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Objective: Literature about asthma among Indigenous communities worldwide is scarce. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of self-reported asthma and to identify the risk factors associated with it among the Sámi population in Sweden. Methods: A population-based health study (SámiHET) was conducted among the Sámi population aged 18–84 years in 2021. The asthma outcome was self-reported. Potential risk factors included sociodemographic, socioeconomic, cultural, behavioral and psychosomatic factors. Frequencies and percentages of the independent variables and the outcome were calculated. Then, the magnitude of the association between the independent variables and asthma was summarized with the prevalence ratio (PR) using the 95% confidence interval (95% CI) for inferential purposes. Results: Overall, 20.6% of participants reported having asthma and 13.9% suffering from asthma with symptoms. Women (PR: 1.19; 95% CI: 1.01–1.42), those living in the Västerbotten region (PR: 1.35; 95% CI: 1.11–1.63) and those suffering financial strain (PR: 1.34; 95% CI: 1.07–1.69) had a higher risk of self-reported asthma. Among the psychosomatic factors, self-reported allergy (PR: 6.45; 95% CI: 5.11–8.17), overweight (PR: 1.46; 95% CI: 1.19–1.78) and obesity (PR: 1.75; 95% CI: 1.41–2.17) were statistically significant associated to asthma symptoms. Conclusion: A higher prevalence of asthma was found among the Sámi in Sweden compared to the average Swedish population. The associated risk factors were similar to those described in the literature. To understand the reason behind the higher prevalence of asthma among Sámi, more asthma-specific research, including register data, is needed.

External accretion events such as a galaxy merger or the accretion of gas from the immediate environment of a galaxy, can create a large misalignment between the gas and the stellar kinematics. Numerical simulations have suggested that misaligned structures may promote the inflow of gas to the nucleus of the galaxy and the accretion of gas by the central supermassive black hole. We show for the first time that galaxies with a strong misalignment between the ionised gas and stellar kinematic angles have a higher observed fraction of active black holes than galaxies with aligned rotation of gas and stars. The increase in black hole activity suggests that the process of formation and/or presence of misaligned structures is connected with the fuelling of active supermassive black holes., Comment: To be published in Nature Astronomy on 19 January 2023. Authors' version

While the Nordic countries are frequently renowned as some of the most peaceful societies in the world, such a conception of peace cannot fully encapsulate the experiences of the Sámi. Likewise, the global movement toward settler-Indigenous reconciliation since the 1960s has set the Nordic response apart from the rest of the world. Building upon existing understandings of internal colonialism and structural violence, this paper analyzes how pragmatic attempts by Finland, Norway, and Sweden to reconcile with the Sápmi have constituted a unified Nordic model of continued settler colonialism, as well as how differences between the National Sámi parliaments contribute to that model. Finally, this paper examines the impact that the Nordic model of settler colonialism has had on pan-Sámi politics, particularly concerning problems of Sámi reunification since the fall of the Soviet Union., Bien que les pays nordiques aient la réputation de faire partie des sociétés les plus paisibles du monde, cette vision de paix n’intègre pas totalement les expériences des Samis. De la même façon, la tendance internationale vers la réconciliation entre colons et peuples autochtones depuis les années 1960 a mis la réponse nordique à part du reste du monde. En se basant sur la compréhension actuelle du colonialisme interne et de la violence structurelle, cet article analyse comment les tentatives pragmatiques de la Finlande, la Norvège et la Suède pour se réconcilier avec le Sámi ont établi un modèle nordique uniforme continuant le colonialisme de peuplement, et comment la disparité des parlements nationaux Sami contribuent à ce modèle. Enfin, cet article examine l’impact que le modèle colonial nordique a eu sur les politiques pan-samies, particulièrement en ce qui concerne les problèmes de la réunification samie depuis la chute de l’URSS.

The study of tourism marketing communication is an important aspect that contributes to the understanding of how destinations and locals are portrayed. Through the so-called circle of representation, images can spread from tourism marketing to other media, such as tourism photography. Marketing material in the form of 118 brochures, 3000 Instagram posts and a guidebook portraying the Sámi population mostly in Swedish Lapland, but also in Finnish Lapland as well as Finnmark, Norway, have been collected and analyzed. The focus is on pictorial and textual elements and eight previously conceptualized themes have been used to guide the analysis. The focus was on the portrayal of the Sámi Indigenous population. The materials were collected through a direct qualitative content analysis and analyzed through a multimodal discourse analysis. The results show that there is still a tendency to portray the Sámi based on exoticism. This can spread to different media channels, but there are also discrepancies that hint at a gradual change in how Indigenous populations such as the Sámi are presented. The results of this study show the potential for the use of social media channels such as Instagram for Indigenous entrepreneurs and destination management organizations to educate, attract and entice potential visitors. © 2022 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

This article discusses the often stereotyped and essentialized depiction of the Sámi in Old Norse sources in light of recent work on critical race theory and its application to the Middle Ages. Focussing on the portrayal of Sámi characters in the late-medieval Hrafnistumannasögur (Sagas of the Men of Hrafnista), this article argues that Norse portrayals of the Sámi were racial in character and that there did indeed exist a racial dynamic between the two peoples, at least during the late-medieval period from which these sagas survive. Consideration is also given towards how both positive and negative portrayals of the Sàmi in these sources can be understood within a racialized context. This article is a winner of the 2022 Marna Feldt Graduate Publication Award., À la lumière des récents travaux sur la théorie raciale critique [critical race theory] et son application dans le contexte du Moyen- ge, cet article traite de la représentation, souvent stéréotypée et essentialiste, des Samis dans les sources en vieux norois. Se concentrant sur les portraits des personnages Samis dans les Hrafnistumannasögur (sagas des hommes de Hrafnista) du bas Moyen- ge, cet article argumente que les représentations nordiques des Samis étaient de caractère racial et qu’il existait en effet une dynamique raciale entre les deux peuples, tout du moins durant le bas Moyen- ge, période d’où ces sagas nous proviennent. L’interprétation, dans un contexte racialisé, des représentations positives et négatives des Samis dans ces sources est également pris en considération. Cet article a reçu le Prix Marna Feldt de publication pour diplômé [graduate] de 2022.

This article takes its starting point in Sami and Roma exposure to racism by studying preconditions within the criminal law for dealing with racism against individual victims of crime. The purpose is to identify whether and how individual victims can obtain remedy andreparation when exposed to racism. In this article, that means that the racist act must be criminalized, that the criminal interest of criminalization is the individual victim, and that the racist nature of the crime has legal implications for classification, sentencing and punishment. Methodologically, the study focuses on identifying possible challenges in the application of so-called hate crimes legislation. Two challenges to the application of indivi dual remedies and reparations were identified. First is the difficulty in identifying and establishing (racist) motive. Second is the lack of clear statements from the courts about how assessments have been made in the use of aggravating and mitigating circumstances in sentencing, and if or how they have affected sentencing and punishment. The results of this study show that the legal conditions for individual victims to obtain criminal justice when they have been subjected to racism are insufficient. Problems are primarily due to deficiencies in the formulation of the legislation, but are also seen in its application. Despite a strong contemporary political focus on work to combat racism, no legal changes have been proposed. Based on the results of this study, we suggest the application of a holistic approach to the legislation on hate crimes. This would enable individual redress for the racism to which Sami and Roma, among others, are exposed.

