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<P align="justify">Saamis are Indige … <P align="justify">Saamis are Indigenous people living in the region of Sápmi, exceeding the national state boarders of Finland, Sweden, Norway and Russia. The Saami -area of Finland covers the municipalities of Enontekiö, Utsjoki, Inari, and the northernmost part of the municipality of Sodankylä, but more than half of Saamis live outside the Sápmi region, for example in Helsinki, which has a relatively big and active Saami community. </p>
<P align="justify">In its entirety, the Saami population numbers around 100,000, with roughly 10,000 living in Finland. The Saamis speak Finno-Ugric Saami languages – in the Western Sápmi regions Southern Saami, Ume Saami, Pite Saami, Lule Saami and Northern Saami are spoken, and in the East, Inari Saami, Skolt Saami, Kildin Saami and Ter Saami are spoken. These languages differ from each other to that extent that the speakers of different Saami languages might not necessarily understand each other. </p>
<P align="justify">All Saami languages are minority languages that are endangered to varying extents, and the previously spoken Akkala Saami became extinct in the 21st century. The most spoken Saami language is Northern Saami, and in Finland there are approximately 2000 speakers, while there are an estimated 300-400 speakers of Inari Saami, and 300 speakers of Skolt Saami in Finland. Saami culture is not homogenous, and it covers many customs, languages and societies. The Encyclopaedia of Saami culture considers this diversity by presenting information on the minorities within the Saami people, such as the Russian Saamis, who until now have remained in the margins even in research concerning Saami culture. Due to the vast scope of Saami culture, it is nevertheless impossible to collect all existing information in this Encyclopaedia.</p>
<b>The terms Sápmi and sápmelaš</b>
<P align="justify">The terms <i>Sápmi</i> and <i>sápmelaš</i> date back at least 3, 000 years, when they were used by the ancestors of the Saami to refer to themselves in their own language. The term <i>Sápmi</i> is found in every Saami language, and it means area, language, and people. Sápmi in different languages is: <i>Sápmi</i> (Northern Saami), <i>Säämi</i> (Inari Saami), <i>Sää’m/Sää’mvu’vdd</i> (Skolt Saami), <i>Saemie</i> (Southern Saami), <i>Sábmie</i> (Ume Saami), <i>Sábme</i> (Pite Saami and Lule Saami), <i>Соаме/Soame</i>, (Kildin Saami) and <i>Sámme</i> (Ter Saami). The ethnonym <i>sápmelaš</i> is derived from the word <i>sápmi</i> and means Sámi, and the same derivate is used in the Eastern and Mid-Saami languages, i.e, <i>sápmelaš</i> (Northern Saami), <i>sábmelatj</i> (Lule Saami), <i>säˊmmlaž</i> (Skolt Saami), <i>sämmilâš</i> (Inari Saami) ja <i>са̄ммьленч, saaḿḿlentš</i> (Kildin Saami), while it is missing in the Southernmost Saami languages. Additionally, also the ancient Finnish ethnic term <i>hämäläinen</i> share a common origin.</p>
<P align="justify">The old exonym (name given by others) of the Saami is <i>Lapp</i>, which is historically closely associated with the term <i>Lapland</i> (Lapponia in Latin), used to refer to the area. The terms <i>lop</i> and <i>lopari</i> in reference to the Saami first appear in Russian sources in the 13th century. In Finnish and closely related languages, the word <i>lappalainen</i> (Lapp) was used not only regarding the Saamis but also peoples further to the north – such as the Dvina or Russian Karelians – and people living further away from settled areas, which may be the basis for the common occurrence of Lappi placenames in Southern Finland. The term <i>lapp</i> (plural <i>lappar</i>) was already used in the Swedish language in the 13th century and is assumed to have Scandinavian origins: it is associated with the word <i>lapp</i>, meaning 'piece of cloth', and it is suggested it was originally a pejorative term. The true roots of this word, however, remain unknown, and it may even be Baltic-Finnic. In the latter case, it may have simply meant people living at distances from settled areas. Its development into a pejorative was linked to the attitudes of the mainstream population regarding the Saamis. Because of its pejorative nature, the term has gone out of use in the Nordic countries, but similar terms are still widely used in many European languages (e.g., the French <i>lapon</i>, the German <i>Lappe, Lappisch</i>, and <i>lapp</i> in Hungarian). In present day Finnish, the term <i>lappalainen</i> (Lapp) has become an administrative concept and it is used in connection with land-ownership and property matters, including in historical sources.</p>
