Poulin Klavin (Pauline Klavina, in Latvian), pictured on the Livonian Language page, was one of only a handful of native speakers of Livonian. Though there are people today learning this language as adults, Poulin knew Livonian before any other language. Born in Vaid (Vaide, in Latvian) on the northwestern coast of Latvia on January 19, 1918, her birthplace was one of a collection of villages lining the Baltic coast that by the beginning of the twentieth century were the last homeland of her people. With the onset of the Soviet occupation of the Baltic States, the villages were emptied of their inhabitants by the occupation regime. In the years following World War II, Poulin would move to Riga, the Latvian capital, to work as a seamstress.

The next decades would be difficult for Poulin's people. They were persecuted and scattered throughout Latvia and the world by the Soviet authorities. Many others were deported to slave labor camps in Siberia, never to return. The years of the occupation would see a steep decline in the number of speakers of Livonian. By the early 1990s, there would only be about ten remaining native speakers of the language, with Poulin as one of the few in this unique group.

During the years of the occupation, Poulin would help establish the Livonian folk ensemble "Livlist", which was one of the few expressions of Livonian culture permitted during the occupation. She also would serve as a source to countless linguists and researchers who were interested in studying her language, as well as, recording her memories of Livonian village life on the coast. Her selfless willingness to work with whomever had an interest in her language, is perhaps her most lasting legacy as one of the last native speakers of Livonian. Poulin Klavin passed away in September of 2001.