The article is devoted to the problem of studying the personal identity of Sami adolescents living in the Arctic territories of Russia. The study aims to study the characteristics of the personal identity of Sami boys and Sami girls in adolescence. The article presents the results of an empirical study carried out according to the methodology developed based on the test “Who am I?” developed by Kuhn and McPartland. The respondents were 39 Sami adolescents aged 12-13 years and 40 Sami adolescents aged 14-15 years. All respondents were from the indigenous Sami people. When studying personal identity, we analyzed the characteristics corresponding to each identity component: gender, social, ethnic, family, professional, individual, physical, active and undifferentiated. The study results made it possible to reveal the characteristics of the personal identity of Sami adolescents compared to the personal identity of their Russian peers. The data obtained expand modern psychological ideas about the patterns of personality development in adolescence, how the human psyche functions in a changing world, and clarify the meaningful characteristics of the psychological portrait of a modern adolescent.

This article focuses on the ideas behind the introduction of reindeer to Iceland, how the Danish authorities played a role and the attitudes that prevailed among Icelanders towards this new species in Icelandic nature. The Danish authorities had reindeer exported from Finnmark in Norway to Iceland in the late eighteenth century. They adapted to the Icelandic environment and grew in numbers, except for the first imported little flock, which seems to have died out soon. The idea of bringing reindeer to Iceland came from a few Icelandic officials, who asked the Danish authorities for support. The reindeer kept themselves in the remote heaths and highlands in the districts where they roamed free from the beginning. Nevertheless, in harsh winters, they fled the highlands and came down to the lowlands to graze. This caused frustration among farmers, who complained to the authorities and demanded permission to hunt reindeer to defend their grazing land and obtain reindeer meat for their households.

This article examines twentieth-century northern Swedish geographical isolate studies in Norrbotten Province involving Torne-Finns and northern Sámi, who have historically shared pronatalist Laestadian religious beliefs pathologized by mainstream eugenicists. Deemed a sign of religious fanaticism, Laestadianism was associated with the eugenic stigmatization of Torne-Finns and Sámi people and beliefs were conceptualized as an early sign of schizophrenia. Geneticists, as an outgrowth of early twentieth-century eugenics, structured schizophrenia as a genetic disease caused by first-cousin marriage. These consanguineous marriages that were reported as prevalent in Tornedalian and Sámi reindeer-herding communities practicing Laestadianism, legitimated race-based sterilization of psychitrized Torne-Finn and Sámi women. Similarly, the Swedish State Institute for Race Biology, established in 1922 by Herman Lundborg, advanced reorganizing race along family lines and populations, which supported gendered disability and Sámi genocide. Torne-Finn, as well as Sámi, religious minority women, who were sterilized at first admission to psychiatric facilities, require redress for colonial violence. Current academic and direct-to-consumer admixture research on Finnish and Sámi peoples is recognized as upholding colonial logics of difference in Swedish multicultural policies. This, in turn, results in ongoing gendered genocide. It is concluded that in a radical break from eugenic theories, major psychoses associated with common infections lie in the neglected half of the human genome rather than according to classical genetic rules.

We have analyzed DNA microsatellites and the mitochondrial control region in reindeer from 31 different husbandry areas in Norway, Sweden, and Finland in order to better understand the processes that underlie the genetic variability of the Nordic domestic herds. The distinct differentiation found in the nuclear markers but less so in the mitochondrial marker gives evidence of an origin from a common ancestral population which later evolved into the two main gene pools characterizing the nuclear genomes of domestic reindeer in Finland and most of Sweden and Norway. Analyses of temporal trends in effective population size give evidence of a rapid increase in number of reindeer before the population growth associated with the pastoral transition. This implies that the ancestry of contemporary domestic reindeer lay among a rapidly growing wild population possibly located in the boreal areas of eastern Fennoscandia or European Russia. The evolution of reindeer husbandry in Finland, perhaps with input from European Russia, which later spread to northern Norway could explain the shared genomic pattern observed in these areas today. The structured selection of productive female-centered herds may explain the genetic structure in other parts of Norway and in Sweden. The further substructuring of the Swedish/ Norwegian gene pool appears to follow the traditional language borders with the South Sami language dominating the southern and the Central Sami language in the more northern genetic subclusters. This suggests that traditional knowledge, cultural identities, and herd migrations have contributed to shape the genetic structure seen today. Ecological gradients are more pronounced within as compared to between the genetic clusters, giving further evidence that historical and social-cultural processes are important drivers for the genetic differentiations found in domestic reindeer across the Nordic countries.

The aim of this paper was to describe the study design, data collection procedure and participation of the population-based study “Sámi Health on Equal Terms” (SámiHET) conducted among the Sámi in Sweden in 2021. A Sámi sample was constructed, drawing from three pre-existing-registers: the Sámi electoral roll, the reindeer mark register and the “Labour statistics based on administrative sources” register to identify reindeer herding businesses. All identified persons aged 18–84 were invited to participate during February–May 2021. Among the 9,249 invitations, 3,779 answered the survey (participation rate of 40.9%). More women than men participated, and the age group 45–64 was the most common in both sexes. Around 10% of participants were in the youngest group. A majority of participants were residents of Norrbotten (48%), while almost one fourth were living outside Sápmi (22%). SámiHET has been demonstrated to be a feasible and cost-effective way of investigating health and living conditions among the Sámi in Sweden, providing information easy to compare with Swedish data. The knowledge to be produced may be used to inform policy to guide and improve Sámi health, thus contributing to realising the equal health rights of the Indigenous Sámi in Sweden.

This article explores how game jams, a rapid collaborative game production format, can work to support the revitalisation of Indigenous self-narratives in the context of Sami culture. The study foc...

Despite growing interest in Indigenous health, the lack of end-of-life (EOL) research about the Sámi people led us to explore experience-based knowledge about EoL issues among the Sámi. We aim here to describe Sámi death systems and the extent to which Kastenbaum’s conceptualisation of death systems is appropriate to Sámi culture. Transcribed conversational interviews with 15 individuals, chosen for their varied experiences with EoL issues among Sámi, were first inductively analysed. Kastenbaum’s model of death systems, with functions along a time trajectory from prevention to social consolidation after death, and the components of people, times, places, and symbols/objects, was applied thereafter in an effort to understand the data. The model provides a framework for understanding aspects of the death system that were Sámi-specific, Sámi-relevant as well as what has changed over time. Whereas Kastenbaum differentiated among the components of the death system, our analysis indicated these were often so interrelated as to be nearly inseparable among the Sámi. Seasonal changes and relationships to nature instead of calendar time dominated death systems, linking people, places and times. The extended family’s role in enculturation across generations and EoL support was salient. Numerous markers of Sámi culture, both death-specific and those recruited into the death system, strengthened community identity in the EoL.

