THE STRUGGLE OF SAMI PEOPLE
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By Lucie Jung
Image Credit: Terje Rakke, VisitNorway.com
Slideshow by Lucie Jung
An anchored culture
Until the nineteenth century, the written works in France dealing with the Sami minority were made with an ethnological approach that considered the Sami as a "noble savage" living in harmony with its surroundings explains Isabelle Guissard, charged with the Research Section at the University of Tromsø. She continues:
“ It is now important to understand how and why the Sami culture has become what it is.”
ISABELLE GUISSARD
charged with the Research Section at the University of Tromsø
First, who is a Sami?
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The Sámi Parliament Act (p.3) stipulates that a Sami is “a person who perceives him or herself as a Sami, and that his or her parents or grandparents have, or have had, the Sami language in the home.”
This ancient tribe is living in the North of Europe, in those countries that we call ‘Cold’ ‘Arctic’ or ‘Nordic’ countries. The Sámi can be called with various names such as ‘the Sami people’, the ‘Sámi’ or ‘Saami’. They are also known as ‘Lapps’ or ‘Laplanders’ in the English speaking countries.
The Lapps were distinguished from each other depending on the main activity they exercised: reindeer herders were called reindriftssamer or flyttsamer, Nomad Sami, because of the migration movements of the reindeer. Those who lived in the mountains between Troms and Finnmark and the north of Sweden were known as Mountain Lapps or fjellfinner and fjellsamer. Those living near the rivers were called River Sami or elvesamer. Finally, the Sami who established themselves in the forests by hunting and gathering berries were named Forest Sami or skogsamer.
The Sami culture is established side by side with the modern populations in a territory that is called Sápmi. Their territory is composed of the north of Sweden, Norway and Finland and a little part of Russia, the Russian Kola Peninsula. That’s why sometimes Sámi people can be identified in function of their states, such as “Swedish side” or “Russian side”.
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The Sami culture is established side by side with the modern populations in a territory that is called Sápmi. Their territory is composed of the north of Sweden, Norway and Finland and a small part of Russia, the Russian Kola Peninsula. That’s why sometimes Sami people can be identified with reference to their states, such as “Swedish side” or “Russian side”.
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The Sámi people can also be separated through their traditional livelihoods such as reindeer herders, forest people or river people for example. As it can be different in each area of the Sápmi, the Sami people can also be identified through the language they are speaking such as the Northern Sámi, the Lule Sámi, the Skolt Sámi, etc.
However, as Sápmi is divided into four areas, Sami people can have different majority languages, legislation and different rights in place depending on the country. But, even though the Sami are separated by the boundaries of those countries, they are still one united people and cooperate as group in order to achieve more, both politically and culturally.
Totalling around 80,000 people in total, the Sami people managed to illustrate themselves as an indigenous people recognized by the United Nations. According to Sweden.se, the Sami population is approximately estimated at 80,000 people, with 50,000 living in Norway, 20,000 in Sweden, 8,000 in Finland and 2,000 in Russia.
Even though there has been no official and precise census of the Sami people in these areas since the Second World War, it is believed that the Sami people have lived for thousands of years in Nordic countries and that they used to live through reindeer herding, fishing or crafts.
After having a conversation with Ms. Skerk from the Sami Parliament based in Sweden, she stated that most of the Sami people are now living in towns with Swedish, Finnish or Norwegian people and that the real problems for them are the difficulties in claiming their rights to hunting or fishing or even teaching their traditions and ways of life.
If you want to know more about the Sami languages, please go on "Endangered languages"
If you want to know more about the Sami costumes and culture, please go on "The strengh of a culture"
Infographic made by Lucie Jung
A people united by its colors
Even though the Sami people are living across four different countries (Sweden, Finland, Norway and a part of Russia), they are one united people with the same goals such as succeeding culturally and politically. And what better way to show the strength of a people than by showing it under its own colors.
During a conference in 1986 in Åre, Sweden, the Nordic Sami Council approved the flag and symbol of the Sami people. And if you are wondering, the colours and shapes displayed on this flag are here for a good reason. Designed by Astrid Båhl from Skibotn in Norway, the Sami flag was meticulously designed for its people.
To explain: the colours present on the flag, which are blue, green, red and yellow, are the same colours that we can see on the traditional Sami costume called the Kolt. These colours are a symbol of their identity and so they are present on the flag. In addition, the circle on the flag is a representation of the moon and the sun. The moon is in blue and the sun is in red.
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A few years later, in 1992 in Helsinki, the Nordic Sami Conference decided when the various municipalities could fly the Sami symbol. In the end, it has been decided that the Sami flag could be represented on several days during the year, all related to the Sami people’s achievements.
Image Credit: Terje Rakke, VisitNorway.com
Sami media
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For a long time, Sami media was made up of only one magazine called Samefolket. Today, Sami radio stations, televisions and magazines are active and Sami’s media is now expanding.
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In November 1918, a congress with 219 delegates was held in östersund in order to discuss reindeer husbandry matters and public authorities’ policies about school regulations for the Sami people. The only result of this meeting was the acknowledgment of the Sami media’s importance. As a result, the first Sami magazine was created.
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It was the first time the Sami people had owned a magazine. It was called the Samefolket. All of its topics concerned the Lapps population but also all other minorities in the world. The magazine was mainly dealing with indigenous people’s culture, traditions and problems.
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Today, the Sami magazine is released once a month or 12 times a year and is owned by two Sami organizations, SSR and Same Ätnam. Mainly published in Sweden, the Samefolket is written in several languages which include Swedish, Norwegian and some Sami languages. The magazine’s aim is to connect the Sami people but also to inform the larger society about them, their culture, their rights or simply their existence.
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Reindeer herding
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Since the 17th century, Sami people are practicing traditional reindeer herding. For them, this is not only a profession, but a way of life. Sami people practicing this activity are living at the whim of the seasons and following the reindeer tracks.
This practice is very typical to the Sami people and it is said that the reindeer were made for the Lapps and, in turn, the Lapps for the reindeer. Indeed, it is difficult for the Sami to imagine a life without these animals and reindeer herding is the solution for them to secure the animals by taking care of them.
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Traditional reindeer herding is a true resource for them since the reindeer are used for their meat, their wool and their values (they could be used as a bartering system). The animals are tame and privately owned by a reindeer herder. However, before the 17th century, Sami people owned few reindeer as draft animals and the rest of them were wild.
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Nowadays, the majority of Lapps are living through hunting and fishing. However, the reindeer trade continues to be very important in the Lapps society, not just for business but to carry the traditions through the generations. This had not always been the case.
Even though the exact number of Sami is unknown, because of the last census being conducted during 1945, it is believed that there are around 80,000 in all of Sápmi but only 10% of them are living off of reindeer herding.
However, the Sami have suffered a lot due to colonization and their lands are much smaller than before. Due to their riches and trades, countries such as Sweden, Finland, Norway and Russia wanted to settle in Sápmi to control and take advantage of their numerous resources.
Today, the large-scale reindeer herding still exists but it is becoming harder to continue because of external human and industry activities such as exploitation of minerals and energy resources.
Image Credit: Terje Rakke, VisitNorway.com
If you want to know more about reindeer husbandry,, please go on "Nature at the cost of wealth"