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Born to a unwealthy family in central rural Sweden in 1818, Gunnar Olof Hytlen-Cavallius went on to become a leading figure in Swedish literary circles as a folklorist and a archivist. His parents sacrificed to put him through college yet Hytlen had no clear lear idea of what he wanted to do until in 1835 he read a collection of english folktales by Geijer-Afzelius. This spurred him to begin a similar collection of Swedish stories. This eventually became the basis for his university thesis after which he was hired at the national library in Stockholm. From there he continued to collect and publish Swedish folktales. Though Hytlen was encouraged by some others in his pursuits for most of his life his work remained hidden. Even when he published his greatest collection, over 1000 pages of Swedish folktales and notes, in 1868 he was criticized for leaving the stories in their coarse form. At the same time, however, he succeeded in bringing increased interest on Swedish country life and traditions. After his death in 1889 interest grew and he is recognized today as the founder of Swedish folklore research. (Bringéus, 2013)
