This book is the first biography in Russian of Elias Lönnrot (1802-1884), who made a great contribution to the history of Finnish, Karelian and world culture with his classic books, especially “Kalevala”. Lönnrot revealed to the educated world the treasures of Karelian-Finnish folk poetry. The book is written in an accessible, entertaining, and at the same time strictly scientific basis, using interesting archival materials and all the extensive research literature about Lönnrot and his era.