Muitalægje was the first newspaper to publish in a Sámi language. Launched in April 1873 in Čáhcesuolu, Norway, the paper published a total of 33 issues before folding in September 1875.[1][2] The full title of the paper was Muittalægje Čuvgetusa Haliduvvidi Sámi Gaskast (Tales for Sámi Hungry for Education/Culture).[3]
| Editor | Christian Andreassen |
|---|---|
| Launched | April 1873 |
| Language | Northern Sámi |
| Ceased publication | September 1875 |
| Headquarters | Čáhcesuolu, Norway |
History
editInspired by the Sámi teacher Peder Larsen Ucce's appeal for a Sámi-language newspaper to support the education of Sámi people who were not benefiting from the state's Norwegianization policy,[4] Muitalægje was founded by Northern Sámi-speaking Norwegian Christian Andreassen, the chief of police in Buolbmát, who also wrote the majority of the paper's articles,[5][6] teacher Johan Eriksen Soffa, and fisherman Samuel Samuelsen. Larsen served as co-editor of the paper. The paper's founders all belonged to Vieljažiid Searvi (The Brotherhood), an informal society of socially engaged Sámi in eastern Finnmark.[7]
The paper was printed at F. Kjeldseth's printing office in Čáhcesuolu, which also printed the Norwegian-language Finmarkens Amtstidende newspaper.[8]
Andreasen intended Muitalægje to encourage Sámi youth to look towards books for knowledge so they would learn more about the world outside the Sámi community and thus become more interested in public affairs and better willing able to advocate for Sámi rights.[9] The paper also helped to preserve and promote the Northern Sámi language and to support Sámi identity as Norwegianization policies were being strengthened.[7]
References
edit- ^ Wiklund, K.B. (1911). "Lapska språket och litteraturen" [Lapp Language and Literature]. In Th. Westrin (ed.). Nordisk Familjebok: Konversationslexikon och realencyklopedi [Nordic Family Box: Conversation Lexicon and Real Encyclopedia] (in Swedish). Stockholm, Sweden: Nordisk Familjeboks Förlags AB. pp. 1225–1228. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
- ^ Friis, Jens Andreas (1887). "Skrifter paa Lappisk" [Writings in Lapp]. Ordbog over det Lappiske Sprog med latinsk og norsk Forklaring samt en Oversigt over Sprogets Grammatik [Dictionary of the Lapp Language with Latin and Norwegian Explanation and an Overview of the Grammar of the Language] (in Norwegian). Christiania (Oslo), Norway: Universitet i Christiania. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
- ^ Guttorm, Inga; Jernslettern, Johan; Nickel, Klaus Peter; Holmberg, Veikko (2007). Davvin 3: Saamen kielen peruskurssi (in Northern Sami). Helsinki, Finland: Yleisradio. p. 16. ISBN 978-952-441-145-5.
- ^ Dahl, Hans Fredrik (2016). A History of the Norwegian Press, 1660-2015. London, England: Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 134–135. ISBN 978-1-137-58026-9. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
- ^ Labba, Per Stefan; Solbakk, Aage; Holmberg, Veikko (1987). Sámás 1 (in Northern Sami). Helsinki, Finland: Yleisradio. p. 73. ISBN 951-43-0420-9.
- ^ Solbakk, Aage. "Sámi mediahistorjá" [Sámi Media History] (in Northern Sami). Kárášjohka, Norway: ČálliidLágádus. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
- ^ a b Niemi, Einar (2006). "Isak Saba: Første same og sosialistisk pionér på Stortinget — Et hundreårsminne" [Isak Saba: First Sámi and Socialist Pioneer in the Stortinget — A Century Commemoration]. Arbeiderhistorie (20): 95. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
- ^ "Trekk fra Tanadalens historie" (in Norwegian). Archived from the original on 15 December 2008.
- ^ Jernsletten, Regnor (1998). Samebevegelsen i Norge: idé og strategi 1900-1940 [The Sámi Movement in Norway: Ideology and Practice 1900–1940] (in Norwegian). Tromsø, Norway: Senter for Samiske Studier, Universitetet i Tromsø. Retrieved 9 May 2020.