Indigenous Time, Colonial History: Sami Conceptions of Time and Ancestry and the Role of Relics in Cultural Reproduction

The role of the past in prehistoric societies is a frequently occurring topic in recent archaeological literature. It is proposed that prehistoric societies were concerned with the construction of an ancient past, and that relics were actively used as mnemonic devices in recalling the past. This paper comments on the significance of historicity in cultural reproduction on the basis of indigenous Sami conceptions of time and ancestry. It is a personal reflection from an archaeologist's point of view. The indigenous Sami concept of time, life and death implies that distances in the past were not ascribed any significant value and that there was no chronological or genealogical scale against which events in the past were measured. It is argued that relics were not ascribed a discursive value, and that they were not used as mnemonic devices in recalling an ancient past. By the example of Sami conceptions of time and ancestry, the author advocates great caution in promoting relics as carriers of collective memories in ancient societies.