Search

Background: Medication for mental health problems represents a significant proportion of overall medication use and the prescription of psychotropic medicine has increased in many western countries over the last decades. Childhood violence (CV) is strongly associated with mental health problems, which in turn may increase the likelihood of being prescribed psychotropic medication. However, the association between CV and prescription of benzodiazepines (BDZ) and antidepressants is rarely described, and no such study has been performed among the Indigenous Sami people. Methods: Data from the SAMINOR 2 Questionnaire Survey (2012) was linked to the Norwegian Prescription Database. Information on filled prescriptions for BDZ and antidepressants in 2004–2019 was collected for 11,296 persons (55.8% women, 22.6% Sami). Gender-stratified chi-square tests and two-sample t-tests were used to test for differences between groups. Logistic regression was applied to investigate the association between CV and filled prescriptions for BDZ and antidepressants. Results: During the 16-year study period, 16.7% of all women filled at least one prescription for BDZ. The figures were significantly lower among Sami women (14.1%) compared to non-Sami women (17.4%) (p =.003). Among all women, 23.6% filled at least one prescription for antidepressants, with no difference between ethnic groups. Filled prescriptions among men were 10.0% and 14.2%, respectively, with no difference between ethnic groups. During each year, and in total, a significantly higher proportion of women exposed to CV received at least one prescription for BDZ and antidepressants, respectively, compared to women not exposed to CV, with no differences between ethnic groups. Among men, the pattern was similar. Conclusion: A lower proportion of Sami women filled prescriptions for BDZ than non-Sami women. Those who reported exposure to CV filled prescriptions for BDZ and antidepressants more often than those who did not report CV. There were no overall differences between Sami and non-Sami; the dispensing rates of antidepressants and BDZ were similar for Sami and non-Sami, and the effects of CV on the dispensing of antidepressants and BDZ were also similar. This study highlights the importance of preventing CV, and of identifying a history of CV when treating adults with mental health problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From the seventeenth century well into the twentieth violent stories depicting ancient conflicts between the Sámi and their neighbours circulated widely in and around Sápmi. Narratives about battles and raids were produced and consumed for different purposes by diverse narrators and audiences employing various media. This article investigates how these violent narratives became embedded in Swedish and Finnish colonialism in Sápmi between 1600 and 1900. It argues that the stories offered various groups a platform for discussing issues troubling them in their own colonial present. Three themes were of pivotal importance to the storytellers and their audiences: the meaning of colonial conquest, Sámi survivance, and the boundaries separating Sámi from non-Sámi. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lisbeth Bergh's nonfiction picturebook En lappefamilie: tekst og bilder fra Nordland (A Lappish family: text and pictures from Nordland) from 1905 is one of the first Norwegian nonfiction picturebooks for children about the life of Sámi. It contains Bergh's own illustrations and text passages in Norwegian, English, and German, which signals that the book addresses a national and international audience. Simultaneously, the book is published in an era characterized by an increasing interest in indigenous tourism, demonstrated through the popularity of world exhibitions and «human zoos». In this article, I explore Bergh's nonfiction picturebook in the light of "human zoos" and "living exhibitions" at the beginning of the 1900s and how her book alludes to the depiction of the Sámi for entertainment and information purposes. My close reading shows how the book reflects the categorization and systematization of the world and of exotic ethnic groups at the time. Furthermore, the reading confirms the book's very distinctive position in Norwegian children's literature history, and how it may have acquired a particular role in the promotion of Norwegian tourism at the beginning of the 20th century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Circumpolar Indigenous People, such as the Sámi, confront significant challenges stemming from environmental shifts and interrelated issues, profoundly affecting their mental health. Nonetheless, they possess invaluable knowledge and capabilities to navigate and adapt to these transformations. This review aims to investigate peer-reviewed scientific literature, exploring the nexus between environmental changes and mental well-being within the broader Circumpolar Indigenous community, with a special focus on the Sámi People. Conducting a systematic literature review with two arms, one encompassing the broader Circumpolar Indigenous population and the other focusing specifically on the Sámi, followed by thematic analysis, we delved into their experiences of environmental changes, perceptions regarding the intertwining of environmental shifts and mental well-being, and insights into protective factors and resilience-promoting elements. By engaging with Indigenous perspectives, public health initiatives can pinpoint and leverage existing strengths within Indigenous communities and families to bolster their ability to navigate environmental shifts and safeguard mental well-being. However, our review highlighted a lack of scientific investigation of 'strength-based' factors fostering mental resilience among Indigenous populations inhabiting the Circumpolar North, such as the Sámi. Future qualitative research can address this gap, incorporating the viewpoints of individual Circumpolar Indigenous groups to explore both their distinctiveness and interconnectedness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: To assess the association between experiences of discrimination and mental health among the Sámi population in Sweden. Methods: Cross-sectional study among the self-identified Sámi population living in Sweden in 2021, registered in the electoral roll of the Sámi Parliament, the reindeer mark register and the 'Labour statistics based on administrative sources'. The analysis was based on a final sample of 3658 respondents aged between 18 and 84 years. Adjusted prevalence ratios aPRs for psychological distress (Kessler