<P align="justify">In Norway, the term <i>finn</i> has been used for the Saami to the present day. This word is familiar from Tacitus's famous account of the northern peoples. The northernmost part of Norway is known as Finnmark. Tacitus's term <i>fenni</i> was apparently first used by the ancient Swedes to refer to the Saami living in Northern Sweden, of whom they spread information. <i>Finn</i> and <i>Finland</i>, exonyms of the Finns and the Saami, later remained in use to also mean "non-Saami", particularly the people and region of Finland (Proper), i.e. Souhwest Finland.</p>
<b>Regions and borders</b>
<P align="justify">In the administration of the Swedish region, the term Lappmark (literally Lapp land) referred to the administrative area inhabited by the Saamis/Lapps. Until the beginning of colonization (the colonization proclamations of 1673 and 1695), the term Lapp was sufficient to describe the inhabitants of the region in general, as the Saamis/Lapps were the only people who lived there. In government, the traditional economy of the Saami was known as the Lapp means of livelihood. Lapland was separated from the southern regions, known as Lannanmaa (literally dung land), by the so-called Lapp border. Lannanmaa was the abode of the lantalaiset who practised means of livelihood using dung, i.e., farming and animal husbandry.</p>
<P align="justify">Lappmark was divided into six separate Lapp territories, of which the Tornio (in part) and Kemi territories are in present-day Finland. The territories were further divided into Lapp villages, or siidas, and the villages among kin groups or families were divided into so-called Lapp-tax or inherited lands. Lapp village communities consisted of kin groups and their related families who spent most of the year dispersed in families in different areas. In the winter, these communities assembled in their respective winter villages, while in the summer they moved throughout different regions to fish and herd reindeer.</p>
<P align="justify">Meetings were held in the winter villages to handle matters of mutual importance. In the Lapp villages of the Swedish region, the village meetings were known as the "hut ting" (<i>sobbar</i> or <i>norrös</i> in the Skolt territories) and they were led by the village elder. Joint matters to be decided upon included the division of rights to land and waters among families, participation in beaver and wild reindeer hunting, the even and fair distribution of the catch, and the collection of taxes. The village meetings also addressed relations with other <i>siida</i> communities. The traditional communities were characterized by shared responsibility and equality. Assistance was given to disadvantaged members.</p>
<P align="justify">After the First and Second World War, the Skolt Saami, who lived in their traditional <i>siidas</i> at Paatsjoki, Petsamo and Suonikylä were relocated into the municipality of Inari in Finland among the Reindeer and Lake Saami, who spoke North and Inari Saami, and the local Finnish population. Among the Saami, the Skolt culture has been under the greatest pressure of Finnicization. The Skolt language is used in homes and schools, although signs of it being replaced by Finnish have been evident since the 1960s. At present, traditional reindeer herding has become an auxiliary means of livelihood, and fish is caught only for household needs. Many Skolts, particularly young people, have had to leave their home regions and move south to find work.</p>
<P align="justify">Over time, <i>Sápmi</i> - the land of the Saami - has been divided among four countries. The border between Russia and Norway was established in the Treaty of Strömstad in 1751, and a new Russo-Swedish border was established in 1809 when Finland became part of the Russian Empire. In 1826, the border between Russia and Norway was again redefined, and Finno-Russian border arrangements were still carried out in the 1920s and 1940s. Owing to these measures, many Saami siidas ceased to exist and the traditional reindeer herding territories were restricted. These developments led to migration among the Saami. As a result of the disintegration of the land of the Saami, the traditional social, economic, and legal systems of the Saami were destroyed. For the various states of the region, the term Sápmi means the respective the land of the Saami within the borders of each country and only rarely the whole entity. Instead of the term Sápmi, other geographical names such as North Calotte, Lapland, Finnmark and Norrbotten are used.</p>
<b>The development and status of written Saami languages</b>
