Indigenous (Sámi) Spirituality and Religious Beliefs (5cr)

Objective

The focus for the course is to provide participants with a broad and comprehensive understanding and series of insights into Sámi religion and spiritual traditions, both past and present. Moreover, the critical function religions and spirituality plays within Sámi society.

After completion of the course the student is able to understand, comprehend and discuss
- how Sámi religion, sacrifice and drum use is characterized through the relationship with the landscape and natural world
- in what ways the continuity of practices related to sacrifice is still evident in some areas in Finnish, Swedish and Norwegian Lapland
- the roles and functions art plays as a mediator and bridge in Sámi culture, and between the human world and nature in general
- how the sacred drum and its painted landscapes past and present are a representation of Sámi identity
- why traditions matter: and the importance of cultural heritage in Sámi society and impacts of cultural appropriation in relation to tourism.

Content

The content of the course will cover the following subjects:
- The historical background: important sources discussing drum use, sacrifice and Sámi pre-Christian religion
- The sacred Sámi drum as an instrument of divination, trance and ecstasy from the missionary sources
- Why Sámi drums, their use and symbolism were seen as such a threat by the authorities
- Sámi religion and drum use going underground
- The outlawing of sacrificial practices – how and why
- The re-emergence of drums in contemporary Sámi society
- The types of evidence available for the practices of sacrifice and Sámi religion in contemporary culture
- Sámi cultural heritage and tourism in Finland.

Qualifications

There are no previous studies required. However, participating in the Introduction to the Arctic and People and Cultures and Identities of the Arctic courses will be advantageous.

Assessment criteria, satisfactory (1)

Fail (0): Performance is highly deficient or erroneous. The work may be based on serious misunderstandings.

Sufficient (1): Performance is lacking in scope, is superficial, or corresponds poorly to the assignment. The work may contain errors or obscurities.

Satisfactory (2): Performance corresponds somewhat to the assignment, but may contain obscurities. The author merely lists things out of context or addresses them one-sidedly.

Assessment criteria, good (3)

Good (3): Performance corresponds to the assignment, manifesting comprehension and a skill to analyse and justify. The author has addressed the issue comprehensively, but the work may contain some deficiencies.

Very good (4): Performance manifests extensive comprehension as well as skills of interpretation and critical reflection. The work corresponds well to the assignment, and creates a coherent and consistent whole.

Assessment criteria, excellent (5)

Excellent (5): Performance delineates an extensive whole and the author can apply knowledge in a multifaceted way or place it in various contexts. The work manifests independency and insight, and it is a flawless entity that involves justified thinking or critical contemplation.

Materials

Literature recommended:

Ahlbäck, T. & Bergman, J. (1991). The Saami Shaman Drum. Based on Papers Read at the Symposium on the Saami Shaman Drum held at Åbo, Finland, on the 19th-20th of August 1988. The Donner Institute for Research in Religious and Cultural History. Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell International.

Fonneland, T. & Äikäs, T. (2020). The Making of Sámi Religion in Contemporary Society. Religions 2020, 11(11), 547. Available at: https://doi.org/10.3390/rel11110547.

Joy, F. (2017). Noaidi Drums from Sápmi, Rock Paintings in Finland and Sámi Cultural Heritage: an Investigation. First View Article / Polar Record: A Journal of Arctic and Antarctic Research, pp. 1–20. Available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0032247416000917.

Joy, F. (2020). Sámi Cultural Heritage and Tourism in Finland. In M. Tennberg, H. Lempinen & S. Pirnes (Eds) Resources, Social and Cultural Sustainabilities in the Arctic. Oxon: Routledge, pp. 144–162.

Joy, F. (2018). Sámi Shamanism, Cosmology and Art as Systems of Embedded Knowledge. Doctoral Dissertation. Acta Universitatis Lapponiensis 367. The University of Lapland. Available at: http://lauda.ulapland.fi/handle/10024/63178.

Joy, F. (2020). The Importance of the Sun Symbol in the Restoration of Sámi Spiritual Traditions and Healing Practices. Religions, 6, 11. pp. 1–22. Available at: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/11/6/270/htm.

Joy, F. (2016). The Vitträsk Rock Painting and the Theory of a Sámi Cosmological Landscape. Suomen Antropologi Issue 3, Volume 41: pp. 44-68. Available at: https://journal.fi/suomenantropologi/article/view/60389.

