Saamis (Lapps), Finns and Scandinavians in history and prehistory. Ethnic origins and ethnic processes in Fenno‐Scandinavia

This Article is a condensation of K. Odner's book Finner og terfinner (Oslo Occasional Papers in Social Anthropology No. 9 1983) ‘Finner’ is an old Norwegian term for Saamis, and must not be confused with the term ‘Finn’ meaning Finnlanders. In his book the author puts forward a number of hypotheses about the origins and maintenance of ethnic groups and categories in Northern Fenno‐Scandinavia: Saami ethnicity grew out of a process of differentiation and specialization in the Finland Gulf area around the time of Christ. In the following centuries Saami ethnicity was adopted over vast areas through interaction with Finnish traders and Germanic chieftains. The origin of Northern Germanic ethnicity is related to the process of hierarchization taking place in the Roman period. Economic and political relations between the ethnic groups played a vital role in the maintenance of Saami ethnicity.