Markku Häkkinen
Markku Häkkinen was a Finnish self-taught botanist, considered one of the world's leading experts on the taxonomy of bananas. Forty-six out of the seventy known species of wild bananas have been described by Häkkinen. The Linnaean Society of London awarded him the H. H. Bloomer Award of 2009. In 2015 Häkkinen received the Finnish Cultural Foundation's Award for outstanding cultural achievement.
Häkkinen became interested in botany on his travels around the world during his career as a fully certificated sea captain. After retiring, he dedicated himself to botany. He has made 18 expeditions to Borneo, Brunei, China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. He has published over 80 papers in international scientific journals.
The following Musa species have been named in honor of him: Musa haekkinenii, Musa velutina subsp. markkuana. and Musa markkui .
