There are quite a few distinctions between a joik and a song, but my professor focused on one difference: a song, in our culture, is meant to be representative and evocative of its subject. Joiking, to the Sami, is meant to embody the very nature and spirit of who or what it is singing.
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Legacy
In 1914, they built the sauna first
It sheltered the families
of the immigrants
as they proved their claim.
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In Defense of Hygge
This Danish notion of coziness or comfort comes from long evolved experience in how to live in and truly care for your surroundings, be that your living room or your country. [Read More]
Icelandic Sojourn
As my wife Suzy and I make our way across the brightly polished wood floors past towering glass windows it feels more like we are visiting a modern art gallery or an Ikea store than arriving at an airport on a remote Nordic island in the middle of winter. [Read More]
Saft
Saft is a delicious berry concentrate that is enjoyed throughout Scandinavia. It is generally non-alcoholic but is enjoyed mixed with spirits or in the bottom of a glass of champagne as much as it is enjoyed as a refreshment served simply with sparkling water. [Read More]
Not Angels But Angles: Anglo-Saxon Studies and the Specter of White Supremacy
Anglo-Saxon “angels” became ideals of Germanic warrior manhood: loyal to their brotherly bands, stoic in fighting and loving, and noble in death. They were recruited posthumously into the army of white supremacy, incorporated into a mythology that canonized “Nordic” peoples as the angels and supermen ordained to dominate the earth. [Read More]
Democracy in Concert: the northern tour
A deep human drive for freedom will always resist rule by the few — whether those few are feudal monarchs, communist dictators, fascist oligarchs, or mob capitalists who rise through the ranks of business as usual. [Read More]
Swedish Spirit
House Tomtes are in every house in Sweden. These little spirits can be good or bad and can cause a great deal of grief for the home’s people when they want to be naughty. [Read More]
Drinking From the Stream of Time
Whereas the Viking ships sought adventure in conquest of outer seas, Odin leads us on an inner adventure in the deep Sea of Self. [Read More]
Warm Norwegian Wood
Winter used to begin in October and end very late in March … maybe. This year Christmas was without any snow, and no snow appeared remotely in the forecast. [Read More]
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