Norwegianization of the Sámi

Norwegianization (fornorsking av samer) was an official policy carried out by the Norwegian government directed at the Sámi and later the Kven people of northern Norway, in which the goal was to assimilate non-Norwegian-speaking native populations into an ethnically and culturally uniform Norwegian population. The assimilation process began in the 1700s, and was at that point motivated by a clear religious agenda. Over the course of the 1800s it became increasingly influenced by Social Darwinism and nationalism, in which the Sámi people and their culture were regarded as primitive and uncivilised. As such, it was argued that they needed to succumb to the Norwegian nation state. After the Second World War, the race based argument for assimilation lost significant ideological pull. This was also the period in time in which Norway's welfare system was cemented. As such, the continued assimilation policy was framed as part of the social development of Sámi areas. In 1997, the King of Norway, HM King Harald V acknowledged the actions of the Norwegian State, and made an official apology on behalf of the government to the Sámi and Kven People, becoming the first representative to do so: "The state of Norway was founded on the territory of two peoples - the Sámi people and the Norwegians. Sámi history is closely intertwined with Norwegian history. Today, we express our regret on behalf of the state for the injustice committed against the Sámi people through its harsh policy of Norwegianization." Christianization of the Sámi people In the Middle Ages, the Church conducted missionary work in Sámi areas, initially prioritizing areas at the coast or around the fjords, where an increasing amount of the Norwegian population was settling. The Church and the missionaries decided early on that they should preach to the Sámi in their mother tongue. As such, starting in the 1630s, religious materials were translated into Sámi languages to be used in the Church and for educational purposes. The most intensive period of missionary work took place between 1650 and 1750.