scale), self-reported anxiety and depression were estimated for four different forms of discrimination (direct experience of discrimination, offended because of ethnicity, historical trauma, and combined discrimination). Results: Higher aPRs of psychological distress, anxiety and depression were observed in women experiencing direct discrimination because of their ethnicity, having been offended because of their ethnicity, and those with a family history of discrimination. Among men, higher aPRs for psychological distress were observed in those experiencing the four different forms of discrimination, but not for anxiety. Depression was only detected in the case of having been offended. Adding experiences of discrimination was associated with a higher prevalence of negative outcomes for all the indicators in women and for psychological distress in men. Conclusions: The observed association between experiences of discrimination and mental health problems would support a gender approach when considering ethnic discrimination in public health policies concerning the Sámi in Sweden. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The construction, decoration, and use of Sámi drums within Sámi culture is examined with reference to the painted drums of two Sámi artists: Peter Armstrand and Elli-Maaret Helander. In their art, bear and sun symbolism, both past and present, are used as resources for constructing Sámi cultural landscapes. The artists' practices are discussed in relation to their perspectives on identity, memory, and the reuse and transmission of cultural heritage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork among the Lulesámi, a subgroup of the indigenous Sámi of northern Fennoscandia, this article explores the relationship between indigenous identity and dress. The gáppte, traditional dress, is a central visual marker of the Sámi, yet on a personal and everyday basis this symbolism enters into dialogue, and sometimes conflict, with people's life experiences, emotions, interests and expectations. Understandings and experiences of the gáppte are placed within a context in which the Sámi community at times is experienced as fragmented and where a history of colonialism and discrimination has left lasting imprints. As shown in the article, narrations of dress unfold how relationships that for long have been marked by oppression and discrimination raise specific forms of awareness as well as questions around what constitutes the self, and how such self can or should be expressed. Through ten different perspectives of the gáppte, the article reveals how different ways of being Sámi become negotiated and materialized through dress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a changing territorial and geopolitical moment of the Arctic region, are the Indigenous Peoples Organizations heard at the regional level and are the Arctic states working to keep them safe and secure? To safeguard the human security of Arctic Indigenous peoples, Arctic states (and their governments) have to understand the needs and changes that are affecting their way of life as well as to be able to cooperate between them. In a comparative study of Canada's and Finland's Arctic policies--Canada's Arctic and Northern Policy Framework (2019) and Finland's Strategy for Arctic Policy (2021)--it is possible to identify the applicability of the human security approach, which is influenced by the truth and reconciliation process between Canada and Inuit and Finland and Sámi. This process is a main factor in having their human rights respected and their human security safeguarded, considering that the relation between the countries of the North and the South of the Arctic countries is a discovery of their diversity (linguistical and cultural) in the 21st century. In my perspective, and for a participative democracy to be applied as mentioned by the green political theory (following the views of scholars like Barry, Eckersley, and Goodin), states and governments need to be open and recognise the gaps identified by those communities and transnational organisations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Field theory as a concept entered scientific discourse in the midnineteenth century. Yet the essential features of a field long predate discoveries about the physical properties and behavior of matter. The paper briefly describes ancient esoteric precursors to scientific field theory, including the Hermetic tradition and archetypal astrology, before turning to twentieth-century sociological field theories and their elemental idea of subjectivity and intersubjectivity. Jungian psychology is a field theory, expanding the limits of sociology in important ways. The paper adopts a somatic archetypal perspective to argue that intersubjectivity, the basis of sociological and psychological field theories, is inadequate. Instead, depth psychologists should embrace intercorporeality, the more embodied, holistic field theory originating in the work of Husserl and Merleau-Ponty. The paper concludes with a discussion of nekyia to illustrate how an intercorporeal field theory can include the underworld in world mythologies. The inverted cosmic geography of one tradition, the Sámi, gives new meaning to numinous encounters with one's ancestors and spirit guides. Such encounters intertwine the subtle energy bodies of the personal and transpersonal worlds, a meeting one can imagine as soul to sole, not just soul to soul. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study is the first to investigate the prevalence of filled opioid prescriptions among indigenous Sami people with self-reported chronic musculoskeletal pain (CMSP) and compare it with that of non-Sami living in the same area. Baseline data from the SAMINOR 2 Questionnaire Survey (2012) was linked prospectively to the Norwegian Prescription Database. Information on filled opioid prescriptions during 2012–2019 was collected for 4767 persons who reported CMSP in SAMINOR 2. Gender-stratified chi-square tests, two-sample t-tests, Kruskal – Wallis tests, and multinomial logistic regression was applied. Two out of three CMSP respondents received no or only one prescription of opioids during 2012–2019. In each year, 80% of women received no opioids, 7–10% received one prescription of ≤ 180 defined daily doses (DDD), 8–9% received in total ≤ 180 DDD in two or more prescriptions, and 2–3% received > 180 DDD of opioids. Among men, 81–83% received no opioids, 8–11% received one prescription with ≤ 180 DDD, 5–9% received ≤ 180 DDD in two or more prescriptions, and 1–2% received > 180 DDD of opioids in a single