The Sámi

The Sami Flag

The Sámi Flag (Sámi leavga) was introduced in August, 15 1986. The flag was designed by the artist Astrid Båhlin. The Team for the flag originates from the witch drum and from the poem Aurigon Pojat (Sun's Son) written by Southerner Sámi Andres Fjellner, in which he depicts the Sámi as the sun's sons and daughters. The Circle describes the sun (red) and moon (blue). The flag displays the traditional Sami colours: red, yellow, blue and green.

The representative body of the Finnish Sámi since 1973 has been the Delegation for Sami Affairs or the "Sámi Parliament", sámediggi. The responsibility of this body is to monitor the interests and rights of the Sámi people.

The Sámi themselves elect the 20 members of the Delegation in an election held every four years.

The Sámi is a national population group, with its own language, culture, identity and traditions. A Sami is a person who believes themselves to be Sámi, on the condition, that he or she or one of his or her parents or grandparents has learnt the Sámi language as their mother tongue.  Today the Sámi people live in four different nations, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia in Koala Peninsula. There are around 70, 000 Sámi of which approximately 7,000 live in Finland. The home districts of the Sámi in Finland are the municipalities of Inari, Utsjoki and Enontekiö, as well as the northern part of the municipality of Sodankylä. Only in the municipality of Utsjoki are the Sámi a majority, in other regions they are a minority.

Finland has three Sámi dialects, Northern Sámi, Inari Sámi and Skolt Sámi. It is the right of every Sámi language student to receive tuition in his or her own language in his or her home district.

The Sámi people have lived throughout  the vast Lapland and thevarious landscape types have formed Sámi livlihoods and culture.  There are Marine, Fell, River and Forest Sámi.

Sámi handicraft designs and decorations go back to a time when Sámi economies were self-sufficient. Traditions are passed on through stories of memories as well as by using Lappish lyric chanting, the special Sámi way of singing. The Sámi also have plenty to offer Nordic culture in the form of their literature, theatre and visual arts.

According to international rights, the Sámi are an ethnic and lingual minority, and Finland's only aboriginal people. Based on this, the Sámi have special rights to the land, water and natural resources.

A Sámi with his reindeer

Reindeer husbandry, fishing and hunting was, according to legislation of Lapland, called the Lappish business. The Sámi (Lapps) worked these businesses in their Lappish villages or "Siida", the land and waters of which they owned. In accordance with law, the areas of these Lappish villages were later transferred over to new farms. Many Sámi too became farmers and began to tend cattle in addition to their other sources of livelihood. The majority of Sámi today earn the majority of their living from means other than their traditional sources of livelihood.