Trafika Europe 3 - Latvian Sojourn

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.

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