Inari - a Meeting
Place for People and Cultures
Since the prehistoric
times, Lake Inarijärvi area has been important to people. Remains of 9000 years
old settlements have been found. It is known that the oldest Sámi settlements
have been in the area already 4000 years ago. The winter villages of the
ancient Inari Sámi people were located along Nukkumajoki River in the 1400s and
the 1500s. In the old days, Sámi people lived together in villages in the
winter, and each family moved to their own summer fields in the summer.
In Inari area, there
are many sacred places from the times before Christianity, such as Ukonsaari
Island and Otsamotunturi Fell, and memorials of the Christian times, such as
the Graveyard Islands and Lake Pielpajärvi Wilderness Church.
The village of Inari,
located in the intersection of routes, has always been a meeting place for
people as well as cultures. Fishermen, reindeer herders, people exercising the
natural sources of livelihood, gold diggers, artists, craftsmen, people in tourism
business, and officials have things to do there, and they all meet each other.
In Inari area, most sources of livelihood have something to do with the natural
environment. The history is still present in Inari, and you can feel the
atmosphere and life style of Lapland wilderness, which has disappeared in the
south a long time ago. In Inari, you can find many very skillful craftsmen and
artists, whose products are sold in the shops in the village of Inari.