The Sámi Indigenous populations, who live in the arctic Sápmi area across four countries – Norway, Sweden, Finland and the Kola Peninsula of Russia – have practiced traditional medicine (TM) for millennia. However, today Sámi TM is unknown within the Swedish health care services (HCS). The aim of this study is to describe the nature and scope of research conducted on Sámi TM among the four Sápmi countries. This study covers peer-reviewed research published in the English language up to 8 April 2020. From 15 databases, 240 abstracts were identified, and 19 publications met the inclusion criteria for full review. Seventeen studies were conducted in Norway, one in Finland and one in Sweden, none in Russia. In northern Norway, Sámi TM is actively used by the local communities, and is claimed to be effective, but is not accessible within HCS. Holistic worldviews, including spirituality, prevail in Sámi TM from practitioners’ selection criteria to health care practices to illness responsibilities. An integration of Sámi TM into HCS is clearly the desire of local communities. Comparisons were made between Sámi TM and conventional medicine on worldviews, on perspectives towards each other, and on integration. More studies are needed in Sweden, Finland and Russia.

Aims This study examined the association of leisure time physical activity, occupational physical activity, and resting heart rate with all-cause and cardiovascular disease mortality in Sami and non-Sami populations. Study design This was a longitudinal, observational population-based study. Methods The Finnmark 3 study cohort was examined in 1987–1988 and followed for all-cause and cardiovascular disease mortality for 26 years. The cohort included 17,697 men and women with a mean age of 47.2 years at baseline. Leisure time physical activity and occupational physical activity were assessed with a validated questionnaire at baseline, whereas cause of death was obtained from the Norwegian Cause of Death Registry. Results A total of 1983 women and 3147 men died during follow-up. Leisure time physical activity was linearly and inversely associated with all-cause mortality, but not coronary heart disease mortality. Compared to inactive subjects, all-cause mortality was significantly reduced by 16% in the active leisure time physical activity group (hazard ratio 0.84; 95% confidence interval 0.76–0.92). Both for all-cause and cardiovascular disease mortality, we observed a U-shaped relationship with occupational physical activity, as participants in the walking and lifting group had significantly lower mortality than both the mostly sedentary and the heavy manual labour group ( p Conclusion In this population-based study, leisure time physical activity was inversely associated with all-cause mortality, whereas resting heart rate was positively associated with all-cause and cardiovascular disease mortality. There was a U-shaped association between occupational physical activity and cardiovascular disease and all-cause mortality.

Reconciliation processes – wherein governments and other organizations examine their past institutional practices to understand contemporary problems in relation to minorities or indigenous groups – have become a widespread international phenomenon in recent decades. In Sweden, such an ongoing process is the reconciliation work between the Church of Sweden and the Sami. In this process, which recently resulted in the publication of a scholarly anthology (or a “white book”), educational history has come to play a vital part. The present article uses the Church of Sweden’s White Book as an empirical object of study to examine in more detail the role and significance of knowledge of educational history for this specific reconciliation process. By focusing on various scientific complexities and epistemological tensions that tend to arise in these kinds of undertakings, this paper also aims to problematize the white book genre itself as a path to historical knowledge. By doing this, this article’s overall ambition is to contribute to future scholarly work in reconciliation activities, white papers and truth commissions. This study applies a qualitative content analysis and connects theoretically to the growing field of transitional justice research. Special Issue: History of Education

Authenticity is considered a very important means to attract tourists. Different enterprises and destinations compete for visitors and authenticity is an important factor for visitors’ travel decisions. Within the context of indigenous and cultural tourism, several studies have criticized the way in which indigenous and local populations are portrayed in order to attract tourists, since they often involve colonial images and descriptions that are no longer corresponding to the contemporary situation. This study presents an alternative perspective on the discussion on tourism marketing in relation to authenticity. Through critical discourse analysis and retroduction, this study has analysed the websites of Sámi tourism companies from Sweden. The discussion put forward in this study is not a generalizing picture of how the Sámi peoples choose to market themselves, but it problematizes how these particular enterprises relate to issues of authenticity in the representation of cultural heritage. This paper also presents a new approach to authenticity seen as a compromise. The results of this study present one side of a multifaceted discussion on the struggle between different discourses on representations and authenticity that are often the main channel to reach and attract potential visitors.

Mine developments in Indigenous territories risk disrupting Indigenous cultures and their economies, including spiraling already high levels of conflict. This is the situation in Canada, Sweden, and Norway, as elsewhere, and is fostered by current state legal framework that reflect historical trajectories, although circumstances are gradually changing. Promising institutional changes have taken place in British Columbia (BC), Canada, with respect to new legislative reforms. Notably, new legislation from 2019 intends to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) in the province, by promoting consent-based and collaborative decision-making mechanisms. New environmental assessment legislation is another example; this legislation includes early engagement, collaborative decision-making, and Indigenous-led assessments. The article’s aim is, first, to analyze how Indigenous communities can influence and engage in the mining permitting system of BC, and, secondly, to highlight the positive features of the BC system using a comparative lens to identify opportunities for Sweden and Norway regarding mining permitting and Indigenous rights. Applying a legal-scientific and comparative analysis, the article analyzes traditional legal sources. The article concludes that the strong points that the BC regime could offer the two Nordic countries are: the concept of reconciliation, incorporation of UNDRIP, the spectrum of consultation and engagement approaches, and the structure of environmental assessments. All three jurisdictions, however, struggle with balancing mine developments and securing Indigenous authority and influence over land uses in their traditional territories. Validerad;2023;Nivå 2;2023-06-28 (sofila)

Literacy research is the field of study that is interested in writing and reading, and in all activities, contexts, and ideas that are connected to texts, their production and interpretation. Within this field, several studies have been conducted in Indigenous multilingual contexts, but only a few of such studies mention Indigenous research and its principles. More importantly, explicit Indigenous methodologies are still absent from literacy studies, making it difficult to reflect upon methodological choices. Based on a comparative study of two literacy projects conducted in an Indigenous Sámi context, this chapter suggests that a first step toward the implementation of Indigenous methodologies is an awareness of Indigenous research principles. Awareness of the principles is required before they can be respected and followed, and before new methodologies can be discussed. This chapter suggests that it is also possible to consciously move towards methodologies that align with Indigenous research principles in literacy studies. In the best case, careful consideration of methodologies and guiding principles can lead to an understanding of the literacy landscape from unique perspectives that follow from collaboration, inclusion and mutual respect.

