Support to North Sami language Wikipedia

Support to North Sami Wikipedia

This is a discussed common project, as a continuation of a Wikimedia Norge project 2011.

The WMNO project

WMNO project from 2009. Funds (around 135,000 NOK from Sametinget (Norway)). Training course in Kautokeino/Oslo 2011, 8 (female) pupils, 8 teachers. Produced articles during training course and afterwards for around 5 months. Increased SEWP with 1,000 articles, mostly within one month after course finished. Reward per article.

Reported for to Sametinget September, 2011. Acceptence by Sametinget March, 2012.

Funds set aside by Sametinget, 135,000 (?), for continued project. Planned to make application by May.

University of Tromsö may be new geographical base. Possibly project manager a Tromsö wikipedian. Sametinget (Norway) may accept that funds are used for Sami Wikipedia in Sweden and Finland.

Basic facts about North Sami Wikipedia (SEWP)

There are a little ca. 6500 articles
During 2012 almost all editing made by one editor (User:Gálaniitoluodda).
User:Gálaniitoluodda presents himself/herself as living in Kautokeino/Guovdageaidnu and as Finnish speaking (mother tongue), Sami speaking (3), Norwegian (2) and Swedish and English speaking (1). He/she says that he/she is 10 year old.

North Sami and Sami

There is only one Sami WP, also called Sami WP rather than North Sami WP
In Finland, Norway and Sweden there are also other Sami languages with an normalized orthography: Lule Sami, South Sami, Enare Sami, Skolt Sami and Kildin Sami.
There are incubator versions of South Sami and Lule Sami WP:s, but not active
North Sami is by far the most spoken Sami variety. It could be considered to be understood by the geographically nearest varieties: Lule Sami and Enare Sami.

Sami people and Sami language

There may be in total around 80,000 Sami (out of which 2,000 Kildin Sami in Russia with their own Sami variety, written in the Cyrillic alphabet).
Maybe 25 % speak Sami languages, i.e. around 20,000
Maybe 80-85 % of these speak North Sami, i.e around 16-17,500
Of the North Sami speaking population, the distribution between the three Nordic countries is approximately 1,500 in Finland, 5,000-6,000 in Sweden and 11.000-12,000 in Norway
There is a Sami speaking majority only in the communities of Kautokeino/Guovdageaidnu and Karasjok/Kárášjohka in Norway and Utsjoki/Ohcejohka in Finland. One other community with a substantial North Sami speaking population is Kiruna/Giron in Sweden. Inari/Aanaar/Enare in Finland is also a strong Sami cultural centre, although it is the centre of Inari/Enare Sami.

Major geographical centres of North Sami activities

Kautokeino (university college, information centre, vocational school, research institute, government archive, theater, ...)
Karasjok (Sami parliament, museum, newspaper, editing house, vocational school, ...)
Kiruna (Sami parliment, theater, ...)
Jokkmokk (folk high school, museum, secondary school, ...)
Enare/Inari (Sami parliament, museum, ....)
Tromsö (university, museum)
Oulu/Uleåborg (university)
Umeå (research institute at university)
Oslo, Stockholm, Helsingfors/Helsinki (important Sami communities)

Project plan

Vision

To get an SEWP community started, big enough to sustain a developing SEWP (at a given time at least five wikipedians (?) and two new active wikipedians per year
From meeting: This would be a dream. Maybe not realistic.

To get three Sami institutions interested in SEWP enough to interact with a SEWP community

Measurable targets

Number of trained editors
Number of new articles (possisbly with qualifications) within half a year

Elements of a project

Partners: University of Tromsö, Samisk högskole, Samisk utbildningscentrum

Activities

Training courses
Promotional actvities to get articles written

Project administration

One project, either one project or one umbrella project
Maybe one project with a under-project

Preparatory activities

Bengt to interact with prospective project leader, maybe identified by end of April
WMSE to research potential partners in Sweden (Samisk utbildningscentrum, Sametinget (Sweden)
Michael Svonni as a Swedish Sami reasource. Contact by Bengt (?)

Time plan

???

Budget

Sources of finance

Norwegian Sami parliament
[Swedish Sami parliament]
[Nordic Council]

Problematization

Is a North Sami Wikipedia a viable project?
Is a North Sami Wikipedia an interesting element within a policy for a Sami cultural policy?
Is there enough interest for a SEWP within the Sami institutional/political community?
Is there a SEWP community in reach?
Would outside support for a SEWP community be worthwhile?
Is it worthwhile to make a common WMFI/WMNO/WMSV effort?
How much backing is needed within the Sami community, and within which part of the Sami community, to be able to sucessfully inspire the upcome of a viable Sami WP community?

APPENDIX: Possible partners among Sami institutions

Educational/Language institutions

Samisk högskole, Kautokeino (Jelena Porsanger, Steinar Pedersen, ...)
Samernas utbilningscentrum, Jokkmokk (Henrik Micel Kuhmunen)
Samisk vidaregående skole og reindriftsskole, Kautokeino (Ellen Inga Haetta)
Sameområdets utbildningscentral, Enare
The Norwegian Sami Parliament' s departments for education and language, Kautokeino
Bokenskolan, secondary school, Jokkmokk

Museums/Archives

Ájtte svenskt fjäll- och samemuseum, Jokkmokk (Kjell-Åke Aronsson)
De Samiske Samlinger, Karasjok (Káren Elle Johansdatter Grip)
Sáme Museo Siida, Enare/Inari
Samisk arkiv, Kautokeino

Research institutes

Universitetet i Tromsö (Mikael Svonni, Trond Trosterud)
Umeå universitet (Peter Sköld, ....)
Uleåborgs universitet
Samisk forskningsinstitutt, Kautokeino (Ole Henrik Magga, Kirsti Ström Bull)

Political institutions

Sametinget (Norge), Karasjok
Sametinget (Sverige), Kiruna (Lars Mikaelsson, head of administration)
Sametinget (Finland), Enare/Inari
Davvi Nuorra, Norge
Saminuorra (Sverige)

Other institutions

Gáldu resource centre, Kautokeino
Journal Áwir, Karasjok (Karin Lisbeth Hermansen)
Journal Samefolket, Arvidsjaur/Jokkmokk (Katarina Hällgren/Åsa Lindstrand)
NRK Sápmi, Karasjok
SR Sameradio/SvT Sápmi, Kiruna

Private persons

Maj-Lis Skaltje, Kiruna (retired radio/TV journalist)
Klemet Erland Haetta, ordförande i Kautokeino kommun

Wikipedians on NOWP, FIWP and SVWP interested in Sami issues

Trondr (?)
Yupik