Riddu Riddu

Riddu Riddu began in 1991 as a small gathering organised by young Sea Sami in Manndalen who wanted to reclaim a heritage that decades of assimilation policy had pushed underground, and it has grown into an international indigenous festival: music from Sami artists alongside performers from Greenland, Siberia, North America, the Pacific and elsewhere, with a Northern People of the Year focus that changes annually, plus film, theatre, seminars, a children's programme and language courses. It takes place over four days in July at a site in the valley, with camping, lavvu and the midnight sun. The festival is credited with a wider revival of Sea Sami identity in the region.

History

The name means "small storm at the coast". A group of young Sámi launched the festival in Olmmáivággi (Manndalen) in 1991, about a decade after the Sámi cultural revival began; since 1998 the Riddu Riđđu Searvi organisation has run it, and Queen Sonja opened the festival in 2016 (Wikipedia, Riddu Riđđu).

The main sights

• The indigenous programme - Sami and international indigenous performers.
• The Northern People focus - an annually changing guest culture.
• The seminars and courses - language, craft and discussion programmes.
• The camp site - tents and lavvu under the midnight sun.

When to go

Mid-July, the fixed festival dates; the programme is announced in spring. Northern Norway in July has continuous daylight, and the weather can be warm or wet with little warning.

Things to know

Accommodation is mostly camping, and facilities are basic. Manndalen is a small valley community without hotels, so most visitors camp or stay well away. Much of the programme is in Sami and Norwegian.

Nearby

The Lyngen Alps rise across the fjord; Tromso lies about 130 kilometres west.

Key facts