Denne artikkelen er basert på ei kvantitativ undersøking av 1949 ytringar frå “Nordnorsk debatt” under valkampen i 2017. Eit sentralt funn er at nettspråket følger dei norske rettskrivingsnormalane monaleg meir i diskusjonar om samepolitikk enn om andre politiske tema. I det samla materialet har 54 prosent av ytringane minst eitt ortografisk avvik. Då bryt kommentaren eller svaret på Facebook med dei to norske rett­skrivingsnormalane når språkbrukarane kortar ned på orda eller brukar teikn eller bokstavar på ein måte som er utanfor standarden i dei offisielle norske rettskrivingane. Då kan vi seie at norma i nettspråk om politikk er vidare enn den offisielle rettskrivinga. Denne overvekta av ortografiske avvik ser likevel ikkje ut til å vere skapt av språkbrukarar som ikkje meistrar standarden, og dei representerer neppe det mange opp­fattar som språkleg forfall. Heller ikkje munnlegmarkørar som forsterkar prosodien eller viser oppøsing, dominerer i materialet. Det er derfor ikkje hald for å seie at slike orto­grafiske avvik er ikoniske eller at den konfronterande stilen er essensen i politisk CMC. I Facebook-diskusjonane om same­politikk har derimot berre 44 prosent av ytringane ortografiske avvik. Artikkelen lanserer to alternative tolkingar av denne signifikant lågare delen orto­grafiske avvik. Den eine, og konsensusorienterte tolkinga, er at språk­brukarane i respekt for denne betente saka vel det mest nøytrale skriftspråket dei kjenner. Den andre, og konfliktorienterte tolkinga, er at dette er språkhandlingar som indekserer at ein vil vere lojal mot eller favorisere den norske kulturen og språket framfor den samiske. I så fall brukar debattantane, bevisst eller ubevisst, språkleg variasjon for å styrke det språklege hegemoniet til majoritetskulturen. I artikkelen argumenteter eg for den konfliktorienterte tolk­inga, for det første fordi menn er sterkt overrepresenterte i desse debattane. Tolkinga blir ytterlegare styrkt i den siste delen av artikkelen, som samanliknar CMC i debattane om same­politikk og innvandrings­politikk., This article presents an analysis of 1,949 online discussion entries from "Nordnorsk debatt", the Facebook page on which the regional newspaper Nordlys launches online debates. All discussion entries investigated are from the 2017 election campaign. A key finding in the study is that online language in political discussions about Sami politics is notably more normative than discussions about other political topics. In the material as a whole, 54 per cent of the statements have at least one orthographic deviation. In such cases, the comment or the response on Facebook differs from the two Norwegian written standards (Bokmål and Nynorsk) by shortening the words or by using punctuation or letters in an unconventional way. By that we can say that the norm in political online language expands the official standards of written Norwegian. However, this predominance of orthographic deviations does not appear to have been created by language users who do not master the standard, and the deviations therefore hardly represent a linguistic decline. Nor do orality markers that amplify the prosody or show temper dominate in the material. There is therefore no reason to say that such orthographic deviations are iconic or that the confrontational style is the essence of political CMC. The article provides two alternative explanations of the significantly lower amount of orthographic deviations in digital statements about Sami politics. The first, and consensus-oriented explanation, is that the language users choose a neutral written standard out of respect of this controversial case. The second, and more conflict-oriented, explanation is that these language acts index that one wants to be loyal to or favours the Norwegian culture and language over the Sami. If this is the case, the debaters consciously or unconsciously use linguistic variation to strengthen the majority culture’s linguistic hegemony. In the article I argue for the conflict-oriented explanation, also because men are strongly overrepresented in these debates. Towards the end of the article, I compare the CMC in debates about Sami politics and immigration policy.

Sámi people report less satisfaction with healthcare services than the majority population in Norway, and report that they seldom encounter culturally adapted health services. This study investigates Sámi and Norwegian nurses’ perspectives on culturally respectful and appropriate caring for Sámi patients in northern Norway. Six focus groups were conducted: three with Sámi-speaking nurses (n = 13) and three with Norwegian-speaking nurses (n = 10). Data were collected and analysed in line with Thorne’s interpretive descriptive methodology. Three overarching themes emerged from the interviews: (i) the importance nurses gave to establishing a connection and building trust with Sámi patients; (ii) nurses’ perceptions that in comparison to Norwegian patients Sámi patients could be less confrontational and direct, but that differences weren’t always apparent and (iii) the importance nurses described to understanding the cultural context of their Sámi patients. This study showed that Sámi and Norwegian nurses working in northern Norway were largely perceptive about and respectful of cultural differences between Sámi and Norwegian patients. Some emphasised, though, that Sámi patients were diverse and that interpersonal differences were as or more important than cultural differences. Some also felt that more understanding of Sámi culture would be helpful for enabling culturally respectful nursing care.

La mitología nórdica es popularmente conocida por sus numerosos dioses y su lucha contra los gigantes. Sin embargo, en los últimos años los investigadores han comenzado a apuntar hacia la posibilidad de que estas criaturas no sean solamente imaginarias. A través del estudio de las fuentes primarias y las distintas investigaciones, se evalúa la posibilidad de que los jǫtnar sean la alteridad de los samis, una cultura que ha tenido un gran contacto con los escandinavos. Norse mythology is commonly known because of the numerous gods and their fight against giants, Lately researcher had been trying to prove the possibility that these creatures are something more than folk tales. Through the primary sources and some researchers’ studies, we here look on the possibility of otherness of the Saami upon the jǫtnar. A culture that has had a great influence in the Scandinavian people, and that had been influenced by them.

Utilizing such concepts as “colonial complicity” and “colonialism without colonies”, this chapter examines the case of Finns and Finland as a nation that was once oppressed but also itself complicit in colonialism. It argues that although the Finnish nation has historically been positioned in Europe between western and eastern empires, Finns were not only passive victims of (Russian) imperial rule but also active participants in the creation of imperial vocabulary in various colonial contexts, including Sápmi in the North.This chapter argues that although Finns never had overseas colonies, they were involved in the colonial world, sending out colonizers and producing images of colonial “others”, when they, in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, felt the need to project themselves as white and European (not Russian or non-white, such as Mongols). Finns adopted, adapted, and created common European knowledge about colonized areas, cultures, and people and participated in constructing racial hierarchies. These racialized notions were also applied to the Sámi. Furthermore, Finns benefitted economically from colonialism, sent out missionaries to Owambo in present-day Namibia to spread the ideas of Western/White/Christian superiority and instruct the Owambo in European ways. Finns were also involved in several colonial enterprises of other European colonizing powers, such as in the Belgian Congo or aboard Captain Cook’s vessel on his journey to the Antipodes.

OECD bajida sámi ekonomalaš ovddidanvejolašvuođaid, mat leat relevánttat baicce Ruoŧas, maiddái Norggas ja Suomas. Daidda gullet boazodoallu, turisma, kultursuorgi ja eará dálonguovllu aktivitehtat čuovvovaččat

Many Sámi businesses draw on traditional knowledge in the management of the landscape and in the production of goods and services. Sámibusinesses tend to balance market participation with non-market values, stressing the importanceof sustaining culture over time.

This qualitative study explores Sami and non-Sami clinicians’ assumptions about Sami culture and their experiences in providing mental health services to Sami patients. The aim is to better understand and improve the ways in which culture is incorporated into mental health services in practice. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 20 clinicians in mental health outpatient clinics in the northern Sami area in Troms and Finnmark County in Norway. The findings show that clinicians’ conceptualizations of culture influence how they take cultural considerations about their Sami patients into account. To better integrate culture into clinical practice, the cultures of both patient and clinician, as well as of mental health care itself, need to be assessed. Finally, the findings indicate a lack of professional team discussions about the role of Sami culture in clinical practice.

