Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 22
The Sámi
Languages
The Sámi language
is not related to
Norwegian and
other Indo-European
languages. It actually
shares many features
of the Finno-Ugric
group of the Uralic
language family, and
is most closely akin
to Finnish, Estonian,
Livonian, Votic and
other lesser-known
languages.
The Sámi
languages are
thought to be
dialects of one
language. Eleven
have been found in
history, of which only
nine have survived.
Most of the dialects
are spoken in more
than one of the
countries blanketed
by Sápmi, as the
dialect boundaries
are not bound by
the linguistic borders
of Norway, Sweden,
Finland and Russia.
While there is
mutual intelligibility
between some
Sámi languages,
those who speak
the more widely
separated dialects
cannot understand
each other. Adding to
the communication
challenge is the
amount of words to
choose from. The
Sámi have hundreds
of words for snow,
for example.
no matter what their livelihood. " All
of us have an important relationship
with reindeer, " Jensen says. " They are a
source of protein, and the meat also has
the oils that we need to survive in
the darkness. "
Norwegian-American photographer
Erika Larsen documented the
relationship between the reindeer
herding Sámi and the reindeer.
Beginning in 2007, she immersed
herself within a Sámi reindeer herding
society in order to explore the symbiotic
relationship between the group and
its environment. Larsen stayed with a
family in Kautokeino for more than two
years and worked as their housekeeper
in return for her stay.
Larsen says at first she photographed
the family and their daily routines on
more of a micro level. But after a while,
she realized she'd been missing the
bigger picture. " I didn't see it the first
week-I almost had to pull myself out
to notice-but the family was actually
living in tune with the nature cycle
during the year, " Larsen says. " They
were following the reindeer, and the
reindeer were following nature's cycle.
Larsen's strongest memory from her
time in Sápmi is of the family members
working together. " The herding society
itself is very conducive for having
a family unit; for families staying
together, working together, learning by
doing and feeling useful, " she says.
Culture Flourishes
Family ties have always been an
important part of the Sámi culture.
" There's a huge draw for
people in the United States to
explore their genealogy, and find the
connections to their ancestors, " Larsen
says. " But the Sámi have an amazing
way of being able to tell you hundreds
of years back who their family
members are. "
" It's true, " says Jensen. " They say
that Sámi are the only people who know
who their eighth cousins are, " she jokes.
They can trace their bloodlines this
far back because it's always been woven
into how they interact with one another.
" When you connect in the Sámi way, it's
about how you connect to others in this
large web of relations. [We ask] in Sámi,
'Gii bat don leat?' If you translate it into
English, it sounds a bit rude, like, 'Who
on Earth are you?' " Jensen laughs.
" But what it means is, 'Who are your
ancestors? How do you connect?' "
" If I were to be very traditional,
then the way I would say my name
would be based on my ancestors,
my grandparents, my parents and,
sometimes, my great-grandparents, "
she says.
These connections to
the past are also made
via the music, crafts and
traditional clothing that
make the Sámi so distinct
from other Scandinavian
ethnic groups. The music
is highlighted by the joik
(pronounced " yoik " ), one
of the longest living music
traditions in Europe that
has roots with the Sámi.
Viking Magazine - June 2014
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Viking Magazine - June 2014
Contents
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - Cover1
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - Cover2
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - Contents
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 4
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 5
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 6
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 7
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 8
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 9
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 10
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 11
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 12
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 13
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 14
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 15
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 16
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 17
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 18
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 19
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 20
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 21
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 22
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 23
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 24
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 25
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 26
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 27
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 28
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 29
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 30
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 31
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Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 33
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 34
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 35
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 36
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 37
Viking Magazine - June 2014 - 38
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