Long-Term Spatio-Temporal Dynamics of Sámi Reindeer Husbandry on the Northern Shore of Europe

Summary

This is an abstract from the "Exploring Long-Term Pastoral Dynamics: Methods, Theories, Stories" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Reindeer hunting, reindeer husbandry, and nomadic pastoralism form a significant part of the history of Sápmi, and the whole northern Fennoscandia from the late Iron Age to modern times. Sápmi, situated on the northern shore of Europe, is the transnational homeland of Sámi people, Europe’s only indigenous group. Recent multidisciplinary studies have clarified our understandings of the development and significance of reindeer herding through time, e.g., as part of the international trade and contact networks. This presentation examines the changes in reindeer husbandry in space and time, based on the radiocarbon dates obtained from the Sámi reindeer herder sites in whole Sápmi, and assesses how these relate to the wider historical context. The Sápmi-wide chronological perspective offers a wider view on the past developments, as the previous temporal reviews have been based on regional case studies. The latest results from our multidisciplinary studies, e.g., zooarchaeological, aDNA, anthropological, and ethnoarchaeological research, are reviewed alongside the spatio-temporal analysis. The aim is to give a sweeping overview of the development of Sámi reindeer husbandry throughout Sápmi from its beginnings in the (Late) Iron Age to the twentieth century.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 89th Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA (2024)   •
• Exploring Long-Term Pastoral Dynamics: Methods, Theories, Stories

Keywords

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 39890.0