La creació de sistemes de traducció automàtica per a llengües desfavorides, que anomenaré llengües menors, presenta diversos reptes alhora que obri la porta a noves oportunitats. Després de definir conceptes preliminars com ara els de llengua menor i traducció automàtica, i d’explicar breument els tipus de traducció automàtica existents, els usos més comuns, el tipus de dades en què es basen, i els drets d’ús i les llicències del programari i de les dades de traducció automàtica, es discuteixen els reptes a què s’enfronta la construcció de sistemes de traducció automàtica i els possibles efectes sobre l’estatus de la llengua menor, usant com a exemples llengües menors d’Europa. Building machine translation systems for disadvantaged languages, which I will call minor languages, poses a number of challenges whilst also opening the door to new opportunities. After defining a few basic concepts, such as minor language and machine translation, the paper provides a brief overview of the types of machine translation available today, their most common uses, the type of data they are based on, and the usage rights and licences of machine translation software and data. Then, it describes the challenges involved in building machine translation systems, as well as the effects these systems can have on the status of minor languages. Finally, this is illustrated by drawing on examples from minor languages in Europe.

A review of the book: Kamrul Hossain, José Miguel Roncero Martín and Anna Petrétei (eds.), Human and Societal Security in the Circumpolar Arctic (Leiden and Boston: Brill Nijhoff, 2018)

The Indigenous Sami population have inhabited rural northern areas of Norway, Sweden, Finland and the Kola Peninsula in Russia for thousands of years. Today, many Sami live in cities. No large quantitative studies have investigated the health and life of urban Sami in Norway. As a basis for further research, this paper describes the background, methods, participation and sample characteristics of the survey From Rural to Urban Living, conducted in 2014. The unique sampling design is based on internal migration records. Those invited were everyone born 1950–1975 who had relocated from preselected rural Sami core areas to cities in Norway. Their children above the age of 18 were also invited. The paper is descriptive with some basic statistical tests. In total, 2058 (response rate 34%) first-generation and 1168 (response rate 19%) second-generation migrants responded. The response rate was lowest in the younger age groups and among men. One out of three reported Sami background. The education level was in general high. From Rural to Urban Living enables numerous research possibilities within health and social sciences, and may contribute to new insight into the health, culture and identity of the growing Sami population in urban areas of Norway.

The yoik is a vocal technique used by the Sámi people in the northernmost part of Europe. It consists in short circular melodies chanted a cappella and intended to make a person, an animal, or a place present. In the view of many “yoikers,” it is a gift received from the environment that you learn through participation and experimentation. This paper uses the concept “enchantment” as a conceptual bias to comment on two encounters: an anecdote about a yoiker who managed to frighten a couple of elk by chanting the bear’s melody and a Sámi poem about the yoiking wind. These encounters address, in turn, the way humans can yoik to animals and the way non‑humans can yoik to humans, displaying in both cases how chants may affect the perception of a place. Le yoik est une technique vocale utilisés par les Sámi, dans la partie la plus septentrionale de l’Europe. Elle consiste à chanter des mélodies circulaires a cappella destinées à rendre présent une personne, un animal ou un lieu. D’après de nombreux « yoikeurs », il s’agit d’un don reçu de l’environnement que l’on apprend à connaître à travers la participation et l’expérimentation. Cet article utilise le concept « enchantement » comme un biais conceptuel afin de commenter deux rencontres: une anecdote à propos d’un yoikeur qui parvint à effrayer des élans en chantant la mélodie de l’ours et un poème Sámi à propos des yoiks vocalisés par le vent. Ces rencontres abordent, respectivement, la manière dont les humains peuvent yoiker aux animaux et celle dont les non‑humains peuvent yoiker aux humains, illustrant dans les deux cas comment le chant peut affecter la perception d’un lieu.

In the article, we examine the ethnic groupness among Sami reindeer herders in Northwest Finnish Lapland. According to our results, reindeer herders recognize different groupnessess. Saminess is pe...

The Norwegian ethnonym Kven and the Finnish ethnonym Kainulainen occurred at latest in the first millennium AD. A tacit truth held today is that the ethnonyms represent the same ancient Finnish-speaking group, only named differently by Norwegians and Finns. The aim of the article is to find out whether the ethnonyms have been used to designate different groups of people. The Finnish-speakers in the nearby Tornedalen has called the lower part of the Kalix River in northernmost Sweden the Kainuu River and the upper part Kaalas River after the original Sámi name of the river. According to theories on ethnicity they called the lower part the Kainuu River [Fin. Kainuunväylä] because they wanted to mark out the Swedish speakers of different ethnicity, who they called Kainulaiset. The latter mainly settled the lower part of the river in the Middle Ages and Finnish-speakers the upper part. The article reveals that the Sámi variety Gainolâš was used by the Sámi for depicting dominant majority populations of different ethnicity, especially Scandinavians, but sometimes also Finns. It also argues that Finnish settlers in southern Finland and the northernmost Gulf of Bothnia used Kainulainen for depicting Swedish settlers when the two language groups first encountered. Recalling the Past, Silvermuseet, Arjeplog

Archaeological evidence for ritual animal offerings is key to understanding the formation and evolution of indigenous Sámi identity in Northern Fennoscandia from the Iron Age to the seventeenth century AD. An examination of such evidence can illuminate how major changes, such as the shift from hunting to reindeer pastoralism, colonialism by emerging state powers and Christianisation, were mediated by the Sámi at the local level. To explore the chronology of, and local variations in, Sámi animal-offering tradition, we provide a synthesis of archaeozoological data and radiocarbon dates from 17 offering sites across Norway, Sweden and Finland. Analysis reveals new patterns in the history of Sámi religious ritual and the expression of Sámi identity.

We study forestry in the Sami people homeland region to understand an ongoing conflict between conventional forest logging and maintaining forests as reindeer pastures for indigenous people. We use a detailed model that simultaneously includes timber production, carbon storage in living biomass, deadwood and wood products, negative effects on reindeer husbandry, and a flexible optimization between rotation forestry (cf. clearcuts) and forestry that maintains continuous forestcover. We show that the profitability of conventional forestry is based on utilizing existing forest stands, an outcome that can be understood as forest capital mining. By varying the carbon price between €0 tCO2 and €40 tCO2, we show that the optimal solutions based on a 3% interest rate are always continuous cover forestry. A carbon price of €60 - €100tCO2 implies that it is optimal to give up timber production and utilize forests for carbon storage and reindeer pasture only. Given the present forest management practices and an old-growth forest as the initial state, the carbon choke price decreases to €14–€20 CO2. The optimal choice between timber production and utilizing forests purely for carbon storage and reindeer husbandry may depend on the initial forest state. The choice between maintaining old-growth forest and converting land to timber production, as determined by dynamic economic analysis, is incompatible with the frequently applied approach based on carbon debt and the carbon payback period.

