Pages 238-246 in G. Pétursdóttir et al., eds. Circumpolar Health 93. Proceedings of the 9th International Congress on Circumpolar Health, Reykjavík, Iceland, June 20-25, 1993. Arctic Medical Research. 1994;53(Suppl.2)
Pages 238-246 in G. Pétursdóttir et al., eds. Circumpolar Health 93. Proceedings of the 9th International Congress on Circumpolar Health, Reykjavík, Iceland, June 20-25, 1993. Arctic Medical Research. 1994;53(Suppl.2)
The belief and practice of four healers in the Sami (Lappish) in northern Norway are described on the basis of interviews with the healers and some of their patients. Three of the healers based their practice on Christianity and the fourth on elements from the pre-Christian Sami religion. The importance of a healing system operating in concordance with the language, traditions, and beliefs of a suppressed minority, as an alternative to the medical system of the dominant majority group, is emphasized. This study is part of a research about the health care offered to Sami patients by medical and psychiatric professionals and by healers.