Skolt Sámi Heritage House

Lapland, Northern Lapland
Inari (www.inari.fi)
Sevettijärvi-Näätämö Area
The Skolt Sámi Heritage House is managed by the Sámi Museum.

The Skolt Sámi Heritage House, located in the village of Sevettijärvi, presents the culture and traditions of the Skolt Sámi. The village of Sevettijärvi is the centre for Finland's Skolt Sámi culture in regard to its number of inhabitants and preservation of the culture.

The objects, films, photographs and texts at the permanent exhibition of the Skolt Sámi Heritage House recount the history of the Skolt Sámi in the Sevettijärvi-Näätämö Area. The Skolt Sámi Heritage House is located at an old Skolt Sámi house. The State built many corresponding houses in the eastern part of the Inari municipality in the late 1940s when the Skolt Sámi who had been evacuated from Petsamo in the Winter War were allocated places of dwelling in Finland's territory. The majority of the Skolt Sámi who settled down in Sevettijärvi were Skolt Sámi people from the village of Suonikylä. For them a total of 52 Skolt estates were established in the area.

The Skolt Sámi Heritage House represents the standardised house of the period when the evacuees were settled after the war. The building tradition of the Skolt Sámi was also taken into account in the design of the house. The red house, which functions as the heritage house, was originally located in Kirakkajärvi 15 kilometres north of Sevettijärvi. In addition to the house, there was also a storage building on the estate. However, the estate became empty and the empty house was moved to its present site at the beginning of the 1990s.

The Sámi Museum Siida has set up an open-air museum on the grounds of the Skolt Sámi Heritage House. At the open-air museum you can see the reconstruction of an old summer place in Suonikylä; there are cottages and food storage rooms that were built on a high pole or tree stump.

Opening Hours

10.6. - 20.9. daily 10 am - 5 pm

There is no entrance fee to the heritage house. It is recommended that the heritage house be informed of group visits in advance.

Contact Information

Visiting address: Sevettijärventie 9041, FI-99930 Sevettijärvi
Postal address: Sámi Museum Foundation, Inarintie 46, FI-99870 Inari
Telephone: Skolt Sámi Heritage House +358 400 373 015 / Siida +358 400 898 212
E-mail address: kolttaperinnetalo(at)samimuseum.fi or siida(at)samimuseum.fi

Directions

By Car

• The Skolt Sámi Heritage House is located along the Kaamanen-Näätämö Road (no. 971) in Sevettijärvi next to the church.

By Public Transportation

• There is a daily bus connection from the village of Kaamanen to Sevettijärvi. Timetables (www.matkahuolto.fi)

Electronic Maps

• Excursionmap.fi of Metsähallitus

Services

• Information on the Skolt Sámi traditions and the Kaldoaivi and Vätsäri Wilderness Areas and other nearby areas as well as the hiking possibilities offered in these areas.
• There are traditional handicrafts made by the Skolt Sámi people and maps for sale.

Permanent Exhibition

• There is an exhibition at the Skolt Sámi Heritage House that presents the past and the present of the Skolt Sámi with the help of objects, photographs and handicrafts. You can also visit an old summer place of the Skolt Sámi people at the open-air museum.

The Grounds

• The Sevettijärvi - Pulmanki Trail (60 - 70 km) and the Inarinpolku Trail (100 km) start from the grounds of the Skolt Sámi Heritage House. The Skolt Sámi Heritage House is also one of the starting points for the Saamenpolku Trail (90 km).

Services for the Disabled

• The building cannot be accessed by wheelchair.

This is the webpage www.nationalparks.fi/skoltsamiheritagehouse