Rátkit (erottaa poroja, fi.), to separate the reindeer to be slaughtered

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One of the annual jobs of the reindeer herder is the separation of the animals, usually in autumn or early winter. The reindeer of different owners which have roamed freely together during the summer are divided up in separation corrals. The animals for slaughter can be separated off at the same time. In former times, those animals that were destined to become draught animals were also removed from the herd. If there are any reindeer without earmarks, they are also marked at the same time.

All the Saami languages have a verb meaning to separate the reindeer : in North Saami it is rátkit, in South Saami raerhkedh and in Inari Saami rätkið. It is a specific term for this separation of the reindeer at a particular time of the year. It is derived from a Proto-Finnic stem, from which the Finnish words ratketa to come apart, split, be solved and ratkoa unpick, unravel, solve also come. In return, Saami has left its mark on the northern Finnish dialects, in which the word for the separation of the reindeer is ratkoa. <P> [[Tiedosto:p> |thumb|600px|{{{2}}}]]