ObjectiveThe present study aimed to investigate disordered eating (DE) among Sami compared with non-Sami residing in northern Norway.DesignIn a cross-sectional design, stratified by sex and ethnicity, associations were tested between DE (Eating Disturbance Scale; EDS-5) and age, education level, BMI category, anxiety and depression, physical activity and consumption of snacks.SettingThe SAMINOR 2 Clinical Survey (2012–2014) based on the population of ten municipalities in northern Norway.SubjectsAdults aged 40–69 years; 1811 Sami (844 male, 967 female) compared with 2578 non-Sami (1180 male, 1398 female) individuals.ResultsNo overall significant ethnic difference in DE was identified, although comfort eating was reported more often by Sami individuals (P=0·01). Regardless of ethnicity and sex, symptoms of anxiety and depression were associated with DE (PP=0·01). DE was associated (OR, 95% CI) with low physical activity in men in general and in non-Sami women (Sami men: 2·4, 1·4, 4·0; non-Sami men: 2·2, 1·4, 3·6; non-Sami women: 1·8, 1·2, 2·9) and so was the consumption of snacks (Sami men: 2·6, 1·3, 5·0; non-Sami men: 1·9, 1·1, 3·1; non-Sami women: 2·1, 1·3, 3·4).ConclusionsThere were no significant differences regarding overall DE comparing Sami with non-Sami, although Sami more often reported comfort eating. There were significant sex and ethnic differences related to DE and physical activity, snacking and education level.

This article analyses the role of material culture in the enforcing of a colonial order in early modern Sápmi (Land of the Sámi, the indigenous people in northern Norway, Sweden, Finland and the Kola Peninsula in Russia). In addition, the article focuses on the unequal power relations created through the collecting and cultural appropriation of Sámi objects. The 17th century saw a rapid growth of interest in the Sámi and their material culture. Clothing, sledges, ceremonial drums and other objects were collected for royal and noble courts of Europe, as well as for scholars and other collectors. This Eurocentric process of constructing Sáminess was concurrent with colonial attitudes towards non-European peoples. Empirically, the article explores the collecting of Sámi objects, clothes and religious/sacred material culture such as ceremonial drums and sieidis, as well as models and mannequins, and their role in the colonial rule and imperial representations of Sápmi. Collecting Sápmi: Early Modern Globalization of Sámi Material Culture and Sámi Cultural Heritage Today

Accepted manuscript version. Published version available in Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology. 2017;48(7):1009-1027. Discrimination is generally negative for mental health and well-being; however, few studies have examined protective effects of resilience factors, especially among minority indigenous people. Here, we validated a short version of the Resilience Scale for Adults (RSA) and examined its protective effects against discrimination among Norwegian indigenous Sami and non-Sami populations. Data come from a large population-based survey of health and living conditions in multiethnic areas among indigenous Sami and non-Sami population (the SAMINOR2 study). The information was collected in 2012 from 11,600 participants (18-69 years old). The main outcome measures were mental health (or distress) as measured with the Hopkins Symptom Check List (HSCL-10) and well-being as measured with the WHO-5 index by the World Health Organization. A 10-item short version of the original RSA (33 items) showed good model fit in all ethnic strata as well as factorial invariance, thus indicating cross-cultural validity. Being exposed to discrimination in general was more negative for the main outcome measures than exposure to ethnic discrimination alone; however, high scores on the RSA-10 almost canceled this negative effect completely. Minority participants with a strong Sami identity (N = 1,270) were least negatively influenced by discrimination, whereas majority ethnic Norwegians (N = 5,233) were most negatively affected. The strong Sami subgroup, thus, showed a remarkable resilience despite considerable exposure to discrimination. Members of this group were synergetically protected by individual (personal strength) and family (cohesion) resilience factors.

Source at https://doi.org/10.18261/issn.1504-2936-2017-03-04-02. Accepted manuscript version, licensed CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. Denne artikkelen ser på hva som bestemmer det politiske engasjementet hos personer som befinner seg i en dobbel minoritetssituasjon som same og funksjonshemmet. I artikkelen diskuteres hvordan felles identitet, kollektive rettigheter og etnisitet kan påvirke og forklare samer med funksjonsnedsettelser sitt politiske engasjement. Artikkelen synliggjør hvordan kampen for urbefolkningens kollektive rettigheter overskygger kampen personer med funksjonsnedsettelser fører for sine individuelle rettigheter. Når kollektive rettigheter fremheves, ser dette ut til å henge sammen med at samer som en etnisk gruppe har lyktes med å skape en felles identitet. Deltakerne i studien trekker frem familiens påvirkning og kampen for samiske interesser som viktige elementer for etableringen av felles identitet. Videre nevnes den økende andelen av samer med høyere utdanning som viktig for å skape et større engasjement for samiske spørsmål, og bidrar til stolthet over å være samisk. Deltakerne er videre inne på den samiske forståelsen av helse og funksjonsnedsettelser, samt betydningen av sentrale samiske verdier. Vi synliggjør hvordan disse forholdene kan påvirke det politiske engasjementet til mennesker i en dobbel minoritetssituasjon. Samlet sett ser altså den samiske identiteten ut til å påvirke det politiske engasjementet, og at man engasjerer seg særskilt i samepolitiske saker. Artikkelen bygger på det kvalitative prosjektet «Mennesker med funksjonsnedsettelser og samisk bakgrunn» som ble gjennomført i perioden 2014-2015 av Avdeling vernepleie ved tidligere Høgskolen i Harstad, nå UiT Norges Arktiske Universitet. Oppdragsgiver var Nordens Velferdssenter. Data i artikkelen baserer seg på 25 av de 31 semi-strukturerte dybdeintervjuene vi gjennomførte i prosjektet med samer med funksjonsnedsettelser og/eller deres pårørende/verge. 25 av deltakerne i studien var over 18 år, og det er disse som danner grunnlaget for denne artikkelen. This article studies determinants for political participation among people in a double minority situation as Sami experiencing disability. Common identity, collective rights and ethnicity influence and explain how Sami experiencing disability engage themselves in politics. The article discusses the stronger emphasize on the battle for collective rights as a Sami, compared with the battle for individual rights for people experiencing disability. When collective rights are emphasized, this seems to cohere with the fact that Sami as an ethnic group has succeeded in creating a common identity. The participants in the study mention influences from family and the battle for Sami rights as important elements when establishing a common identity. Further, more Sami with higher education seem important for the stronger focus on Sami questions, and hence contributes to increased Sami pride. The participants also refer to the Sami understanding of health and disability, acceptance of disabilities and importance of traditional Sami values. We illustrate how these circumstances might influence the political engagement of people in a double minority situation. Altogether, Sami identity influences the political engagement, contributing to a stronger focus on Sami political issues. The article builds on data from the qualitative project «People with disabilities and Sami background» which was carried through in the period 2014-2015 by Department for Social Educators at former Harstad University College, now UiT the Arctic University of Norway. The project was commissioned by the Nordic Centre for Welfare and Social Issues. The content of the article is based on the project’s 25 participants aged 18 or older, either themselves and/or their next of kin or guardians.