<P align="justify">The history of written Saami dates back to 1557, when the English sea captain Stephen Borrough drew up a list of 95 words and phrases of the Saami language spoken in Yokanga in Russia. The first text in Saami, a primer by Nicolaus Andreae, a clergyman of Pite, was published in 1619. Johannes Schefferus's Lapponia from 1673 contains two joikha poems by the Kemi Saami Olaus Sirma, <i>Guldnasas</i> and <i>Moarsi favrrot</i>.</p>
<P align="justify">Northern Saami can be regarded as the shared language of the Saamis of the so-called Calotte Area, the northern regions of Finland, Norway, and Sweden. The first book in which written North Saami was used was the almost 1000-page <i>Manuale Lapponicum</i>, partly written in Saami by Johannes Tornaeus and published in the Saami region of Sweden as early as 1648. In the early 18th century, growing demands were voiced in Sweden-Finland and Denmark-Norway for teaching the Saami and converting them to Christianity; as a result of the missionary activity, interest in the written language increased. In addition, Norwegian missionary work led to progress in the development of written North Saami. The most important contributions to developing and promoting written Saami were made in the 18th and 19th century by Knud Leem, Rasmus Rask, Nils Vibe Stockfleth and J. A. Friis. Konrad Nielsen's four-volume <i>Lappisk ordbok</i>, Lapp Dictionary, appeared between 1932 and 1962. Literature in the North Saami language has been published in the past century. Classic status was achieved by Johan Turi's <i>Muittalus samiid birra</i> ("A Tale of the Saami") from 1910. There have been as many as thirteen different orthographies of North Saami with different standards set in their respective countries, and after almost a decade of preparation, a joint North Saami orthography was approved at the Saami Conference of 1978. The new orthography launched a renaissance of literary use for the North Saami language.</p>
<P align="justify">Speakers of Skolt Saami live in two countries, Finland and Russia, while the Skolt Saami language of the Neiden area in Norway has disappeared. In Finland, this language is used in the home and in school, although there have been signs since the 1960s that Finnish is gradually taking the place of Skolt Saami. Since 1993, Skolt Saami language education has been arranged for children under school age. In 1958 T. I. Itkonen published a major dictionary of Skolt and Kola Saami. The present orthography of Skolt Saami has been developed by Mikko Korhonen, Pekka Sammallahti and Jouni Moshnikoff. A Skolt Saami primer in the new orthography was published in 1973, followed by Pekka Sammallahti's and Jouni Moshnikoff's Finnish- Skolt Saami dictionary, Suomi-koltansaame sanakirja, <i>Lää´dd-sää´m sää´nnke´rjj</i> in 1991. Satu Moshnikoff edited the anthology <i>Maaddârää´jji mainnâz</i> (Tales of the Forefathers) in 1992. This collection of tales also appeared in the form of five cassette tapes in the same year. Literature in this language is represented in two works by the Skolt Saami writer Claudia Fofonoff: <i>Pââččjogg Laulli</i> (Songs of Paatsjoki, 1988) a collection of tales and poems, and <i>Jânnam muttum nuu´bbioo´ri</i> (Land turned upside down, 1999), a book of poems.</p>
<P align="justify">The joint written form of the Saami languages spoken in the Kola Peninsula (Kildin, Akkala and Ter) is based on Kildin Saami, which was given official status in 1982 and employs the Cyrillic alphabet. According to a study from 1994, there were around 700 estimated speakers of Kildin Saami, and Akkala and Ter Saami were spoken by fewer than ten persons. The main site of the Kildin Saami is Lovozero (Luujaavv´r), with a Saami population of roughly 700 and a museum presenting the history of the Luujärvi region. There are some twenty speakers of the Nuortijärvi (Njuõ´ttjäu´rr, Notozero) dialect of Skolt Saami living on the shores of the lake of the same name. The amount of literature published in Saami languages in Russia is very small. In 1878, Arvid Genetz published <i>Matkamuisteluksia Venäjän Lapista</i> (Travels in Russian Lapland) and in 1891 his renowned dictionary and study of Skolt Saami (<i>Kuollan Lapin murteiden sanakirja ynnä kielinäytteitä</i>). The new orthography has been used in textbooks, dictionaries (Saami-Russian, Kildin Saami - North Saami), literature, and a few children's books. Oktjabrina Voironova (1934-1990), the first author to write in the Ter Saami language, published an anthology of verse titled <i>Jaella</i> (Life) in 1989. She had previously published poems in Russian.</p>