year. There were no overall ethnic differences, which indicates a similar prescription policy for opioids for Sami and non-Sami with CMSP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Indigenous Sámi have poorer mental health than the majority population and fairly equal access to professional mental healthcare. Despite this condition, certain studies indicate that this group is underrepresented among the users of such services. Religion or spirituality (R/S) often influences mental health-service utilisation and satisfaction among other Indigenous peoples and ethnic minorities. Thus, this study examines the situation in Sámi-Norwegian areas. We utilised cross-sectional data from the population-based SAMINOR 2 Questionnaire Survey (2012; subsample n = 2,364; 71% non-Sámi) in mixed Sámi-Norwegian regions of Northern and Central Norway. We analysed the associations between R/S factors and past-year mental health-service utilisation and satisfaction among individuals reporting mental health problems, substance use, or addictive behaviours. Multivariable-adjusted regression models considering sociodemographic factors, including Sámi ethnicity, were applied. Religious attendance was significantly associated with infrequent past-year use of mental health services (OR = 0.77) and fewer mental health problems, indicating that the R/S fellowship may buffer mental distress and represent an alternative psychological support to professional services. R/S was not significantly associated with lifetime mental health-service satisfaction. We found no ethnic differences in service utilisation or satisfaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Traditional medicine has been practised for millennia in the Sámi population, based on a Sámi worldview and cosmology, which includes natural remedies, prayers, drums and yoik singing. During the Christianisation of the Sámi during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, these practices were condemned. In recent years, however, a revival of Sámi culture has occurred and so has the practice of Sámi traditional medicine (STM) and the use of complementary alternative medicine (CAM). The aim of this study is to map the prevalence and use of STM and CAM among Sámi in Sweden today. The study population consisted of 3641 Sámi from the whole of Sweden, who had participated in the population-based cross-sectional survey Sámi Health on Equal Terms (SámiHET) in 2021. Our results show that women are more prone to use both STM and CAM than men and that younger persons are more likely to use STM and CAM than elderly persons. STM is more often used in the northern parts of Sápmi compared to the southern parts as well as a lower use of CAM in the north. This might be due to the stronger Sámi identity and easier access to traditional Sámi healers/helpers in the north as well as limited access to CAM services [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this population-based cross-sectional study was to assess the prevalence of healthcare avoidance during the COVID-19 pandemic and its associated factors among the Sámi population in Sweden. Data from the "Sámi Health on Equal Terms" (SámiHET) survey conducted in 2021 were used. Overall, 3,658 individuals constituted the analytical sample. Analysis was framed using the social determinants of health framework. The association between healthcare avoidance and several sociodemographic, material, and cultural factors was explored through log-binomial regression analyses. Sampling weights were applied in all analyses. Thirty percent of the Sámi in Sweden avoided healthcare during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sámi women (PR: 1.52, 95% CI: 1.36–1.70), young adults (PR: 1.22, 95% CI:1.05–1.47), Sámi living outside Sápmi (PR: 1.17, 95% CI: 1.03–1.34), and those having low income (PR: 1.42, 95% CI:1.19–1.68) and experiencing economic stress (PR: 1.48, 95% CI: 1.31–1.67) had a higher prevalence of healthcare avoidance. The pattern shown in this study can be useful for planning future pandemic responses, which should address healthcare avoidance, particularly among the identified vulnerable groups, including the active participation of the Sámi themselves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the mandates of the Norwegian Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) is to contribute to reconciliation between the majority population and the Sámi and Kven population. The Commission is tasked to create greater equality between the majority and minority populations as well as increasing the knowledge about the Sámi and Kven population in the majority. In this paper, we will focus on the Sámi indigenous people. We will examine three aspects: first, the assumption that the reconciliation should be between the majority population and the Sámi population rather than between the State and the population targeted by the Norwegianisation policies. Second, how such a reconciliation between the State and the Sámi is possible when there are ongoing conflicts over the use of land and water, exemplified by the Fosen windmill case. Finally, the TRC believes that a common understanding of the Norwegianisation policies and its consequences will lay the foundation for a continued reconciliation between the Sámi and the majority population. The paper discusses the involvement of the majority population in the process as well as the issues of public hearings and reparations. By means of an interdisciplinary examination of the Norwegian TRC, this paper presents sociological and legal perspectives. It draws on research from Latin American TRC s, particularly the Peruvian TRC, and thereby offers comparative perspectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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. 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. 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. 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. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues that the multimodal enactment of affect plays a key role in the commodification of indigenous cultures. Departing from an understanding of affect as integral to discourse, the paper investigates how indigenous cultures are construed as an object of consumerist desire by employing subject formation, strategic perspectivation and affordance as conceptual starting points. As a case in point, affective meaning-making is studied as it is semiotically materialized in the commodification of Sámi culture by the predominant actor in marketing indigenous experiences in Sweden. By pondering the social force of affective meaning-making from the perspective of the perceived consumer, the analysis reveals that consumers are invited to affectively encounter the Sámi through curiosity, tranquility and excitement. However, the paper contends that the representations not only enable positive emotions; they also work their social force by constraining engagement in any disturbing, conflicting or uncomfortable emotions that are associated with the post-colonial heritage of the Sámi. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Of the 158 million things housed by the Smithsonian Institution, about 56 objects originate from Sámi communities. By all accounts a small group of objects—even by the standards of the Arctic collections at the Institution—it may be easily overlooked or dismissed as insignificant, based on entrenched ideologies about idealized collections. Presenting a community‐based methodology for the engagement of distant museum collections using three‐dimensional technologies, this article establishes the latent potential of small collections for Indigenous communities. We demonstrate how a group of 56 objects not only chronicles complex histories of exchange and colonialism, but also provides a manageable conduit for learning and exchange to facilitate the continued restructuring of relationships between museums and descendent stakeholders, from the individual to community level. Small collections, far from incomplete, may not only contain materials significant to descendent groups on their own terms, but provide the grounds to generate new forms of Indigenous initiated, balanced reciprocity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study focuses on how teaching is affected when two cultures meet: the Sámi culture, represented by the lávvu, and the culture of teaching mathematics in a school. It describes the use of the lávvu (a Sámi temporary dwelling) as a classroom for teaching mathematics. For several years, and in cooperation with researchers, the teachers at the Guovdageaidnu Lower Secondary Schoolg have been developing interdisciplinary teaching content related to Sámi traditional knowledge. The findings of this study describe how tenth-grade students taught younger students. The empirical data used in this study originated from students' teaching in lávvues and consisted of audio recordings, field notes, and notes from conversations between the authors. The teaching was carried out at another Sámi school for students of the same age and younger. The organization of the teaching and the teaching itself can be seen as a hybrid of Sámi child rearing and the ordinary teaching occurring in Sámi schools in Norway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Babylon Center for Humanities Studies is the property of Republic of Iraq Ministry of Higher Education & Scientific Research (MOHESR) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This article explores Sámi mobilities and immobilities within colonial power dynamics. Discussing voluntary and involuntary Sámi mobilities across borders, it also touches on Sámi early modern material objects in motion, as well as the collecting and exchange of Sámi ancestral remains. Recent homecomings of Sámi material culture and ancestral remains – as part of cultural revitalisation, repatriation and decolonisation processes – illustrate the development of new mobilities and power dynamics. Challenging colonial notions of Sámi people as being bound to the perceived traditional Sámi domains, as well as the nationalist cartographies projected in much of earlier research, this article aims to stimulate a rethinking of Sámi mobility and agency, and the right to make a home. Acknowledging and examining the mobility and the homemaking of Sámi individuals and groups contributes to a deeper understanding of the complexities and transformations of Nordic colonialism, and ideas of borders, identities and belonging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our aim is to investigate how Sámi early childhood education and care institutions (ECECs) contextualise their work to support psychosocial well-being among children aged 4–6. We have conducted seven qualitative interviews among ECEC educators. Using Stepwise Deductive Induction (SDI) analysis we found that Sámi ECECs contextualise their work to support psychosocial well-being among children by constantly balancing between dealing with the possible consequences of Norwegianisation and the assimilation process from the past and highlighting Sámi culture in a positive way. In practice the staff try to support the children’s positive sense of self, recognition and feeling a sense of belonging to the Sámi culture. They also strive to contextualise Sámi practices in terms of today’s society and adjust to the present group of staff, children, and parents to ensure the children’s well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores 'late justice' in the context of settler democracies with a history of racism, using Norway as a case study. It examines the background for the Norwegian Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), established by the Norwegian Parliament in 2018 to investigate the consequences of historical and ongoing assimilation of the indigenous Sami people and two national minorities. I argue that although the Norwegian TRC was established in direct response to an initiative from the Sami Parliament, its successful creation was a result of political negotiations involving a series of actors, including Sami activists, mainstream politicians and various interest organizations. The protagonists pushing for a truth commission were in turn encouraged and inspired by a global focus on transitional justice, truth commissions and indigenous rights. Based on a desk study, interviews and media reports, and applying a theoretical framework emphasizing agency and norm diffusion, I argue that while the Norwegian TRC has explicitly used truth commissions elsewhere in the world – particularly the Canadian TRC – as models, it is quite unique in terms of mandate and design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights has been a part of Norwegian law since 1999. It has, however, been of greater importance in the political sphere than in the courts. In the fall of 2021, the Supreme Court of ruled that the construction of two wind power plants were violating the rights of Indigenous Sámi reindeer herders pursuant to the Article 27 ICCPR. In the presentation, the Supreme Court's use of Article 27 is analysed in order to determine its impact on protecting Indigenous rights in Norway, including where the threshold for violation lays when interference in Sámi reindeer husbandry areas take place. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines Rievssat (2018), one of the six games developed during the 2018 Sami Game Jam, as a case study to demonstrate how digital games on Indigenous issues afford opportunities to embed Indigenous ways of knowing into the core of game design. In particular, by exploring Rievssat's themes and game mechanics, this article identifies the way its procedural rhetoric models an understanding of and relationship to the game environment that reflects the dialogic connection with nature and animistic worldview unique to the Sámi people. This article thereby demonstrates the value of new media in recentering Indigenous systems of knowledge and cultural practices by engaging with and incorporating Indigenous epistemologies into the foundation of game design, revealing how Sámi digital games can offer insight into Sámi ways of knowing and experiencing the world to Indigenous and non-Indigenous players alike. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: This study aims to estimate the prevalence of intimate partner violence (IPV) and its association with psychological distress and symptoms of post-traumatic stress (PTS) among Sami and non-Sami and to explore whether the association between IPV and mental health is modified by exposure to childhood violence (CV). These issues are scarcely studied among the Sami. Methods: This study was based on the cross-sectional SAMINOR 2 Questionnaire Survey, a part of the Population-based Study on Health and Living Conditions in Regions with Sami and Norwegian Populations (SAMINOR). Chi-square tests and two-sample t -tests were used to test differences between groups. Multiple linear regression analysis was applied to explore the association between IPV/CV and continuous scores of psychological distress and symptoms of post-traumatic stress. Results: Experiences of IPV (emotional, physical, and/or sexual) were reported by 12.8% of women and 2.0% of men. A significantly higher proportion of Sami women reported exposure to emotional (12.4 v. 9.5%, p = 0.003), physical (11.6 v. 6.9%, p < 0.001), and any IPV (17.2 v. 11.8%, p < 0.001) compared to non-Sami women. There were no ethnic differences in sexual IPV among women (2%). Exposure to IPV was associated with a higher score of psychological distress and PTS and was highest among those exposed to both IPV and CV. Conclusions: Sami women reported the highest prevalence of IPV. The association between IPV/CV and mental health problems did not differ by ethnicity or gender. The most severe mental health problems were observed for those who were exposed to both IPV and CV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Slagmark is the property of Aarhus University, Department of Philosophy & History of Ideas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

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. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article addresses cultural and other forms of appropriation related to tourism in the Sámi areas of Norway (Sápmi). Tourists are chasing and consuming otherness – places, culture and nature different from their home environments. Thus, exposures of arts, culture, nature and places are vital parts of tourism production. Within this context, indigenous cultures are praised. When the use of land and culture is conducted by those from outside the culture, appropriation take place, and it is shown how this occurs in different ways within Sámi tourism. The article is based on a Nordic research project, where the relations between tourism and Sámi culture were addressed. Tourism providers were interviewed. Through these conversations, cultural appropriation came up as one of the challenging issues. Some of the topics and examples given are referred to in the empirical part of the article. The interview data are supplemented by observations and media clips from recent years. In the discussion part, ambiguities, ambivalences, and complexities related to the tourism–culture nexus are discussed. The article is a contribution to this discourse, addressing issues to be aware of, both in the production and the analysis of indigenous tourism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Russia is among the top ten nations in terms of smoking prevalence. Little is known about smoking rates among Indigenous Peoples in Russia. Our aim was to assess the prevalence of tobacco and nicotine product use among Kola peninsula Sámi. An exploratory cross-sectional survey was conducted to determine tobacco or nicotine product use among 505 Sámi people (about 30% of the whole Sámi population of Russia). Over 60% of participants had tried tobacco or nicotine products. Median age of first use was 15 years, with cigarettes being the most frequent first product tried and the most common type of product used currently. About a third of participants used a tobacco or nicotine product at least occasionally; 25% (predominantly males) smoked at least occasionally with 23.8% smoking daily. Of participants who smoked, 52.5% scored medium and 44.2% scored high on the Heaviness of Smoking Index. Seventeen percent of participants smoked formerly but not currently. Like some other Indigenous Peoples, Kola Sámi in Russia have a higher smoking prevalence than the average among the Russian population. Interest in a smoking cessation mobile app designed for the Sámi population suggests that such an intervention could help to reduce this inequity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Sámi people, a northern indigenous people, have a statutory right to receive social and health services, which should take cultural characteristics into consideration. Cultural sensitivity is integral to the ethical principles of social and health care; however, based on previous research, the Sámi’s cultural rights have not been recognised. To reinforce their language rights and develop culturally sensitive health care, research is needed to determine what Sámi cultural characteristics mean to Sámi people’s well-being. The aim of this study was to describe and understand the meaning of cultural characteristics to the well-being of different generations of Sámi. In this research two Sámi experts described what the Sámi language, costume and food meant to them from a well-being perspective. Data-driven content analysis was applied to their responses. During everyday life, to the Sámi their cultural characteristics represent safety, awareness of one’s roots, inner strength, the ability to be oneself, continuity, and communality. These meanings are interconnected with changing environment for the different generations and reflect Sámi people’s lived experiences. Consideration of their cultural characteristics in the provision of social and health care will support the Sámi peoples´ integrity and cultural uniqueness, empowering both individual Sámi and their society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patient accessible electronic health records (PAEHR) has been implemented in the Norwegian public health care system since 2015. In Norway the indigenous minority is the Sámi people. Studies show that lingual and cultural competence of the health professionals can affect Sámi patients’ user satisfaction with the health care system. A qualitative study was conducted to gather experience of PAEHR in mental health care for Sámi patients. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with five participants, who self-identified as Sámi, had experience as patients in mental health care, and had used the PAEHR service. The material was transcribed and coded and categorised using the framework method. Finally, the data was analysed using theoretic thematic analysis. The participants reported that the service was particularly helpful in identifying misunderstandings caused by different cultural perceptions between the patient and the therapist. Difficulties with Norwegian as written language in the journal were uncovered. The participants were ambiguous on whether cultural characteristics scold be recorded in the journal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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-existingregisters: 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. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the discursive construction of nature as represented by the Swedish TV documentary Tvångsförflyttningar – Bággojohtin, which narrates the history of forced displacements of the indigenous people of Sami in northern Sweden in the early 20th century. Our discursive-material analysis highlights the role of nature in these displacements, and how, in these tragic historical developments, nature was regulated by the antagonistically positioned discursive frameworks of the state and the Sami, both of which, in very different ways, sought to integrate it into their respective systems of meaning. By bringing attention to the interconnection of the discursive and the material, we argue that nature, through a series of subversive acts, resisted both the environmental governmentality of the state and the counter-hegemonic environmental knowledge of the Sami. Thus, the article contributes to the understanding of the multiple discursive struggles around flora and fauna, but also nature's own agency and voice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research has indicated that Indigenous Sami families in Norway use public home-based care services less often than their non-Sami peers. Based on qualitative interviews with Sami family caregivers, we explore what they experience as barriers to accessing public care services for older adults living with dementia, and how they experience collaborating with care services providers. Through a reflexive thematic approach, we identified that rather than a cultural norm of "taking care of one's own," the underuse of public care services among Sami families were related to several intertwined circumstances. The Sami family caregivers reported barriers to accessing public care, such as lack of familiarity with the services and cultural and language concerns and the legacy of history, and drivers for continuing family care, such as blurred distribution of responsibility, lack of continuity of care, and culturally unsafe caring environments and marginalizing practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, I explore how haunting as a theoretical concept is useful for analyzing the emotional effects of colonization and forced assimilation of the Sámi, the Indigenous people in Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia. While some still find it difficult to talk about what it means for them to be Sámi today, telling stories about hauntings is paradoxically something that they do more easily. Through theories concerning affect, emotions and haunting, I explore how these stories represent something more than elements of the Sámi religion. The act of telling these stories can also be analyzed as metaphors for both a continued connection that people have to the landscapes and their ancestors, and as a way of dealing with the emotional ambiguity of trying to find new ways of articulating a continuing Sámi presence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sámi/Finnish artist Marja Helander's lyrical short film Eatnanvuloš lottit (Birds in the Earth, 2018, 10′ 40″, single channel) captures two young ballerinas as they glide through the Nordic landscape and eventually arrive at the Parliament in Helsinki. Without dialogue and thoroughly visual and musical, Helander's film raises the voices of the Indigenous Sámi peoples yearning for self-determination and land rights in Sápmi, their lands crossing the northern regions of Finland, Russia, Sweden, and Norway. The film juxtaposes Western and Indigenous sounds and images, using the singing tradition of yoik and the Sami garments worn known as gákti. Indigenous signifiers and myths confront Western meaning-making, especially the tourism industry in Finland. The article argues that the film disobediently escapes Western co-optation by opening spaces for Sámi identities and remembrance. Birds in the Earth points to contested political sites and insists on local land rights and the political rights of the Sámi. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article investigates gender variation and change in the grammatical gender system of the indrefinnmarksmål dialect. The interior of Finnmark county, Indre Finnmark, has historically been closely linked to the Finno-Ugric population. The coexistence of Norwegian as a representative of the Indo-European languages and Sámi or Kven as representatives of the Uralic languages may have resulted in several specific features. In this article, I focus on morphological features related to grammatical gender. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper will explain the concept of double perspective and the impact that this cultural understanding may have on the health of the Indigenous peoples of Scandinavia. In inter-cultural communication, one set of meanings may be discernible to the outsider while a whole extra set of restricted or underlying meanings are only accessible for those people who have the cultural knowledge to discern them. These different sets of meanings embody a double perspective. It is not dual perspectives on the same reality but rather seeing two separate but overlapping realities. We will discuss the layers of meaning which are involved in the interactions between public healthcare institutions, clinicians and staff, and Indigenous people including the Sámi. These interactions are influenced by the impact of colonization and the ongoing epistemicide of Indigenous thought. By realising the improved resilience that a double perspective brings to Indigenous peoples, an awareness of the inclusion and exclusion of Indigenous persons, cultures and histories should become established in public institutions and in everyday life. A double perspective carries Sámi resilience, and should be understood as a key to support individual health, and also the collective wellbeing of a people living on their traditional yet colonized land. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article investigates a semiotic phenomenon within the global fashion industry: the branding of designer jeans as 'authentic' and 'genuinely local', focusing on the Swedish brand Sarva. Drawing on a social semiotics approach, the authors see authenticity as a discursive construct and look at the ways in which Sarva authenticate their jeans as Sámi in multimodal texts. The aim is: (1) to reveal how places and narratives are commodified in texts that accompany the jeans; and (2) to explore how authenticity is materially instantiated in the jeans by using different resources. The article focuses on the connotative provenance and affordances of different semiotic materials for the rendering of authenticity. The analysis of the jeans as semiotic entities reveals how the thickness of the garment, texture and leather details, and the choice of materials, languages as well as iconography, evoke ideas about historical and local 'Sáminess', whilst at the same time indexing a global ideology that regiments what quality jeans are. The analysis shows how authenticity can be reinvented and relocated in ways that allow a commodity to travel between the local and the global. It also shows how this movement is not neutral or straightforward, but rooted in power relations that underlie globalization and advanced capitalism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Preaspiration of voiceless stops is a well-known feature of the phonological systems of the Sámi languages, as in Northern Sámi [jahki] jahki 'year'. In some form, it is found in all Sámi varieties that we have records of, with the sole exception of Inari Sámi. We also possess a good understanding of how Sámi preaspiration is related to the consonant gradation systems of other Uralic languages, in particular those of the Finnic varieties. Present-day Sámi languages differ somewhat in the role that preaspirated stops play in their phonological systems. In this paper I outline how this variation arose in the course of the historical development from Proto-Sámi to the present-day languages. I propose a scenario grounded in the life cycle of phonological processes (Kiparsky 1995, Bermúdez-Otero 2007, 2015). I argue that this framework is especially well suited to clarifying diverse developments of phonetic and phonological patterns from a common historical source, and is applicable also to Sámi material. I justify this approach by tracing the development of preaspiration from a phonetic rule of Proto-Sámi to the various outcomes attested in the present-day languages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examine the problem of the double taxation of the Sámi of the Kola Peninsula, who were in the dual tax jurisdiction of Denmark and the Russian state in the sixteenth – early seventeenth centuries. The origin of double taxation is associated with the unestablished borders in the Far North of Europe: each country considered Finnmark and the Kola Peninsula as part of its sphere of influence. We conclude that the double taxation of the Sámi of the Kola Peninsula was started in the second half of the sixteenth century as a consequence of the escalation of the conflict between the two states. Denmark and Russia used taxation as a means of fighting for disputed territories. In the 1590s, Denmark drove out Russian tax collectors from Finnmark. At the beginning of the seventeenth century, the Russian state took similar measures, prohibiting Danish tax collectors from entering the territory of the Kola district. Nevertheless, the double taxation of the Sámi of the Kola Peninsula with Danish and Russian tax persisted even after the introduction of a ban on entry into the disputed lands. This measure was a compromise, hindering the development of a possible military conflict with the Danish kingdom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global warming is accelerating, thus irreversibly changing the human environment, and most of the measures taken to halt this phenomenon seem to be the result of wishful thinking. Policies meant to combat climate change fail to bring about the desired effect. Arctic indigenous peoples are particularly vulnerable to climate change, and their cultural identity is under threat. However, owing to the actions taken by state authorities and European Union institutions, there is a chance that the Sami languages will be preserved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given the higher suicide rates among the adult population in the northernmost part of Norway and some unfavourable psychosocial outcomes associated with the Laestadian revival movement in this region, it is reasonable to investigate the relationship between religiosity/spirituality and suicidal behaviour in this context. This study used cross-sectional data from the population-based SAMINOR 2 questionnaire survey (2012; n = 11,222; 66% non-Sámi; 22% Laestadian-affiliated; 27% response rate) in mixed Sámi-Norwegian areas of Mid and North Norway. We analysed the associations between religious/spiritual factors and lifetime suicidal ideation and attempts, age at the first attempt, motives, and number of attempts. Multivariable-adjusted regression models considering sociodemographics, Sámi background and self-ascription, and health-related risk factors were applied. Sámi and Laestadian affiliations were significantly associated with religious self-ascription, regular attendance, and Established Church membership. In a fully adjusted model, Laestadian family background was negatively associated with lifetime suicide attempts (OR = 0.66, 