Det muntliga minnet om den gemensamma samiska historien finns skrivet i slöjdandet. Jag har i en materialundersökning undersökt de äkta slöjdmaterialens betydelse för den samiska slöjdtraditionens identitetsskapande egenskaper. Hur värderas uttryck för samiskt kulturarv utifrån olika kulturella erfarenheter av att vara same?

Abstract This dissertation looks into the meanings of the duodji, Sámi handicrafts. The study approaches duodji as an institution that regulates, defines, and produces the meanings of the duodji in different ways. The research material – Sámi Parliament Statements, Committee Memorandums, Craftsmen's Seminar Speeches, and Interviews with Duodji Entrepreneurs – are interpreted by means of discourse analysis. The theoretical framework is social constructivism, which is tangibly defined by the concepts of social norms and commercial branding. The research questions are how the duodji institution is built and how it produces the meanings of the duodji, and how the norms and brands of duodji work in this process. The aim is to find out the role of duodji as a mirror and interpreter of the Sámi society and to explore how the Sámi political and economic phenomena are reflected in the meanings of the Duodji. The research shows that in the 1970s a discursive shift was taking place in the duodji, whereby the duodji was incorporated into the Sámi ethnic politics and it became strongly institutionalized. As a consequence, the continuous meaning negotiations of the duodji are the core of the existence of the duodji institution. The formal duodji institution seeks to produce representative and meaningful duodji through, inter alia, duodji picture books and public statements concerning handicrafts. As a social institution, duodji is linked to social norms and their control. The control of norms is not so much the subject of duodji authenticity, but the power relations within the Sámi social interaction. The commercial duodji institution builds brands that utilise norms and norm control as well as representational duodji discourses. / Tiivistelmä Väitöskirjan aiheena on duodjin eli saamelaisen käsityön merkitykset. Tutkimuksessa duodjia lähestytään instituutiona, joka säätelee, määrittelee ja tuottaa duodjin merkityksiä eri tavoin. Tutkimusaineistoa eli saamelaiskäräjälausuntoja, komiteamietintöjä, käsityöntekijöiden seminaaripuheenvuoroja ja duodjiyrittäjien haastatteluja tulkitaan diskurssinalyysin keinoin. Teoreettisena viitekehyksenä on sosiaalinen konstruktionismi, jota konkretisoidaan sosiaalisen normin ja kaupallisen brändin käsitteillä. Tutkimuksessa kysytään, miten duodji-instituutio rakentuu, miten se tuottaa duodjin merkityksiä sekä miten duodjin normit ja brändit toimivat tässä prosessissa. Tavoitteena on selvittää duodjin roolia saamelaisen yhteiskunnan peilinä ja tulkkina sekä tutkia, miten saamelaisten poliittiset ja taloudelliset ilmiöt heijastuvat duodjin merkityksissä. Tutkimuksessa käy ilmi, että 1970-luvulla duodjin kohdalla tapahtui diskursiivinen käänne: duodji otettiin osaksi saamelaista etnopolitiikkaa ja se myös institutionalisoitui voimakkaasti. Käänteen seurauksena duodjista käydään jatkuvaa merkityskamppailua. Muodollinen duodji-instituutio pyrkii tuottamaan edustuksellista ja merkityksiltään yhtenäistä duodjia muun muassa duodjin kuvakirjojen ja käsityötä koskevien julkisten lausuntojen kautta. Sosiaalisena instituutiona duodji kytkeytyy sosiaalisiin normeihin ja niiden kontrollointiin. Normikontrolli ei niinkään kohdistu duodjin aitouteen, vaan valtasuhteisiin saamelaisten sosiaalisessa vuorovaikutuksessa. Kaupallinen duodji-instituutio rakentaa brändejä, jotka hyödyntävät normeja ja normikontrollia sekä edustuksellisen duodjin diskursseja. / Čoahkkáigeassu Nákkosgirjji fáddán leat duoji mearkkašumit. Dutkamuš lahkona duoji institušuvdnan, mii mudde, meroštallá ja buvttada duoji mearkkašumiid sierra vugiiguin. Dutkanmateriála nugo sámediggecealkámušat, kommišuvnnasmiehttamušat, duojáriid seminárasáhkavuorut ja duodjefitnodatdolliid jearahallamat dulkojuvvojit diskursaanalysa vugiiguin. Teorehtalaš refereansarápma lea sosiála konstruktionisma, man sosiála norpma ja gávppálaš brándda doahpagat konkretiserejit. Dutkamuš jearrá, mot duodji institušuvdnan šaddá ja mot dat buvttada duoji mearkkašumiid ja mot duoji norpmat ja bránddat doibmet dan proseassas. Ulbmilin lea čielggadit duoji rolla sámeservodaga speadjalin ja dulkan ja dutkat mot sápmelaččaid politihkalaš ja ekonomalaš ihtagat huksejit duoji mearkkašumiid. Dutkamušas boahtá ovdan ahte 1970-logus dáhpáhuvai duoji buohta diskursiiva nuppástus, goas duodji váldojuvvui sámi etnopolitihka oassin ja dat sakka gievrrui instituhttan. Dan dihte duodji-institušuvnna guovddážis leat leamašan geažos áigge ráđđádallamat duoji mearkkašumiin. Duodji formála institušuvdnan viggá buvttadit ebmos ja mearkkašumiid dáfus oktilaš duoji earret eará duodjegovvagirjjiid ja duodjái guoskevaš almmolaš cealkámušaid bokte. Duodji sosiála institušuvdnan laktása sosiála norpmaide ja daid kontrolleremii. Norbmakontrolla ii nuge čuoza duoji eaktivuhtii muhto sápmelaččaid váldegaskavuođaide vuorrováikkuhusas. Duodji gávppálaš institušuvdna hukse bránddaid, mat atnet ávkin norpmaid ja norbmakontrolla ja epmoš duoji diskurssaid.