<P align="justify">The role of written Inari Saami has gained ground over the past few years. Its orthography was given official status at the Saami Conference of 1996. The basis for written Inari Saami was created by Dean Lauri Arvid Itkonen in his translation of Bible history from 1906. Many researchers have collected Inari Saami material since the 19th century. In 1917 A. V. Koskimies published <i>Inarinlappalaista kansantietoutta</i>, a work on Inari Saami folklore, of which a new edition was issued in 1979. T.I. Itkonen also published a collection of Inari Saami material, in the journals of the Kalevala Society (KSV 14, 15, 17 and 18), among others. Prominent researchers of Inari Saami in the 20th century were Frans Äimä, who compiled a large collection of linguistic material, and Erkki Itkonen, whose publications include <i>Inarinsaamelaisia kielennäytteitä</i> from 1992 and <i>the Inarilappisches Wörterbuch I-IV</i> from 1986 - 1991. Pekka Sammallahti's and Matti Morottaja's dictionary <i>Säämi-suoma sänikirje. Inarilaissaamelais-suomalainen sanakirja</i> appeared in 1993. The Inari language society Anarâskielâ Servi, founded in 1986, promotes the status and use of Inari Saami. The society actively publishes textbooks, literature on folklore, a newspaper, and a calendar. Oral tradition and the recollection of past times still live on in pioneer works of published Inari Saami literature. As active members of the society, Iisakki and Ilmari Mattus have both published autobiographical memoirs and the teacher Matti Morottaja has edited an anthology of tales entitled <i>Tovlááh mainâseh</i>.</p>
<P align="justify">Efforts to develop Lule Saami began in the 19th century, when Lars Levi Laestadius published a 21-page religious booklet entitled <i>Hålaitattem Ristagasa ja Satte almatja kaskan</i>. The orthography of Lule Saami was revised in the 1970s and approved at the Saami Conference of 1983. Anta Pirak's autobiographical work <i>Jåhttee saamee viessoom</i> was published in 1937. This book is considered to be one of the most important works in the history of literature in the Saami language. Several dictionaries of Lule Saami have appeared, including <i>Lulelappisches Wörterbuch</i> (1946-1954) by Harald Grundström and Olavi Korhonen's <i>Bákkogir'je julevusámes dárrui, dárros julevusábmái</i>, Lulesamisk-svensk, svensk-lulesamisk ordbok (1979). Several children's books and works of poetry have appeared in Lule Saami in recent years. The most prolific writer in the Lule Saami language is Stig Gaelok (b. 1961), who has published some ten works since 1983, particularly verse.</p>
<P align="justify">The written form of South Saami is based on northern Ume Saami. In 1738, Petrus Fjellström, a teacher and clergyman of Lycksele, published The Small Catechism, a Saami grammar and a Swedish-Saami dictionary, thus establishing a written form of South Saami. The present orthography of South Saami was created by Ella Holm Bull and Knut Bergsland and was approved at the Saami Conference of 1976. A dictionary and grammar guide, as well as textbooks, have appeared in the new orthography. Knut Bergsland published his <i>Sydsamisk grammatikk</i> in 1994, and the dictionary <i>Åarjelsaemien-daaroen baakoegaerja</i>. <i>Sydsamisk-norsk ordbok</i> in 1993 in collaboration with Lajla Mattson Magga. Literature in the South Saami language did not begin to appear until the 1970s, in <i>the Càllagat series</i>, among others. The first separate work was the children's book <i>Dågkangaerja-Dåkkagir'ji</i> (Doll Book) published by the teacher Laila Mattson (later Mattson Magga) in 1978. The first book of poems in the South Saami language, <i>Gaaltjie</i> (1987), was written by Gaebpien Gåsta, Gustav Kappfjell, a 74-year-old Norwegian Saami. Most of the recent publications, such as children's books, are translations rather than original works.</p>
<P align="justify">Since the 1970s, use of the Saami languages has become more common in different sectors of society, such as education and the media. The rise of the Saami movement and an overall Saami renaissance have contributed to these developments. Until the 1960s and 1970s, Nordic assimilation policies concerning the Saami threatened their culture and language, in turn strengthening reactive political activism among the Saami. The Saami movement has achieved the official recognition of the Saami as Indigenous peoples in the constitutions of Norway, Finland, and Sweden at the turn of the 1990s. Cultural autonomy was ensured for the Saami in their own regions and the Saami Parliament – Sámediggi – was established in Norway, Finland, and Sweden to implement these policies.</p>den to implement these policies.</p> +
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