Frozen Book (Jäine Raamat), about a Soviet expedition to Antarctica. Smuul also wrote four screenplays. They are:

• Kirjad Sõgedate külast (1966)
• Keskpäevane praam (1967)
• Metskapten (1971)
• Siin me oleme! (1979) (TV)

He also worked in Soviet-Estonian journalism. He died in Tallinn

Tallinn

Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...

.

Recognition

Smuul was the official writer of the Soviet regime in Estonia, and was named People's Writer

People's Writer

People's Writer was a title granted by the Republics of the Soviet Union and the Autonomous Republics of the Soviet Union to its distinguished writers.It was a title similar to that of People's Artist of the Soviet Union for literary achievements....

 of the Estonian SSR in 1965. He was also awarded the Stalin Prize in 1952 and the Lenin Prize

Lenin Prize

The Lenin Prize was one of the most prestigious awards of the USSR, presented to individuals for accomplishments relating to science, literature, arts, architecture, and technology. It was created on June 23, 1925 and was awarded until 1934. During the period from 1935 to 1956, the Lenin Prize was...

 in 1961.

The State Prize

State Prizes of the Soviet Republics

The State Prizes of the Soviet Republics were each republic counterpart to the USSR State Prize. Each republic granted several different prizes, generally named after writers or artists from the republic, as well as a blanket Komsomol prize for young artists....

 of the Estonian SSR was named after him.

The Smuul family home, Tooma farm, located in Koguva

Koguva

Koguva is a village on the Muhu island of the Saare County of Estonia.Koguva was first mentioned in 1532 by Wolter von Plettenberg in document to grant freedom for peasant called Hansken and his son and their descendants. Hansken descendants became called by surname Schmuul later.Koguva is a small,...

village is a museum.