Encountering “the Other” in the North – Colonial Histories in Early Modern Northern Sweden

Abstract

This chapter explores Swedish colonial and missionary projects in Sapmi (in present-day northern Sweden) in the 17th century, with a special focus on encounters with the indigenous Sami population, and the consequences for relationships between “Swedish” and “Sami” identity, culture and history today. Early modern colonial history in northern Sweden is in general afforded little recognition in Sweden. However, it is a history of great importance to many people today, with connections to present-day conflicts over land and cultural rights. Early modern views on the Sami have had a great impact on later representations of Sami identity, culture and religion. There is a need to analyse critically this history of “Us” and “Them” in the north. How can archaeology contribute to a more complex understanding of the colonial histories and encounters in Sapmi and northern Sweden in the early modern period? The aim of this chapter is to discuss aspects of the early modern colonial histories and encounters in present-day northern Sweden, with special focus on the Sami populations in the north. The colonial history of northern Sweden is a contested and in many ways controversial field of study, with connections to present-day conflicts over land and cultural rights. This history is also connected with the understanding of the relationships between “Swedish” and “Sami” history and identity, and in recent decades also with debates on the use of the concept of indigeneity in Sweden. There is a great need further to examine Swedish colonial policies and practices in Sapmi, and the responses of the indigenous Sami population, as well as the larger ideological and political contexts of Swedish colonial expansion in the north. It is important to recognize and engage with the question of how archaeology can contribute to a more complex understanding of colonial histories and encounters in Sapmi in the early modern period. Archaeologists and other scholars interested in exploring the early modern colonial history of Sapmi and northern Sweden, and its consequences and importance today, face many challenges concerning the connections between past and present, and the power relations involved in historical archaeology and the field of Sami archaeology. There are also many important issues concerning the roles and responsibilities of archaeology and archaeologists in Sapmi: for instance, in relation to current controversies concerning Sami indigenous land and cultural rights, which need to be considered and discussed by archaeologists working within this field.