He was a member of the Young Estonia movement and obtained a doctorate degree in Romance languages at the University of Helsinki in 1910.

In 1934, he was appointed by the Estonian Ministry of Education as Chief Inspector of Secondary Schools, a position he held until 1940.

[2] He fled from Estonia to escape from the Soviet invasion in 1944, became a refugee in Sweden and lived in Stockholm for the remainder of his life.

In his opinion, Estonian language needed innovation, as its sphere of usage widened rapidly with the emergence of a modern nation.

Thus, he proposed relv ("weapon") instead of sõjariist (literally, "war tool"), roim ("crime") instead of kuritöö ("evil deed") and veenma ("convince") instead of uskuma panema ("put into believing").

Aavik published numerous essays and translations to propagate his ideas; he had vocal supporters as well as opponents.

[4] His principles (utility, aesthetics and native quality) were summarized in Keeleuuenduse äärmised võimalused (Extreme Perspectives of Language Innovation; Tartu, 1924).