95% CI: 0.47–0.93) compared with other family circumstances, whereas regular religious participation was inversely associated with suicide ideation (OR = 0.74, 95% CI: 0.61–0.91) compared with non- or rare attendance. The findings suggest that Laestadianism and religious attendance contribute to less suicidal behaviour among adults in Sámi-Norwegian areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The Sami people is an indigenous minority population living in the northern parts of Norway and mainly in rural areas. We lack data of contemporary levels of physical activity (PA) in rural regions of Northern Norway and in the Sami population in particular. We aimed to describe the PA levels and investigate whether PA levels differs between Sami and non-Sami and between coastal and inland areas.Methods: We used data from the second survey of the Population-based Study on Health and Living Conditions in Regions with Sami and Norwegian Populations - the SAMINOR 2 Clinical Survey (2012-2014) that includes the adult population in 10 municipalities in the counties Troms, Finnmark and Nordland. Participants self-reported on PA, ethnicity and modifiable lifestyle factors. Twelve thousand four hundred fifty-five individuals were invited with a response rate of 48.2% (n = 6004 participants). We tested differences using chi-square tests, two sample t-tests and linear regression models.Results: Among 5628 participants, 41.1 and 40.9% of men and women, respectively, were defined as Sami. We found no ethnic differences in PA in men overall. However, Sami men living in Tana, and Nesseby reported higher PA compared to non-Sami men in the same area. For Sami women there was overall lower PA levels compared to non-Sami women, especially pronounced in Kautokeino/ Karasjok.Conclusion: This study showed small differences in PA levels between Sami and non-Sami men. Sami women had lower PA levels compared to their non-Sami counterparts. It is important to identify whether there are differences in various ethnic populations, together with other predictors for PA in future planning of public health interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sport and identity are closely interrelated; sport creates identity and identity creates sport. This is also the case in the development of Sámi sport, as the Indigenous Sámi population in the north of Finland, Sweden and Norway has used sport to contribute to (re)building Sámi identity for over 40 years. This sporting identity has been based on an essentialized past, portraying Sámi culture and identity as being indistinguishably linked to Sámi reindeer husbandry culture. By deploying sports such as reindeer racing, lasso throwing and cross-country skiing, the Sámi sport association has painted a picture of Sáminess as a unique identity distinctly different from Norwegian culture and identity. Gayatri Spivak uses the term strategic essentialism to explain how Indigenous people and minority groups can create and use specific historical traits and traditions in their political struggle for recognition and self-respect. Sámi sport is an example of Spivak's theory – the Sámi sports movement has been deployed to create greater self-esteem amongst the Sámi and to promote greater political rights. The Sámi sport movement has developed a Sámi sporting identity across (at least) three intertwined dimensions: an ethnic identity dimension, a national identity dimension and an indigenous identity dimension. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article asks, "How can indigenous media fulfill its obligations toward the indigenous population while also connecting with the majority?" In the entertainment television series Muitte mu, produced by the indigenous public service broadcaster NRK Sápmi in Norway, famous Norwegian artists learn to joik, a Sámi form of music. Muitte mu triggered a discussion concerning cultural appropriation and commercialization, as well as the traditionalist versus pragmatic and interethnic views of indigenous cultural expressions. One of NRK Sápmi's goals is to share content about the Sámi, and, in a market-oriented media environment, the series uses Sámi iconography and celebrities to fulfill this goal. However, this approach does not necessarily resonate with its main obligation, which is to provide programming for the Sámi people. What is at stake in these debates are the credibility, relevance, and legitimacy of NRK Sápmi, all of which depend upon the recognition of the Sámi themselves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The applicability of Indigenous ethics to the evaluation of ecological restoration is explored through two case examples involving the Indigenous Sámi rivers of Näätämö and Ponoi in the European North. Six key restoration approaches are described that would have been overlooked had it not been for the use of Indigenous ethics from the start of the work. The detection of rapidly proceeding climate change impacts and species range shifts, algae blooms, documentation of gendered coastal lifestyles, and ultimately the ecological restoration of salmonid habitats were recognized as critical markers of success when these approaches were practiced, lived and cherished by all members of the cogovernance community. This article asks critical questions about the role of Indigenous knowledge and rights within comanagement and environmental evaluations and makes the case for land-based lifestyles as vehicles for maintaining distinct, culturally relevant ethics processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sudden outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic influenced many aspects of film production, which is especially visible in the example of local cinematographies. In this article, I investigate pandemic influence on depicting homeland, memory and locality in Sámi short films. The primary concern in the pre-2000 Sámi short films was the marginalization of Sámi culture, as well as tradition-modernization oppositions. However, in the productions from 2020, a switch into the discourse about the homeland and coping with pandemic in the far north is visible. In this article, I describe productions from 2020, dividing them into three thematic categories: films about the return to the homeland, films focusing on lockdown isolation and films based on genre conventions (such as comedy or horror), used for creating a discursive approach to pandemic. In the proposed article, I analyse Sámi films from the collection of International Sámi Film Institute, produced in Norway, Sweden or Finland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]