Na na na heyana
Nahiyaha naha
Naheya heya na yanuwa
I remember the first time I saw the film on the theater screen, and one of the first strains of music was a distinctly tribal-sounding vocal piece that didn't seem to fit a film about a Scandinavian royal family. That was years ago when I first took my kids to see Frozen.
Fast forward to today, and I found myself doing a search on that piece in relation to a part of my heritage that I'm learning more about. I've referred to my Sami heritage in another writing. It's a rather new discovery for me as my dad told me about our Sami ancestor about a year ago. The Sami are Europe's only Indigenous people.
I am thinking about this as yesterday was Indigenous Peoples’ Day in our nation as first officially decreed by President Biden in 2021. It's vital to recognize the Indigenous people of these lands, our country's dark history toward them and the dignity of their cultures and stories. I learned also that August 9th is the International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples. On the un.org site, I read:
Indigenous peoples are inheritors and practitioners of unique cultures and ways of relating to people and the environment. They have retained social, cultural, economic and political characteristics that are distinct from those of the dominant societies in which they live. Despite their cultural differences, Indigenous peoples from around the world share common problems related to the protection of their rights as distinct peoples.
Indigenous peoples have sought recognition of their identities, their way of life and their right to traditional lands, territories and natural resources for years. Yet throughout history, their rights have been violated. Indigenous peoples today are arguably among the most disadvantaged and vulnerable groups of people in the world. The international community now recognizes that special measures are required to protect their rights and maintain their distinct cultures and way of life.
I also learned that:
There are an estimated 476 million indigenous peoples in the world living across 90 countries. That they make up less than 5 per cent of the world's population but account for 15 per cent of the poorest. They speak an overwhelming majority of the world's estimated 7,000 languages and represent 5,000 different cultures.
With all of these disparate thoughts, I'm wrapping my arms around the fact that I am part of that Indigenous identity — if even in a small way. And I'm very attuned to seeing and celebrating Indigenous cultures whether here in the U.S., in northern Finland where my ancestor originated or in any of the myriad places Indigenous people call home. And I'm also recognizing today on World Mental Health Day that many Indigenous people have not had access to support and healing helps for the stories of violation that they carry.
For many years something in me had a strong tug toward the Native American way of life and their way of viewing the world — of respect of and oneness with nature and of the traditions of handing down their ways and spirituality from one generation to another. There's something so elemental to their way of being in the world. Maybe that something in me was the Sami heritage I didn't know I had. The Sami are traditionally nomadic people of the northernmost areas of Finland, Sweden and Norway and a small area of Russia. They once inhabited greater areas of Scandinavia but were pushed farther and farther north. A peaceful people, the Sami encountered the fate of most Native peoples: assimilation and oppression at the hands of reigning regimes and religious institutions in the lands they inhabited. Their language, culture and spirituality were banned, and they became less of a distinct people group with modern Sami populations now only about 50,000-100,000 across northern Scandinavia and Russia.
Like many Indigenous people, the Sami were animistic in their spirituality, their beliefs and their practices rooted in nature. They also developed beautiful textiles, utilitarian objects of great artistic skill (duodji) and a music called joik which incorporates ethereal sounding vocalizations in one of any of the 9 Sami languages.
My ancestor is five generations back in our family lineage. I still do not have a photo or a name (apparently one of my father’s cousins has a photo), but my father recalls seeing a photo of this male ancestor who was Sami. He was very dark, as my father's side is darker-skinned, and had a striking Sami appearance. Now, not all Sami are dark, some are fair, but I've always wondered how my Finnish Luukkonen relatives have such a different appearance from the fair Finns on my mother's side.
So all this rambling is to say that I'm researching and discovering things about the 1/8 or 1/16th part of my Sami heritage. And I'm making connections as I synthesize the information. As I was learning about joik, the Sami music tradition, and seeing the beautiful gakti folk costuming, I randomly thought of Frozen and the tribal sounding music from the opening scenes. I did a search on “Frozen soundtrack Sami music” and voila! (pardon my French, smile, but I don't know the Sami word for there it is!): I learned that the opening song is in fact Sami in origin.
