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© Samiskt Informationscentrum |
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| Facts in brief |   |
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www.samer.se is bulging with knowledge and information. Here we have collected facts in brief. If you would like to learn more about any area you can look in the main menus. Sápmi The Sami live in four countries: Russia, Finland, Norway and Sweden. This large land area is called Sápmi. Sápmi extends over the whole of the northern part of the North Calotte area and into Russia, from the Kola Peninsula in the east to the Swedish province of Dalarna in the south. A map of Sápmi can be found in the menu to the left. How many? No census of the number of Sami living in Sápmi has been carried out for a very long time, and the figures that are generally given are therefore approximate. There are a total of around 70,000 Sami in the four countries, with 2,000 in Russia, 6,000 in Finland, 40,000 in Norway and 20,000 in Sweden. Indigenous population The Sami are one of the world's indigenous peoples. The common denominator for such people is that they have always lived in the same place, before the country was invaded or colonised. They have their own culture, language and customs that differ from those of the rest of society. Language The Sami have their own language, or in actual fact three: Eastern Sami, Central Sami and Southern Sami. These are also known as the main dialects. The three also include a number of different dialects or varieties. Northern Sami, Lule Sami, Southern Sami and Ume Sami are all spoken in Sweden. It is estimated that only 20,000 of the 70,000 Sami across the whole of the Sápmi region speak the Sami language. Most speak Northern Sami. Sami is a Finno-Ugric language. Trades Around ten percent of the Sami in Sweden are employed in reindeer husbandry. Traditional Sami trades also include handicrafts, hunting and fishing. More recent trades include tourism, media, art and music. History Two thousand years ago, the Roman Tacitus wrote for the first time about a people in the north that he called the Fenni. However, the history of the Sami goes back much further than this, and archaeological finds mean that their history is constantly being rewritten. The Sami's history also tells of the colonisation by the state authorities, taxation and forced conversion of the Sami to Christianity. Religion Nowadays, religion is no more or less important to the Sami than to everyone else in Sweden. Before Christianity, which in many places was introduced by force, the Sami had their own faith with a world view whereby the world was divided into three spheres: the underworld, the real world and the celestial world. All three worlds had their own gods and spirits. Human beings and animals inhabited the earthly world and the dead inhabited the underworld. The Laestadian revivalist movement played a major role in the conversion of the Sami to Christianity. Culture The traditional Sami costume is called the kolt. The appearance of the kolt varies according to where you come from, although all variants use the same colours: blue, red, yellow and green. The kolt is worn on ceremonious occasions. The Sami have their own flag and their own national anthem. Sami culture is a very broad concept, covering everything from music, literature and theatre to handicrafts, food and customs. Politics The organisational history of the Sami stretches back a hundred years, although the political parties were not formed until the creation of the Sami Parliament in 1993. The Sami Parliament is a publicly elected body and a state authority. Elections are held every four years. The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Consumer Affairs has overall responsibility for Sami issues from the Government's side. Senast ändrad: 2009-05-12 |
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