A Sacred Tree in the Boreal forest: A Narrative About a Sami Shaman, her Tree, and the Forest Landscape

Since the early nineteenth century, forest landscapes and socio-economic contexts have significantly changed in northernmost Sweden. These processes include agrarian colonisation, the Christianisation of the indigenous Sami people, and the transfer of land tenure. We aim to analyse how Sami religious practice manifested itself in a time of dramatic social transition in northern Sweden by focussing on the life and religious practice of a Sami woman known as the shaman Guoksik-gummo, 'the Lady of the Siberian Jay.' We analyse a range of historical records and one specific sacred tree related to her to understand this period better and illuminate the changes in land-use religious practice and landscape transformation between the early nineteenth century and the early twenty-first century. We conclude that better documentation, more vital protection by law of Sami cultural traces in northern landscapes, and better consultation with Sami are needed in the future

Quantifying Sami Settlement and Movement Patterns in Northern Sweden 1700–1900

The indigenous Sami people of northernmost Europe have developed unique adaptations that enable them to cope with harsh climate and subsist in low-productivity ecosystems. These adaptations have been shaped by both internal factors, such as demographic and traditional land-use systems, and external factors, such as colonization and national legislation. In this paper we interpret the quantitative impacts of land use by reindeer herders in a subarctic forest landscape in northern Sweden during the 18th and 19th centuries. We used archival sources (cameral and judicial documents and church records) together with environmental data to reconstruct past changes in population size and the spatial configuration of traditional Sami lands, which the Swedish state accepted and recognized as taxation units for several centuries up to the 19th century. The taxation lands encompassed several hundred square kilometres and featured distinct proportions of different vegetation types. We propose that these taxation lands were originally established so that each provided sufficient resources to support the subsistence of a Sami family, incorporating pastures for small-scale reindeer herding and opportunities for hunting and fishing within its borders. However, there were substantial differences in the resources they provided. Estimates of population density indicate that they may have been able to support 0.04–0.06 persons per km2. Unlike many other indigenous groups around the globe, the Sami interacted with the state and claimed their rights in court proceedings and were thus able to maintain strong recognition of their land tenure by the Swedish state until the late 19th century.Key words: northern Sweden, forest history, archaeology, archival sources, Sami, population changes, reindeer pastoralism, taxation lands, mountain birch, Scots pineLe peuple indigène des Samis de l’Extrême-Nord de l’Europe s’est adapté de manières uniques afin de faire face au climat difficile et de subsister dans des écosystèmes à faible productivité. Ces adaptations ont été façonnées à la fois par des facteurs internes tels que la composition démographique et les systèmes traditionnels d’utilisation de la terre, ainsi que par des facteurs externes tels que la colonisation et l’adoption de lois nationales. Dans le présent document, nous interprétons les incidences quantitatives de l’utilisation des terres par les pasteurs de rennes dans un paysage forestier subarctique situé dans le nord de la Suède aux XVIIIe et XIXe siècles. Nous nous sommes appuyés sur des sources archivées (documents caméraux et judiciaires ainsi que dossiers d’église) de même que sur des données environnementales pour identifier les anciennes variations de population et la configuration spatiale des terres traditionnelles des Samis, que l’État de la Suède a accepté et reconnu en tant que taxeurs pendant plusieurs siècles jusqu’au XIXe siècle. Les terres faisant l’objet d’une taxation s’étendaient sur plusieurs centaines de kilomètres carrés et englobaient des proportions distinctes de types de végétation différents. Nous laissons entendre que ces terres de taxation avaient été établies à l’origine pour que chaque terre fournisse des ressources suffisantes pour favoriser la subsistance d’une famille de Samis, intégrant ainsi des pâturages pour l’élevage des rennes à petite échelle et des possibilités de chasse et pêche à l’intérieur de ses frontières. Cependant, les ressources offertes par chaque terre variaient beaucoup d’une terre à l’autre. Les estimations en matière de densité de population indiquent que les terres auraient pu faire vivre de 0,04 à 0,06 personne par kilomètre carré. Contrairement à bien d’autres groupes indigènes du monde entier, les Samis ont négocié avec l’État et réclamé leurs droits devant le tribunal, ce qui leur a valu de maintenir une bonne reconnaissance de leur occupation foncière par l’État suédois jusque vers la fin du XIXe siècle

Healing in the Sámi North

There is a special emphasis today on integrating traditional healing within health services. However, most areas in which there is a system of traditional healing have undergone colonization and a number of pressures suppressing tradition for hundreds of years. The question arises as to how one can understand today’s tradition in light of earlier traditions. This article is based on material collected in Sámi areas of Finnmark and Nord-Troms Norway; it compares local healing traditions with what is known of earlier shamanic traditions in the area. The study is based on 27 interviews among healers and their patients. The findings suggest that although local healing traditions among the Sámi in northern Norway have undergone major transformations during the last several hundred years, they may be considered an extension of a long-standing tradition with deep roots in the region. Of special interest are also the new forms tradition may take in today’s changing global society

Conversation in service encounters : Verbal interaction between shop assistants and customers