The animated Disney film Frozen opened with a tribal sounding choral chant that for many in North America sounded completely out of place ... However Sami people — the Indigenous communities in Scandinavian regions — recognized the tune right away. It turns out the context behind that music was subject to erasure.
The song is Vuelie and it was written for the film by South Sami musician and composer Frode Fjellheim who adapted it from one of his earlier songs Eatnemen Vuelie (Song Of The Earth). His music draws on joik, an ancient vocal tradition that was outlawed when Nordic Indigenous communities were Christianized...
Wow! How did that piece stick with me and intrigue me all these years? It must be in my blood and in my spirit as a descendant of the Sami. I continued to read the article that I found on nowtoronto.com and learned something very encouraging:
The selective use of Sami culture in Frozen led to debate on social media about appropriation and whitewashing and not just because of the joiking. The character Kristoff… has a wardrobe that resembles what Sami reindeer herders would wear, but he looks very Norwegian. To be fair, Sami people can have blond hair and blue eyes — the result of forced assimilation and ethnic cleansing for over a century.
To make sure cultural erasure didn't happen in Frozen II, Sami leaders entered into a contract with Disney that affirms ownership of their culture.
Although I'm not here to push for Disney and I'm not a fan girl for all things Disney (but I do like many of their movies), I'm heartened by a shift in honoring and respecting Indigenous voices by a major U.S. corporation.
This time, film makers Jennifer Lee, Chris Buck and producer Peter del Vecho sought out expert advice on how to respectfully portray Indigenous culture, which is heavily and intricately featured in the film and its reconciliation plot… It turns out Elsa and a fictional community called Northuldra (who are inspired by the Sami) have a shared history. The film acknowledges the erasure of the Northuldra and their absence from the original film in dramatic terms.
I find it comforting that as I begin to learn more about this part of my Finnish-Sami heritage, there is a positive story to share for Indigenous people that combines my American Californian identity with that of my Indigenous roots. I recognize that my Indigenous brothers and sisters on their ancestral lands of these United States of America and also in Canada have not often known these types of recognitions, but I pray that with greater awareness of our Indigenous People's Day and with more Native voices being heard speaking words of truth and wisdom in our world, we might see increased respect shown to the world's Native peoples with similar treaties and contracts created.
Jesse Wente, Director of Canada's Indigenous Screen Office, says he has never seen an agreement like this before but is enthusiastic about its possibilities.
“It's a treaty… it's in keeping with how Indigenous nations have tended to negotiate with other entities in the past. I think it's a great precedent for how Indigenous nations might deal with a corporation the size of Walt Disney, as well as governments and other agencies, around the use of their cultural and intellectual property in popular entertainment.”
In Frozen II, Fjellheim's Vuelie gets an encore recital, but this time it is sung by the Northuldra characters, a nod to their Sami-inspired heritage. Other elements in Frozen II inspired by Sami culture include spirits that represent earth, wind and fire (the Sami connection to the land is not unlike Indigenous communities in Canada).
There's also the Northuldra dress, which Utsi (Anne Lajla Utsi, Managing Director at the International Sami Film Institute) explains was a sensitive area. Indigenous communities across the globe have to be wary of how their traditional garments are used considering how they are often appropriated for mascots or Halloween costumes.
“We felt good about them,” says Utsi about the white fur garments worn by Northuldra characters, as well as their traditional use of reindeer and guksi cups.
On World Mental Health Day, I believe that the healers are rising and transforming the times we live in, and many of the most profound healers are these Indigenous individuals and groups willing to speak up to the power brokers and bring in a new era of greater understanding. May we all be willing to listen and learn from them.
For Healing,
Jen
I really enjoyed reading this and learning about all you shared. Yes, may the willingness to listen and learn grow, and may the healing continue! Thank you for being a leader-guide in this.