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Six Poems
Niillas Holmberg
Niillas Holmberg (born 1990) is
a Saami multimedia artist from
Ohcejohka/Utsjoki,
Finland.
He graduated from the arts
vocational school Tampereen
Yhteiskoulun lukio, and works
as a writer, musician and actor.
He mainly writes and sings in
Northern Saami, but also in Finnish and English. His poetry
has been translated into Finnish, English, Norwegian,
Spanish, German, Hindi and Maceodinian, and he has
performed widely.
Holmberg has released albums with several musical
ensembles, inlcuding a duo that makes arctic folk-music
mainly in Northern-Saami. Yoik, the traditional Saami way
of singing, plays an important role in his music. He was
granted the young artist's prize by the Kalevala Society for
his work for Saami culture as a writer, musician and actor
in 2011, and won the Saami Council's literature prize in 2014.
Poems translated from Saami by Lisa Jokivirta and the poet.