Laestadius, L.-L. (1838-1845 [2002]). Fragments of Lappish Mythology. J. Pentikäinen (Ed.). Beaverton, Canada: Aspasia Books.

Lahelma, A. (2008). A Touch of Red: Archaeological and Ethnographic Approaches to Interpreting Finnish Rock Paintings. Suomen muinaismuistoyhdistys ry – Finska fornminnesföreningen rf. The Finnish Antiquarian Society. Iskos 15. Helsinki: The Finnish Antiquarian Society.

Lehtola, V.-P. (2003). From Heritage to Modern Art – Spiritual Heritage – the Starting Point of Today’s Art. In J. Pennanen & K. Näkkäläjärvi (Eds) SIIDDASTALLAN: From Lapp Communities to Modern Sámi Life. Jyväskylä: Gummerus Kirjapaino Oy, pp. 162–164.

Lehtola, V.-P. (2002). The Sámi People. Traditions in Transition. Inari: Kustannus-Puntsi.

Mathisen, S. R. (2010). Indigenous Spirituality in the Touristic Borderzone: Virtual Performances of Sámi Shamanism in Sápmi Park. Temenos Vol. 46 No. 1 (2010), 53–72. The Finnish Society for the Study of Religion: https://journal.fi/temenos/article/download/6941/6753.

Mattila, T. (2018). Needs of the Sámi people for intellectual property protection from the viewpoint of copyright and trademarks – especially with regard to duodji-handicrafts and the Sámi dresses Publications of the Ministry of Education and Culture, Finland: https://julkaisut.valtioneuvosto.fi/bitstream/handle/10024/161206/OKM_40_18_Needs_of_the_Sami_people-WEB111218.pdf.

Mulk, I.-M. & Bayliss-Smith, T. (2007). Liminality, Rock Art and the Sami Sacred Landscape. Journal of Northern Studies, Numbers 1–2. Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/271068683_Liminality_rock_art_and_the_Sami_sacred_landscape.

Nunez, M. (1995). Reflections of Finnish Rock Art and Ethnohistorical Data. In Fennoscandia Archaeologica XXI: 123–135. Available at: http://www.sarks.fi/fa/PDF/FA12_123.pdf.

Porsanger, J. (2003). A Close Relationship to Nature – the Basis of Religion. In J. Pennanen & K. Näkkäläjärvi (Eds) SIIDDASTALLAN: From Lapp Communities to Modern Sámi Life. Jyväskylä: Gummerus Kirjapaino Oy, pp. 151–155.

Pulkkinen, R., Kulonen, U.-M., Seurujärvi-Kari, I. (Eds) (2005). The Saami. A Cultural Encyclopedia. Helsinki: Finnish Literature Society-SKS. Vammalan kirjapaino Oy.

Solbakk, A. (2018). What We Believe In. Noaidivuohta – An Introduction to the Religion of the Northern Sámi. New Expanded Edition.

Solbakk, J. T. (Ed.) (2007). Traditional Knowledge and Copyright. Karasjok: Sámikopiija.

Whitaker, I. (1957). The Holy Places of the Lapps (English summary). In Ernst Manker, Lapparnas Heliga Ställen: Kultplaster och Offerkult i Belysning av Nordiska Museets och Landsantikvariernas fältundersökningar. Acta Lapponica; 13. Stockholm: Geber.

Äikäs, T. & Salmi, A.-K. (2013). The Sieidi is a Better Altar / the Noaidi Drum’s a Purer Church Bell: Long Term Changes and Syncretism at Sámi Offering Sites. World Archaeology, 45 (1): 64–82.

Äikas, T. (2019). Religion of the past or living heritage? Dissemination of Knowledge on Sámi Religion in Museums in Northern Finland. The Journal Nordic Museology, 27 (3). Available at: https://www.academia.edu/41852109./Religion_of_the_past_or_living_heritage_Dissemination_of_knowledge_on_S%C3%A1mi_religion_in_museums_in_Northern_Finland.

Further information

Lecturer: Francis Joy, Researcher, PhD.

Execution methods

Teaching profile: FACE-TO-FACE.
Lectures (18 h) including documentaries, group work: field-work (6 h), fieldwork diary, individual work, group presentations.

Accomplishment methods

Active participation in the lectures, fieldwork, reading requested course materials, group work regarding seminar class presentations and successful completion of a written essay or lecture diary (800 words).