Background The aim of the study was to describe prevalence, severity and distribution of periodontal disease as well as associated risk factors in an indigenous Sámi population in Northern Norway, and to investigate differences between the indigenous Sámi and the non-Sámi population. Methods This cross-sectional study included data from the Dental Health in the North study (N = 2078; 18–75 years). Data on Ethnicity, household income, education, smoking habits, dental attendance, and tooth brushing habits were collected by a questionnaire. Periodontal conditions were assessed by clinical examination. A modified version of the new AAP/EFP classification system of periodontal disease was used to estimate the severity of periodontitis. Three stages were used: ‘Non-severe periodontitis’, ‘Stage II’, and stage ‘III/IV’. Results Of the total study population 66.5% reported Sámi affiliation. The total prevalence of periodontitis was 49.7%, with 20.1% in Stage III/IV, but no differences between Sámi and non-Sámi. When controlled for sex, age, education, smoking and dental attendance the Sámi had higher probability of having more severe stages of periodontitis; Odds RatioStage II (OR) = 1.3; 95% CI: 1.1–1.7; and ORStage III/IV (OR) = 1.6; 95% CI: 1.1–2.2) compared to non-Sámi. A higher proportion of Sámi had one or more PD ≥ 6 mm than the non-Sámi (p Conclusions The prevalence of periodontitis was high in communities in the core area of Sámi settlement in Northern Norway, regardless of ethnicity. People with Sámi ethnicity had deep periodontal pockets and an increased odds of having severe stages of periodontitis. Future studies should address possible explaining factors behind the potential higher risk of having more severe periodontitis among indigenous people in Sámi settlements.

Cet article porte sur les transformations du joïk sami à l’ère de la globalisation et sur la signification de ces changements pour les jeunes samis d’aujourd’hui. En incorporant certaines nouveautés apportées par la globalisation, tout en continuant à résister à l’assimilation culturelle et à la dépossession territoriale, les Samis perpétuent leurs pratiques ancestrales. La recherche sur la littérature orale samie contemporaine met en avant un lien entre l’accélération des luttes sociales samies et l’apparition de nouvelles formes de joïks. Avec le tournant identitaire de la fin des années 1960 à Sápmi, le joïk commença à sortir de l’interdit dans lequel l’avait plongé la colonisation, pour jouer un rôle significatif dans ces luttes de reconnaissance. Aujourd’hui, le joïk désigne un peuple autochtone et minoritaire en Europe avec ses traditions orales, ses langues, ses pratiques coutumières et ses rapports au territoire ancestral. Le joïk est devenu un véritable marqueur de différence culturelle et une manière de conserver et transmettre l’héritage autochtone., This article examines transformations of the Sami yoik in the age of globalisation and what these changes mean for young Samis today. By incorporating some of the novelties brought about by globalisation, while continuing to resist cultural assimilation and territorial dispossession, the Sámi perpetuate their ancestral practices. Research on contemporary Sámi oral literature points to a link between the acceleration of Sámi social struggles and the emergence of new forms of yoik. With the identity shift in the late 1960s in Sápmi, the yoik began to emerge from its colonial ban to play a significant role in these struggles for recognition. Today, the yoik refers to Indigenous and minority people in Europe with their oral traditions, languages, customary practices, and relationship to their ancestral territory. The yoik has become both a real marker of cultural particularity and a way of preserving and transmitting the heritage of the Indigenous people., Este artículo examina las transformaciones del yoik sami en la era de la globalización y lo que estos cambios significan para los jóvenes Samis de hoy. Al incorporar algunas novedades aportadas por la globalización, sin dejar de resistirse a la asimilación cultural y al despojo territorial, los Samis perpetúan sus prácticas ancestrales. Las investigaciones sobre la literatura oral Sami contemporánea señalan un vínculo entre la aceleración de las luchas sociales Sami y la aparición de nuevas formas de yoik. Junto con el giro identitario de finales de la década de 1960 en Sápmi, el yoik comenzó a salir de su prohibición colonial para desempeñar un rol significativo en estas luchas por el reconocimiento. En la actualidad, el yoik designa un pueblo indígena y minoritario en Europa con sus tradiciones orales, lenguas, prácticas consuetudinarias y relación con el territorio ancestral. El yoik se ha convertido en un verdadero marcador de diferencia cultural y una forma de preservar y transmitir el patrimonio indígena.

On the basis of statistics and comparative analysis the article shows ethnodemographic processes among the Sami of Norway in 2000–2013, including the dynamic of population, natural increase, factors and reasons which caused them in this period. The short analysis of references has been made. Stable economic situation is improving the conditions of Sami. At the modern stage, special conditions for keeping the Sami’s ethnic identity are arranged, the basis of which is the language development.

In this article, we map and analyse the changes in conceptualisation and ideas on S&aacute, mi and indigenous people in the S&aacute, mi (Religious Education) RE curricula for primary and secondary school in the period from 1997 to 2015. Through the analysis of five sets of curricula for RE in this period, we investigate how they introduce a new set of ideas and concepts concerning religion related to the S&aacute, mi as an indigenous people. &lsquo, Circumpolar indigenous people&rsquo, s religion&rsquo, is a concept and a category that is primarily found within the S&aacute, mi curriculum of Norway&rsquo, s educational system. As such, we argue it is a way of religion making through the conceptualization of S&aacute, mi religion in particular, and indigenous religions in general.

This article deals with the duty to consult indigenous peoples and the obligation to involve these peoples in decision-making processes in matters that concern them. After a general review of international legislation and obligations, particularly the ILO Convention no. 169 on Indigenous and Tribal Peoples, the article focuses on how these obligations are implemented towards the indigenous Sámi in Norwegian law. Here, the consultation agreement from 2005 and the Sámi Rights Committee’s 2007 draft are still central. The review includes an analysis of the extent to which these duties meet international law requirements, and a deliberation on the concept of free, prior and informed consent.

The first Sámi newspaper, Sagai Muitalæggje, was established in 1903, and in 1906 the first Sámi was elected to the Norwegian parliament. Through these two events, the Sámi (the indigenous population of Norway) had their own voice heard and achieved political influence in the public sphere for the first time. What was the role and significance of libraries in this process? Anders Larsen, the editor of Sagai Muitalæggje, and his friend Isak Persen, the first Sámi elected to the Norwegian Parliament, were students at Tromsø Teaching College, the highest academic institution in Northern Norway at that time. Anders Larsen and Isak Persen (later named Saba) borrowed 167 books from the school’s library collection during their two years at the school (1896-1898). Nearly one-third of their loans were novels with a radical political and social content connected to the "modern turn" in European literature. They also borrowed a lot of historical works describing and analyzing political revolutions and transformations in Europe. I have identified and categorized Larsen’s and Persen’s book loans at the college and I discuss the relationship between their reading “profile” and their careers as authors, editor and parlamentarian.