The subject of this study is language use in a special type of social activity: the exchange of goods, services and information in a commercial setting. The main aim is to gain an understanding of the work that shop assistants perform using language. In the analysis, the focus is on verbal routine work. One part of the analysis thus entails mapping the typical utterances and conversational sequences related to such activities. Another part involves investigating how much non-task-oriented interaction the various activities require or “tolerate”, for instance, in the form of “small talk”. A central theme in the study is the interactants’ conversational rights and obligations, from the perspective of politeness theory, especially Fraser’s theory of the conversational contract. The service encounters are categorised as activity types, according to Levinson’s activity theory. In the comparative parts of the study, the concept of pragmeme is used as a tool to examine different realisations of prototypical situated communicative acts. The empirical material consists of authentic conversations, analysed by methods borrowed from conversation analysis. The conversations were recorded at a supermarket checkout till, a deli counter with manual service and an information desk in a bookshop. It turned out that only a few of the customer conversations were without complications. At the supermarket till, for instance, only one out of four conversations was completely routine and unproblematic. Also presented is a diachronic investigation of the norms relating to service encounters that have been taking place in shops since the 1940s. The main sources here are manuals and study materials for shop employees, together with interviews and material gathered from role playing. In this part of the study, a number of features in the historical change process are described, for instance in the manner of addressing people and the use of politeness expressions

Early Mesolithic Hunter–Gatherers and Landscape Acquisition by the Arctic Circle : The Ipmatis valley 7000 BC–1 AD

Archaeological and palaeoecological studies in the Arjeplog area of northern Sweden have verified the arrival of hunter–gatherers soon after deglaciation. After modelling and subsequently surveying the reconstructed shorelines of tilted watercourses, Early Mesolithic settlements dating to 8600–8000 BP (14C years BP) were discovered. Makrosubfossil-, pollen- and charcoal analyses of peat stratigrafies and lake sediments corroborated that deglaciation was completed more than 1000 years earlier than has previously been postulated. Pollen records show that the early postglacial environment included complex plant communities lacking present day analogies, providing optimal subsistence conditions for the pioneer settlers. Studies of charcoal influx into lake sediments indicate that fires were more frequent than ever after, contributing to a productive natural environment. Regional studies in the Ipmatis valley in combination with in-depth analyses of selected archaeological sites, display that hunter–gatherers made the resources of the valley an integral part of their subsistence at an early stage. Landscape acquisition included not only the adjustment to existing conditions, but the actual manipulation of the environment. The interdisciplinary research approach has produced unique sets of archaeological and palaeoecological data. Results open new perspectives on human pioneer colonisation and landscape acquisition in relation to deglaciation and the development of postglacial ecosystems. The variety of methods applied sets a new standard for future research on early societies in sub-arctic regions

Early Mesolithic Hunter–Gatherers and Landscape Acquisition by the Arctic Circle : The Ipmatis valley 7000 BC–1 AD

Archaeological and palaeoecological studies in the Arjeplog area of northern Sweden have verified the arrival of hunter–gatherers soon after deglaciation. After modelling and subsequently surveying the reconstructed shorelines of tilted watercourses, Early Mesolithic settlements dating to 8600–8000 BP (14C years BP) were discovered. Makrosubfossil-, pollen- and charcoal analyses of peat stratigrafies and lake sediments corroborated that deglaciation was completed more than 1000 years earlier than has previously been postulated. Pollen records show that the early postglacial environment included complex plant communities lacking present day analogies, providing optimal subsistence conditions for the pioneer settlers. Studies of charcoal influx into lake sediments indicate that fires were more frequent than ever after, contributing to a productive natural environment. Regional studies in the Ipmatis valley in combination with in-depth analyses of selected archaeological sites, display that hunter–gatherers made the resources of the valley an integral part of their subsistence at an early stage. Landscape acquisition included not only the adjustment to existing conditions, but the actual manipulation of the environment. The interdisciplinary research approach has produced unique sets of archaeological and palaeoecological data. Results open new perspectives on human pioneer colonisation and landscape acquisition in relation to deglaciation and the development of postglacial ecosystems. The variety of methods applied sets a new standard for future research on early societies in sub-arctic regions

”Det var som att tappa fotfästet” – En kvalitativ studie om män och kvinnors upplevelser av en skilsmässa/separation

  SAMMANFATTNING: Att skiljas/separera är inget ovanligt i Sverige. Som socialarbetare kan vi möta människor som befinner sig i kris efter en skilsmässa/separation. Dessa människor kan vi komma i kontakt med på olika arenor, exempelvis inom familjerådgivningen och familjerätten. Syftet med uppsatsen var att få en ökad förståelse för hur män och kvinnor som genomgått en skilsmässa/separation upplevt denna samt hur de hanterat situationen. Utöver genomgången av tidigare forskning gjordes sex kvalitativa intervjuer med tre män och tre kvinnor som gått igenom en skilsmässa/separation. Urvalet som användes var strategiskt urval. Resultatet visade att kontroll över skilsmässan/separationen var kopplat till ett tanke- och känslomässigt försprång i processen. Varför respondenterna hanterade situationen som de gjorde förklarades utifrån vilken kontext de befann sig i. Kontexten gav en bättre förklaring till hanteringssättet än vad variabeln kön gjorde. Avslutningsvis diskuterades våra förutfattade meningar och förförståelse i förhållande till studiens resultat och tidigare forskning