| Gabriel Jönsson | |
| Birth Date: | 1892 7, df=yes |
| Birth Place: | Ålabodarna, Glumslöv, Sweden |
| Death Place: | Ålabodarna, Glumslöv, Sweden |
| Known For: | Poems about the sea and farming |
| Education: | Helsingborgs högre allmänna läroverk, Lund University, studies never completed |
| Employer: | Svenska Dagbladet, Sydsvenska Dagbladet |
| Occupation: | Journalist/poet |
| Spouse: | Anna-Margareta (Annika) |
| Nationality: | Swedish |
Gabriel Jönsson (18 July 1892 – 23 April 1984) was a Swedish author and poet. He is best known for his works inspired by Öresund and farming. He was one of the first members of the Scanian Academy in Sweden.
Jönsson was born into a Baptist family. His father, Peter, was a seaman, but due to back injuries caused by carrying bricks, he started a trading post in Ålabodarna, and later on the island Hven, Husvik. Jönsson's mother was hired to work at the Husvik store and later married Jönsson's father. Peter Jönsson died in 1901, when Jönsson was 7. At that time he had two brothers and one sister.[1]
Jönsson’s wish was to become a seaman like his father, but his mother, a businesswoman, wanted him to be educated. She paid for her three sons' education. Jönsson studied first in Helsingborg, at the Högre Allmänna Läroverket "Higher Public Learning Institute" and later at Lund University, although he did not graduate.[2]
He was a journalist at Svenska Dagbladet, Stockholms-Tidningen and Sydsvenska Dagbladet. He wrote many poems from 1920 until 1991. He also wrote two screenplays, Country life and The Girl from Backafall. He received multiple prizes, including The Nine Grand Prix, Sydsvenska Dagbladet's culture prize, Rural Writers' Scholarship and Skane of the year. In 2013 he received a memorial stone on Landskrona's Walk of Fame, inaugurated by King of Sweden Carl XVI Gustaf.
The poem "Vid Vakten" (At the helm) from the book Flaskpost "Message in a bottle" (1920) was turned into a popular song in Sweden "Flickan från Backafall" (The girl from Backafall) by Gunnar Turesson and is today a signature song of the island Hven, where Backafall is located. Backafall translated to English means "falling slope" and is a reference to the area between the white church on the island of Hven's west side and small harbor of the same name below.
The song describes a young seaman in the Caribbean on a long voyage, longing for his girlfriend waiting for him at home.[3]
Source:[4]
Jönsson was married to Anna-Margareta, called "Annika" (1903-1991). They are buried together at Glumslöv's cemetery.