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Accepted Paper:
Introducing reindeer to Alaska
Meeri Kataja
(Montana State University)
In the late 19th century, reindeer and reindeer herders were brought to Alaska first from Siberia and later from Norway. The impacts of introducing reindeer on Natives’ health and economy, on Alaska’s development, on the European herders’ lives, and on the environment in Alaska are considered.
Paper long abstract:
In the late 19th century, reindeer and reindeer herders were brought to Alaska first from Siberia and later from Norway. At the beginning, the idea was to “civilize” Alaska Natives with reindeer herding. In contemporary thinking agriculture, settlement, Christianity, and civilization were strongly linked together. Later, the focused shifted to supporting Natives with this new way of life to support themselves, but grazing lands and ownership questions created constant issues between Alaska Natives, white reindeer owners, the original teachers brought from Norway, who were mostly Sámi, and their descendants. In this paper, the impacts of introducing reindeer on Natives health and economic, on Alaska’s development, on the European herders’ lives, and on the environment in Alaska are considered.