The first French translations of the Kalevala were important pioneers in the European arenas. French was a widely known language in Europe in the 19th century and Louis Léouzon Le Duc, who worked as a private tutor in Helsinki, did, with a tremendous speed, a word-by-word translations that played an important part in making the Kalevala known to people. It took more than 80 years until the French readers had access to a translation of the Kalevala that was done with great detail and in poetic meter. This translation was done by the Swiss-born Jean-Louis Perret, who also had close connections to Finland and its cultural life. The third independent French translation of the Kalevala came out in 1991 and it was translated by Gabriel Rebourcet, who was a professional translator.