Religion does not play a major role in Norwegian Nobel laureate Knut Hamsun’s work. The one brilliant exception to this detached and seemingly cavalier attitude toward religion or, should I say, Christianity, is Hamsun’s masterpiece, Growth of the Soil (1917), which won him the Nobel Prize in literature in 1920. In this mythic novel, Hamsun draws upon a plethora of biblical motifs to create a heroic cosmogony that proposes an alternative to the rapid social and economic transformation under way in Norway in the second half of the nineteenth century and a vision of Norway founded on the cultivation of the land through hard labor and the populating of the earth.Numerous critics have remarked on the Biblical allusions in the novel (e.g., Per Thomas Andersen, Nettum, Rottem, Storfjell, Øyslebo); however, only Rolf Steffensen and Andreas Lødemel have studied the role of religion in Growth of the Soil in any depth. I will expand upon their work to examine whether Biblical allusions are part of a rhetorical strategy that aims at a coherent worldview. Biblical motifs cleverly interspersed throughout the novel suggest that it is always gesturing toward a world outside its pages through a dialog with pre-existing texts, in this case the Bible, absorbing and transforming voices from culture and society, historical memory and national identity. I will reexamine not only the place of Christianity in this important novel but also the foundational myth that undergirds it, that is, the idea that Isak is the founder not so much of a new civilization as a biblical exemplum of a traditional way of life and old values based on the cultivation of the land.That said, upon closer examination, Growth of the Soil does not amount to a faithful adaptation of the Old Testament; the novel is fraught with contradictions and the narrator also subverts its biblical framework by promoting an ambiguous reading of key scenes and motifs. Isak is not a bona fide practicing Christian and the novel should not be seen as an apology for Christianity in any way, shape, or form. Hamsun’s Isak is no biblical patriarch, even though he, too, at first appears to be divinely chosen to bring about a new beginning for humankind; instead, Isak turns out to be just another human being—albeit an exceptional one—who works hard to make his life dream come true. Moreover, it “er tvilsomt om MG var tenkt som en ‘agrarisk opbyggelsesbog’” (Rottem, Hamun og fantasiens triumf 167); however, an intertextual reading does enrich the novel’s narrative as well as moral authority by drawing on Biblical persona and antecedents.Finally, I feel compelled to address a postcolonial perspective if for no other reason than that an insistence on a Biblical reading of the novel largely ignores the import of the Samí, who ultimately pay the price of Isak’s colonization of the land, which prefigures the conquest of Northern Norway by homesteaders like him as well as the advance of what is euphemistically called “civilization.”

Report from culture heritage survey in Inner Finnmark 2009, as part of the LARM research project. Surveys in selected areas in Alta, Karasjok and Kautokeino municipalities.

The research project investigates the social processes, the understanding and experiences of traditional healing and conventional health care in three groups; The users, the traditional healers, and the health professionals. Furthermore, traditional healing as coping strategy (resilience) for the users in cases of illness was investigated. 60 semi-structured interviews and 7 focus group interviews were conducted. The researchers understand the use of traditional healing as a mechanism of resilience or a coping strategy on individual, social, and cultural levels. This tradition may be regarded as an expression of the culture in Northern Norway that binds people to an environment which is linked to a culture with a spiritual dimension that has long-lasting traditions in the communities in which the research was conducted. The use of traditional healing was an expression for the need for a spiritual dimension, that conventional health care providers do not meet. The users employed parallel treatment methods from the Norwegian conventional health care system and traditional medicine. The use of traditional healing indicated active patients and social networks.

Choices made around using language in museums can either reinforce or challenge existing common sense language regimes and cultural hegemonies. The issues around linguistic choices are particularly pronounced for a museum of indigenous culture in a multilingual minority language community. Using the case of the Siida, the National Museum of the Finnish Sami, located in Inari, in Finnish Samiland, we explore some of the issues involved in using language in the museum. Based on a linguistic landscape analysis, we identify three main functions of language in the museum: managing and controlling visitors; narrating and explaining content and being displayed as content/exhibit. We discuss these functions in the context of the Siida Museum and also explore the associated challenges and opportunities. Our analysis shows how the language choices made by museums in relation to all three functions can present an opportunity to challenge existing language hegemonies and inequalities.

This article reviews arrangements for Russian Sámi self-government during the Late Imperial (1822–1917), Soviet (1917–1991) and Federal (1992–) Eras of Russian history, comparing them to developments in the country's general indigenous minority policy. Since the Soviet Era, indigenous minority policy has been delimited to a subset of the country's actual indigenous nations – smaller groups traditionally involved in certain rural economic activities. State paternalism, the framing of indigenous minority policy as giving aid to weak groups, is a constant trait of Russian indigenous minority policy. This paternalism has been channelled towards different goals at different times – the building of Communist nations, assimilation, or traditionalist preservationism. Indigenous minority policy has generally been weakly institutionalized, and its interests come into conflict with stronger actors who anchor their political activity in northern economic development and state security. Different forms of territorial autonomy have been practiced throughout the period, non-territorial arrangements becoming more common only in the Federal Era. Russian Sámi politics generally match the national trends but are a case of particularly weak indigenous autonomy and participation. A very case-specific phenomenon is the Federal Era conflict over whether or not to import the Nordic Sámi Parliament model. Case-specifics are explained by the weak demographic position of the Russian Sámi, the lack of any significant symbolic connection between the province and its indigenous people, and the border-proximity and border-transcendence of the Sámi people, which has repeatedly been used to frame their activism as a security concern.

I examine kinematic disturbance of star-forming gas in nearby galaxies, as part of the SAMI Galaxy Survey (SGS) on the Anglo-Australian telescope. Analysis of the frequency, causes, and nature of local galaxy disturbance will contribute to understanding galaxy evolution, one of the foremost areas of study in modern astronomy. I calculate the fraction of galaxies within the SGS sample that are disturbed. A method based on kinemetry is used to measure the asymmetry in the gas kine- matics for each galaxy. A kinematic asymmetry coefficient (vasym) is calculated, which clearly distinguishes between perturbed and normal galaxies. This is not the case for quantitative morphology coefficients G, M20, and A. Concentration of star formation and asymmetry are correlated, particularly for high stellar mass galaxies. There is an inverse link between vasym and stellar mass. Using data from the GAMA survey, it is found that the link between vasym and stellar mass is stronger than any trends in distance to first nearest neighbour (d1). For high mass galaxies, there is an inverse trend between d1 and vasym, not lower stellar mass galaxies. That is, for low mass galaxies, internal gas dynamics drive vasym. The Tully-Fisher relation (TFR) for our sample is shown. The TFR covers 7.5 < log(M∗/M8) < 11.0, with increased scatter at lower log(M∗/M8). There is a strong link between vasym and scatter below the TFR. Several causes of scatter are examined, and a slit placed on our velocity maps to compare with existing analysis. Misalignment between the kinematic and photometric position angles (PA) is linked to asymmetry and a significant cause of scatter, when the simulated slit is placed along the photometric PA. This demonstrates an important means of identifying the cause of and, where necessary, minimising scatter, in future TFR studies.