Not ONE culture – but many

I often get questions about the sami people and sometimes its difficult to give an quick answer. It can be difficult to generalize Samis, and to give one straight answer, because there are a lot of opinions, judgements, and expectations about the sami people. Both from us Sami ourselves and from others.

The Sami culture is NOT ONE culture, ONE tradition, ONE language and ONE way of joiking, dressing, being, and way of living. It´s actually many different things. And it´s many ways of living. 

There are 10 different Sami languages, some say less some say more. Every district has their own clothing customs, cultural traditions, joiking styles, and living conditions. Some are fishers, some farmers, some reindeerhearders.  

So if you ask me something about Sami culture, it can be a very big questions, and most of the times I am not prepared to answer on behalf of all the Sami people, because we dont always agree with each other, we have different opinions about things, different values and traditions.

But of course,  I can always answer the questions on behalf of myself as a Sami, and what feels right for me. Other Samis might have other opinions, and might disagree with me, so my truth doesn´t necessarily apply to all Sami people.