Sami History
A short history of the Sami culture and its people.
The first inhabitants of Sápmi advanced northward as the glaciers of the last Ice Age receded. It’s not clear whether these people were direct ancestors of the Sami, but the region has been inhabited for at least 10,000 years. Over the millennia that followed, the people of Sápmi survived as hunters, gatherers, and fishermen. The Sami share genetic and linguistic ties to the Finns, but there are genetically distinct populations within Sami culture itself. It is likely that their larger culture emerged as a blend of several groups sharing similar lifestyles. The snowy landscape made invasion difficult, so they rarely needed to fight or organize politically. They gained a reputation among early writers as elusive sorcerers, skating over the snow on wooden skis. Tacitus may have referred to them when he noted accounts of deer-hunting northern “Fenni.” The names “Lapp” and “Lapland” were first used by Norse outsiders in the Middle Ages. “Lapp” is now generally considered a derogatory term.
The Sami continued their traditional way of life until around the 1500s. Family groups followed herds of migrating reindeer from coastal mountain pastures in summer to lichen-covered plains in winter. By the end of the Middle Ages, however, their southern neighbors had begun looking north. The reindeer’s ancient migration paths now took the Sami across multiple borders, drawing taxes from all sides. They adapted in several ways. Some tamed their reindeer, reshaping migratory patterns and reducing their pasturage. Others settled into coastal communities, where they earned a living as traders, farmers, and fishermen. Still more lived in forests as trappers and limited reindeer herders. The Coastal Sami were often the first to convert to Christianity, due to their closer contact with European settlers. Mountain Sami nomads resisted conversion efforts up to the 17th century. This led to a religious crackdown in many areas. Sami communities saw their shaman drums burned and their children removed to be educated at state schools.
Land loss, silver mining, over-fishing, and dam construction all threatened the Sami way of life through the 20th century. For many decades, Sami people lived at the margins of their society, treated as a curiosity by scientists and tourists. This began to change in the 1970s, when Sami activists organized to protest the building of a dam across the Alta River. Their efforts fed a wider cultural revival, resulting in Sami parliaments in Norway, Sweden, and Finland. Today, about 10,000 Sami people continue to practice reindeer herding. They are part of a larger population of about 70,000 people who identify as Sami. Glimpses into the past are preserved in tourist destinations and on working reindeer farms. The majority, however, lead modern lifestyles as members of their parent nations.
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References
“History Articles.” Sami Culture, University of Texas, www.laits.utexas.edu/sami/dieda/history.htm.
Hund, Andrew J., ed. Antarctica and the Arctic Circle. Vol 1. ABC-CLIO. 2014.
Robinson, Michael P., Karim-Aly S. Kassam, and Leif Rantala. Sami Potatoes: Living with Reindeer and Perestroika. Bayeux Arts. 1998.
Sami Parliament. “The Sami: An Indigenous People in Sweden.” Samer, Samer.Se, www.samer.se/2137.
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