The Sami have long been threatened. Reindeer farming has been seen as the last strong bastion where the language survives.
But when the Sami Parliament recently issued its annual report on the situation of the language in Sweden, it shows that even the reindeer industry is no longer the strong language arena it used to be.
– When I was a child, Sami was mostly heard in the reindeer forest, but now it’s Swedish. I’m not that old, but it’s still 30–40 years ago, says Anders Erling Fjällås, reindeer herder and chairman of Semisjaur-Njarg Sami village.
He thinks it will be difficult for the Sami to take the same place as before.
– Sami words are heard when speaking Swedish, but the language itself is not heard. Those who now speak Sami are getting older. There are some young people who read Sami and try to speak Pit Sami, but there are few who master the language.
“Serious situation”
Per-Eric Kuoljok, chairman of the board of Giellagáldu:
– The situation is serious when the reindeer husbandry is no longer a language carrier. The natural words are found in nature. There the Sami comes to life and there we support the Sami, he says and continues:
– I think you have to learn the basics of the language in the home where you grow up. Now it has become the case that the children know Sami but not the parents and it is a vulnerable situation.
Want to introduce scholarships
Ulla-Karin Sarri, chairman of the Sami Parliament’s language committee, has several ideas on what can be done.
– Fewer and fewer Sami can read, write and speak Sami. We have to find another arena and it can be on the internet, for example language cafes. There you can meet, discuss a topic, practice speaking and learn words.
– We also have the Sami associations that exist in both Sápmi and all of Sweden. They have an important mission.
She also wants different scholarships to be introduced.
– It would be best if Sweden had so that you could support with money, because it happens that people have to use private funds.
See this week’s 15 minutes from Sápmi on Saturday at 16:05 in SVT2. Or anytime on SVT Play.