The Moomins, Finland's most beloved literary animation family, celebrate their 80th anniversary this year.
The plump, white, hippopotamus-like characters have captured the hearts of readers around the world since author and illustrator Tove Jansson published The Moomins and the Great Flood in 1945.
This children's book tells the story of Moomintroll and Moominmamma, who set out to search for the missing Moominpappa.
Jansson, a Swedish-language Finnish author who died in 2001, wrote eight more books, numerous illustrated editions and a Swedish-language Moomin comic strip.
The series, set in the fictional Moominvalley, has been translated into more than 60 languages and has inspired films and TV series, children's plays, exhibitions in art galleries and a museum of the same name, and theme parks in Finland and Japan. The national airline Finnair has even decorated its planes with Moomin images.
On Saturday, fans gathered in Tampere, southern Finland, the city home to the Moomin Museum, to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the 1945 publication and the birthday of Jansson, who was born on August 9, 1914.
Moomin products are extremely popular all over the world. Souvenirs with Moomintroll, Moominmamma and Moominpappa are in great demand, and secondary characters such as their friends Stinky, Sniff, Snufkin, Snorkmaiden and the Hattifattens also enjoy considerable interest.
“The Moomin mug is one of the most famous collectibles in the world,” said Selma Green, director of the Moomin Museum. “You buy a Moomin mug, you like the characters, you may have seen them on TV – but in the end we all go back to the books, to the original illustrations.”
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
