Polar Tourism: A Tool for Regional Development

Chapter 7. Reinventing Ethnic Identity: A Local Festival as a National Institution on a Global Scene

1. Introduction This chapter is about identity changes related to a festival and tourism in Northern Troms, a coastal Sami area. The festival, called “Riddu Riddu,” has been a yearly event in the locality of Manndalen (in the municipality of Gáivuona; see Figure 7.1) since the early 1990s. The festival has in many respects been a vital force of local change (Pedersen and Viken 2009). The aim here is to show how the festival has been central to a revitalization process concerning the Sami identity of local people. There is of course a long history with processes and events that have formed the region’s identity. Concerning the ethno-political situation, the area was long under strong Norwegization pressures, as policies tried to incorporate these people in the Norwegian society. This was a policy of suppression, Arvid Viken Tourism Studies, University of Tromsø, Norway CHAPTER 7 Reinventing Ethnic Identity A Local Festival as a National Institution on a Global Scene 24303.indb 179 11-10-12 10:49 AM 180 Polar Tourism: A Tool for Regional Development figure 7.1 The site of Riddu Rid¯d¯u: Manndalen, Gáivuona (Norway) Map: Benjamin Ferlay 24303.indb 180 11-10-12 10:49 AM Reinventing Ethnic Identity 181 and the coastal Saminess was about to vanish in the late 1900s. In most places both the Sami language and many Sami symbols disappeared (Hauan 2003; Olsen 2000), and many young people were not aware of their Sami origins – it was more or less a non-topic. Partly due to this policy, the Sami were defined and perceived as a group of inlanders among the­ Norwegian public. Thus, many living in coastal districts have suffered from a double marginality. First, the Sami constitute a minority in Norway (as well as in Finland, Sweden, and Russia). Second, the coastal Sami have had a marginal position within the Sami society, where the mountain Sami have had dominant positions. At the end of the first decade of the 21st century, the costal Sami culture was regaining many positions, and in Gáivuona it is vital – almost half the children are taught the Sami language at school. Thus, a fast-going revitalization process has taken place. Initiated and forced through by a group of young people, the Riddu Riddu festival has played a vital role in this process. It is not incidental that this happened in the late 20th century, a period with a growing institutional reflexivity (Giddens 1991: 21) when social institutions continuously were under “revision in the light of new information and knowledge” (Karlsen 2007: 34). Among institutions that have evolved are identity and ethnicity. The process has mostly been seen as revitalization by those involved with the Riddu Riddu festival (Hansen 2007), but arguably , it has rather had the character of reinvention of culture since new ways of performing the culture have overshadowed the search for former practices (Steinlien 2006). However, such changes do not take place without controversies. Among those who have endeavoured to revitalize the Sami identity, many have tried to avoid antagonisms. However, their efforts have provoked others, and the ethno-political discourse has continually been part of the local public agenda. The controversies have sometimes been loud, but never really violent. The Riddu Riddu festival has been central in this process. It is acknowledged that festivals often have political undertones and can be viewed as demonstrations and celebrations of community power and solidarity (Jeong and Almeida Santos 2004: 641) and as “arenas in which politically and socially marginalized groups can express discontent and challenge the established order through symbolic revolutionary acts; thus [festivals] can be seen as mechanisms of resistance to the dominant social order” (ibid.). As this chapter will show, this is a good characteristic of the culture and festival in focus; a group of young people have used a festival as a revolt against an existing ethnic order. As for many other opposition groups, they have used arts and culture to convey their message. Both Bourdieu (1984) and Giddens (1991) discuss the significance of art in the negotiations of identity. To Bourdieu, art is a way of marking distinctions, whereas Giddens stresses the importance of art in the definition of selves 24303.indb 181 11-10-12 10:49 AM 182 Polar Tourism: A Tool for Regional Development and in the creation of narratives about one self (Karlsen 2007: 39). The Riddu Riddu people...