The use of Sámi today

Based on 2004 report of the Sámi Language Board

In the Sámi administrative area:

• 90% of public institutions know that they serve Sámi population

• 35% of public institutions claim they have the competence to provide services in Sámi; the institutions most lacking Sámi competence are schools and health services

Of 46 institutions that do have Sámi competence:

• 37 can provide oral information in Sámi, while 9 cannot

• 29 can provide written information in Sámi, while 15 cannot

• 39 can answer oral inquiries in Sámi, while 10 cannot

• 31 can answer written inquiries in Sámi, while 12 cannot…

Of 68 institutions that answered this question:

• 77% said they need more Sámi competence

• 13% said they did not need more Sámi competence

• 10% said they didn’t know…

Language competence of employees

• 10,624 Nowegian, 291 Sámi, 27 other

• In other words, only 3% of the staff of public institutions in the Sámi administrative areas know Sámi

• Furthermore, of these 3%: 1/3 (1%) can both speak and write Sámi, 1/3 (1%) can only speak Sámi, and 1/3 (1%) can only understand Sámi…

Language study of employees

• 111 employees reported having taken a (paid) leave of absence to study Sámi.

• There are problems with finding courses that are regularly available and with finding people who can take leave due to workload.

Computers

• 45% of computers lack Sámi fonts

Laws and regulations – are they translated into Sámi?

• 72% -- NO

• 19% -- yes

• 9% -- don’t know

• (This relates to the law and regulations used in a given institution.)

Are there forms available in Sámi at your institution?

• 65 % NO

• 31 % yes

• 4 % don’t know

Translation needs (North Sámi only)

• Laws and regulations that are already translated:– social services, patients’ rights, education,

administration (+ others involving land use, reindeer, children, military…)

• Laws and regulations that need to be translated:– psychological health, municipal health services, social

health services, child protection, penalties & punishments, planning & building, prosecution, information on housing support, information on prisons, rights to special health services, psychiatric consent & plans

Sámi kindergartens

• Number of children enrolled in North Sámi-speaking kindergartens (according to parents’ wishes) – 2000: 635– 2001: 882– 2002: 973– 2003: 865– 2004: 958

• In 2004-05 there were 8 children in Lulesámi kindergartens, and 22 in South Sámi

Elementary schools

• 2002-2004:– 2,640 children had Sámi as the language of

instruction– 2,834 had instruction in Sámi as a second

language– There was an increase of 194 in these

categories between 2002-03 and 2003-04– Overall numbers of pupils requesting Sámi is

increasing, but numbers receiving North Sámi as medium of instruction is dropping slightly

High schools

• High school students get a stipend from the Sámi parliament for studying Sámi. In 2004-05, 539 high school students received this stipend. Funds for this are running out, only approx 2482 kr/student disbursed that year.

• In 2004-05:– 231 students had Sámi as their 1st language– 273 had Sámi as 2nd or 3rd language– 35 had Sámi as an elective– 47 high schools offered Sámi

Summary of research:

• 90% of institutions confirm that they serve Sámi people, but services are not automatically offered in Sámi, people have to ask for them, and they don’t always do so.

• Opportunities for learning Sámi are lacking and what exists is sporadic, and not all institutions have the funds to offer leave with salary for learning Sámi.

Summary of research (cont’d):

• It is hard to recruit specialists who also know Sámi. There is a great shortage of Sámi-speaking teachers, doctors, psychologists, and nurses.

• According to language regulations, laws and information of interest to the whole or parts of Sámi population are supposed to be available in Sámi, as are all forms used by public institutions. But only 72% of laws and rules are translated into Sámi, and only 31% of forms are available in Sámi.

Summary of research (cont’d):

• Only 51% of computers in public institutions can be used to write in Sámi.

• Demand for schooling in Lule- and South Sámi is increasing, but there is a slight drop off (3.6% = 36 pupils) for North Sámi.

• The per-pupil amount of the parliament’s stipend for high school students who study Sámi has gone down, and the number of students eligible to receive it has gone up. Meanwhile the overall budget for stipends has not increased.

The Language Board’s comments:

• The research shows that institutions know that they have responsibility to serve Sámi. It seems that the Sámi must ask for such services, they are not offered automatically, and therefore people don’t ask for them. The problem seems to be ascribed to the users of services, who have bilingual capacity, but the institutions don’t. This means that Sámi is not used and that Sámi users are made invisible. Institutions don’t see that they have Sámi users and therefore also don’t see the need for Sámi competence.

The Language Board’s comments (cont’d.):

• There is a raised awareness in Troms and Finnmark for the Sámi population’s need for services in Sámi, and also this is regulated by law in the Sámi administrative area.

• There is a need for major information campaigns concerning rights both in relation to the education law and Sámi law and Norway’s conformity to the European treaty on regional and minority languages, and also important information concerning security and safety must be translated into Sámi.

The Language Board’s comments (cont’d.):

• The Language Board is concerned that only 3% of employees at public institutions have any competence in Sámi, even though for many years it has been possible to take leave with salary to learn Sámi. It is reasonable to demand that people who use this opportunity also use Sámi after completing their studies.

The Language Board’s comments (cont’d.):

• It is important to point out that it is the institutions, not the individual employees, that must take responsibility for providing services in Sámi. There are problems both with financing Sámi study and also with institutions that do not see this as a need.

• Forms are supposed to be available in Sámi, but there is no comprehensive plan available to make this happen. Such a plan must be devised.

The Language Board’s comments (cont’d.):

• There is an increase in Sámi used in kindergartens, and this is a particularly important arena for increasing Sámi. Parents need to get more information about the importance of having Sámi (and their rights to demand it) for children.

• The Board is concerned about the decrease in the number of students with North Sámi as their first language. A plan to improve this situation is needed.