Craftsmanship is recognised as a source of practical wisdom that can inform sustainable management and use of natural resources. However, there are many outstanding questions about how the skills and tacit knowledge embedded in craftsmanship can facilitate social-ecological resilience for sustainability. It has also proved difficult to access and articulate the knowledge embedded in craftsmanship. With this study I explore the skill and tacit knowledge components of craftsmanship as a repository of cultural-ecological memory through two case studies: the duodji, or handicrafts, produced by a Sámi craftswoman living in Jokkmokk, Sweden, and the fishing style of a fisherman in the Stockholm archipelago. As such, the research has two main aims: 1) to understand how the skills and tacit knowledge embedded in craftsmanship function as carriers of cultural-ecological memory; 2) to explore ways of mobilising and capturing these knowledge types by making them visible through the use of visual methodologies like photography. The research highlights the value of the accumulated knowledge and the portfolio of skills that are components of craft practices. Visual methods, in particular photo elicitation, invite participants to link their craftsmanship to their culture and identity. In doing so, visual methods contribute a new perspective on the role of craftsmanship as a carrier of cultural-ecological memory because the craft practices themselves become reservoirs of tacit knowledge and embodied skills that can be drawn upon in responding and adapting to changes or disturbances in the social-ecological system.

This essay is a qualitative interview study with Sami craftspeople. The purpose of the study is to outline and analyse how my informants, being active Sami crafts people, relate to tradition, and tradition in a contemporary society. The analysis is carried out by examining the empirical material against the theoretical concept tradition, constructed by Michael L. Satlow. The methodological understanding of the material builds on discourse analysis; therefore, the analysed material is subsequently interpreted using the theoretical term articulation or articulative practices following discourse analysis by Chantal Mouffe and Ernesto Laclau. The analysis concludes that Sami craft making is a religious tradition, and further shows that certain traditional narratives are articulated in order to assert the stability of the tradition, in a contemporary and digital society.

The aim of this essay is to get a wider perspective on the early production and usage of textiles in Northern Sweden during the Iron Age and Middle Ages (up until the 17th century). The work consists of collecting digital data of finds, their location and approximate date, and then place them in l'chaîne opératiore, and group the finds accordingly. The groups of the production chain is presented on distribution maps. The lack of finds in large areas shows that, from this study, everyone using textiles were not necessarily creating them from their own raw material.