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SAMI

Everything you need to know about Sami Day in Norway

February 6th marks Sami Day in Norway, and for more than 30 years events have been held across Norway to celebrate the occasion.

Published: 6 February 2024 11:07 CET
Pictured is the Sami flag.
Norway celebrates Sami Day on February 6th. Pictured is the Sami flag. Photo by Thom Reijnders on Unsplash

All public buildings in Norway will hoist the Sami flag, and events and exhibitions will be held to mark Sami Day.

The day marks the anniversary of the first Sami Assembly, held in Trondheim in 1917.

The gathering saw Sami people from Norway and Sweden, who felt that their culture, language and livelihoods were being threatened, convene in Trondheim.

The event was chaired by Elsa Laula Renberg, with other female activists also playing an important role.

The assembly aimed to cover the issues of reindeer grazing, legislation, schooling, and organisation.

Who are the Sami?

The Sami refer to an indigenous minority of around 100,000 people spread over the northern parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia, the Sami have traditionally lived off reindeer herding and fishing.

The relationship between the indigenous Sami and Norway has been fraught.

Beginning in the 1700s, the Norwegian government carried out the official policy of Norwegianisation, which aimed to assimilate the non-Norwegian-speaking population into an ethnically and culturally uniform society.

The policy was initially targeted at the Sami people of northern Norway.

A commission ruled last year that the Norwegianisation of the Sami has had severe consequences, which are still felt today.

“Norway does not have a history to be proud of when it comes to the treatment of minorities,” Dagfinn Høybråten, who chaired the commission, said of the report’s findings.

Over the last few years, Norway has found itself locked in a battle with Sami reindeer herders over wind farms. The Sami havelaunched several protests after the Supreme Court found that the wind farm in Fosen violated the human rights of the Sami in the area.

How is Sami Day celebrated?

The day is marked by public authorities flying the Sami flag. In Oslo, the town hall bells ring the Sami anthem.

Oslo’s ceremonial mayor, rather than the leader of the city government, holds a traditional breakfast with the Sami people.

Other parts of the country plan a day or even a week of festivities. The week falling on the 6th in Tromsø is Sami week, when the yearly festival showcases many traditional Sami sports and events. In addition to talks and events, there is also a Sami winter market.

Kids in school may learn more about the Sami people or have Sami come to the school to hold workshops, lessons or talks. Alternatively, they may have been working on school projects in the days and weeks leading up to Sami Day.

Food plays an important role in Sami Day, and there may be workshops and showcases of Sami food. At such showcases, reindeer features heavily on the menu.

Marking the day with events and celebrations has become increasingly popular since 1992 (the first Sami day).

However, the day isn’t a public holiday, so nobody is given the day off work or school.

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For members

NORWEGIAN TRADITIONS

What foreigners in Norway find confusing about May 17th 

Constitution Day, or May 17th, is a fantastic occasion in Norway. Foreigners living in the country also love getting in on the celebrations – but a few things about the day can be confusing. 

Published: 15 May 2024 16:06 CEST
Updated: 17 May 2024 14:27 CEST
What foreigners in Norway find confusing about May 17th 

Often referred to as Norway’s national day, May 17th is much beloved in Norway. The parades and festivities are a must-see (and also pretty hard to miss) for anyone in Norway on the day. 

There are plenty of traditions that can seem strange from the outside looking in, including bunads, parades, singing the national anthem, and waving flags. Even after you’ve experienced them a few times, they can still feel puzzling. 

How to celebrate 

One aspect that can confuse foreigners, even those with a few May 17ths under the belt, is how exactly the date should be celebrated. 

While the parades are an obvious starting point, traditions can vary across families, cities and regions. 

Many will start May 17th with a combination of a typical Norwegian breakfast, with or without champagne, and then go to watch the parades. 

After that, things become more unclear. Some choose to celebrate the rest of the day with family, grilling or playing garden games. 

Others choose to party hard, whether at parties, bars, or special May 17th events. 

Meanwhile, some cities have large gatherings after the parades, torch processions, or fireworks in the evening. 

Our tip would be to choose what you like most about May 17th and go with the flow. 

Thankfully, as long as you don’t do something stupid like desecrate the Norwegian flag or spend the day antagonising people, there doesn’t appear to be a “right or wrong” way to celebrate the occasion. 

What to wear 

Outfit choice can be tricky on May 17th. People normally dress their best, be it in a traditional bunad, a suit, or other smart clothes. 

For foreigners, this can be tough. For starters, most probably do not feel Norwegian enough to wear a bunad but want to dress nicely for the occasion as a show of respect. 

Therefore, finding something that makes you feel comfortable, doesn’t feel underdressed, and is also appropriate for whatever the weather is can be a tricky balance. 

Some people wear folk costumes from where they are from, which for the most part goes down well as very few Norwegians hold an attitude of “this is our day and not yours”.

What other people are wearing

This is perhaps more the case for newcomers to Norway, but seeing a bunad for the first time can be strange. Seeing thousands of people decked out in “national costumes” (as they are sometimes referred to) can be overwhelming. 

Given that the costumes date back centuries, seeing the old mixed with the modern can also be surreal—for example, seeing someone in a bunad whizz by on an e-scooter. 

Even as you become more accustomed to seeing national costumes and learning more about them, you could confuse yourself trying to work out the origin of the bunad given the designs, colours and embroidery unique to different regions of Norway. 

The national pride

As the day marks the signing of the Norwegian constitution, it’s no surprise that its themes centre on national pride and identity and feature plenty of flag waving and singing of the national anthem. 

This can be puzzling for foreigners, as in some places, patriotism and national pride have been hijacked by populist and far-right movements and used as a tool to cause division.

Other foreigners may also be critical of the idea of a monarchy and how heavily they feature in the day’s proceedings. 

However, in Norway, no one really questions these things. This is just as well because, for the most part, May 17th demonstrates how you can celebrate a country’s essence without hijacking it for the wrong reasons. 

The locals in Norway generally choose to include those who also wish to celebrate May 17th rather than exclude them. 

It’s the fact that Norway is able to maintain a strong sense of national pride on May 17th while remaining inclusive that some may find confusing. 

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