Lule, Kildin Saami promoters get Gollegiella

This year’s pan-Nordic Sámi language award Gollegiella has been awarded to Karin Tuolja from Jokkmokk, Sweden and Ekaterina Mechkina from Murmansk, Russia, said the Ministry of Justice in a press release.

The Gollegiella, which means ‘golden language’ in Northern Sámi, was handed over to Karin Tuolja in connection with the 26 November meeting of the ministers for Saami affairs and the presidents of Saami parliaments of Norway, Sweden and Finland in Oslo. Ekaterina Mechkina will receive her prize in Murmansk on 29 November.

The biennial award that now comes with a monetary prize of 15,000 euros was founded in 2004 with the aim of promoting, developing and preserving the Sámi languages in Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia.

Karin Tuolja has worked for the Lule Saami language in Sweden as a teacher, translator, study material developer, and language reviser for her entire adult life. She is a prominent person in the Lule Saami language community and has played a key role in the language cooperation between Norway and Sweden, especially when it comes to developing the vocabulary and terminology and translating the Bible.

Ekaterina Mechkina is awarded with the Gollegiella in recognition for her long-term efforts to strengthen the position of the Kildin Saami language in Russia. She has participated in developing the vocabulary and compiling a Kildin Saami dictionary. Mechkina has also written and translated books and developed study materials. Her works have introduced many people to the culture and lifestyle of the Kildin Saami people living in the Murmansk region.

The language prize is awarded to private individuals or organisations in recognition and appreciation of remarkable contributions to promoting the Saami languages. The prize is now awarded for the eighth time. The prize will next be awarded in 2020, when Finland will hold the rotating chairmanship of the Nordic Saami cooperation.

The award jury consisted of Neeta Jääskö from Finland, David Kroik from Sweden, Nina Afanasieva from Russia, and Solvår Knutsen Turi and Jane Juuso from Norway.