Do fences make good neighbours: the influence of territoriality in state-Sami relations

The Sami of northern Europe are divided among four states and have lost most rights to land and resources in resources in their traditional area. This analysis seeks to determine whether territoriality has been a significant source of conflict between the Sami and the Nordic states. In contrast to the fixed and exclusive territoriality of the state, Sami concepts of territory have tended to be flexible and diffuse. The contradiction between these two types of territoriality has manifested itself in the following ways, which will be analyzed historically: 1. Nordic states viewed the Sami as nomadic, thus having no ownership of their land. 2. Traditional Sami activities, notably reindeer herding, were viewed as illegitimate or backwards, resulting in the privileging of modern forms of land use such as agriculture. 3. Where states did feel an impulse to protect the Sami way of life, they viewed nomadic pastoralism as economically non-viable, prompting systems of administration which increased state regulation of herding. These conflicts lie at the root of the issues which the Sami are struggling with today: rights to land and resources, self-government, and self-management in herding. Just resolution of those issues requires understanding and acknowledgement of the influence of territoriality in shaping the current situation. This analysis attempts to break away from state-centric perspectives in international relations to provide greater understanding and legitimacy to nations that have been unwillingly incorporated into states through colonization.