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Reindeer have been an integral part of the lives of people in Northern Fennoscandia in prehistoric and historic times. Today, reindeer herding practices are changing fast due to climate change, land use pressures and new technologies. This book outlines recent advances in the archaeology of reindeer domestication and development of reindeer herding among the Sámi of Northern Fennoscandia, focusing especially on the identification and understanding of various reindeer herding tasks and practices through archaeological evidence and traditional knowledge of reindeer herders. Covering more than a thousand years of history of reindeer herding, the book explores how reindeer herding practices have always been dynamic and adapted to the changing social, economic and environmental pressures. While reindeer herding practices have changed, they have also retained memory and tradition. The continuity and adaptation of reindeer herding testifies of the resilience of reindeer herders and their animals, and the importance of their relationship in the changing Arctic. This book will be of interest to scholars interested in archaeology, anthropology, and history of the Arctic, as well as local communities and reindeer herders.
List of contents
Part I: The history and biology of reindeer domestication.- Chapter 1. Introduction: Perspectives on the history and ethnoarchaeology of reindeer domestication and herding.- Chapter 2. Impact of human selection on the genetics and morphology of the reindeer.- Part II: Domestication and herding strategies.- Chapter 3. Castration as part of reindeer herd management.- Chapter 4.Working reindeer in past and present reindeer herding.- Chapter 5. Human-reindeer relationships and reindeer feeding: Perspectives from archaeology and reindeer herders' knowledge.- Part III: Human-reindeer landscapes.- Chapter 6. Habitation sites and herding landscapes.- Chapter 7. Mobility in early reindeer herding.- Part IV: Social and cultural entanglements.- Chapter 8. Effects of reindeer domestication on society and religion.- Chapter 9. Conclusions: Past and present reindeer herding in dialogue.
About the author
Anna-Kaisa Salmi is an Associate Professor in Archaeology at the University of Oulu. Her research focusses on northern human-animal relationships and the archaeology of reindeer domestication. She is the Editor-in-Chief of the Monographs of the Archaeological Society of Finland and co-editor of Archaeologies of Animal Movement - Animals on the Move (2021) and The Sound of Silence - Indigenous Perspectives on the Historical Archaeology of Colonialism (2019).
