Mons Somby
Encyclopedia
Mons Aslaksen Somby Somby was one of the leaders of the Sami
rioters that attacked several Norwegian
shops during the Kautokeino rebellion of 1852. During the uprising a merchant and the town sheriff were killed and others were whipped. Several buildings were also destroyed during the riots.
During the summer of 1851, Mons was arrested and sentenced to 15 days imprisonment on bread and water for the disruption of the religious services in the Skjervøy
Church. His brother, also involved in the disruption, suffered the same punishment, while his sister was sentenced to 10 days in prison on bread and water. After their release, they traveled to a large siida
headed by their father Aslak Olsen Somby during the summer of 1852. It was from this siida which the Kautokeino rebellion was carried out.
. The death penalty was not invoked for his sister Marit Somby, but she died in prison before her case came to trial. His farther Aslak Olsen Somby, he was sentenced to life imprisonment. Their mother, Inger Mons Siridotter, who was 60 years old during the rebellion, was prosecuted, but was found innocent of the charges.
Mons Aslaksen Somby and Aslak Jacobsen Hætta
was sentenced to death and decapitated
at Elvebakken in Alta, Norway on October 14, 1854.
After their execution, their bodies were buried in graves just outside the Kåfjord
church graveyard in Alta, which meant that they were outside the Norwegian State Church's blessing. However, their heads were sent on to the Anatomisk Institute at the Kong Medical Frederiks University in Oslo
. Which became part of the university's skull collections.
tried to obtain Mons skull for proper burial, but the Anatomisk Institute refused the extradition, claiming that the skull was the department's property. The department also stated that Mons Somby was a convicted criminal, murderer and that no attempt should describe Mons as a martyr to any cause. After the Norwegian Television NRK of Finnmark aired a story about the case in 1996, the president of the Sami Parliament took up the issue up with university and shortly afterward, the skulls of both Mons and Aslak Hætta were released to relatives.
In November 1997, the skulls of both Mons Somby and Aslak Hætta were buried in a grave at the Kåfjord Church in Alta, at the same spot as their bodies were buried over one-hundred and forty years earlier. The story of the extradition of Mons Sombys skull to Niillas was the focus of the 2000 movie, Give Us Our Skeletons
.
Sami people
The Sami people, also spelled Sámi, or Saami, are the arctic indigenous people inhabiting Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of far northern Sweden, Norway, Finland, the Kola Peninsula of Russia, and the border area between south and middle Sweden and Norway. The Sámi are Europe’s northernmost...
rioters that attacked several Norwegian
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
shops during the Kautokeino rebellion of 1852. During the uprising a merchant and the town sheriff were killed and others were whipped. Several buildings were also destroyed during the riots.
Early life
Mons Somby and his siblings were converts to the Laestadian Movement at the end of the 1840s, but because of the excesses of the Norwegian locals and government they became an extremist group and by the early 1850s they were no longer receiving advice from Lars Levi Laestadius, the leader of the religious movement.During the summer of 1851, Mons was arrested and sentenced to 15 days imprisonment on bread and water for the disruption of the religious services in the Skjervøy
Skjervøy
Skjervøy is a municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Skjervøy on the island of Skjervøya, where most of the inhabitants live. The main industries are fishing and ship building....
Church. His brother, also involved in the disruption, suffered the same punishment, while his sister was sentenced to 10 days in prison on bread and water. After their release, they traveled to a large siida
Siida
The siida is a Sami local community that has existed from time immemorial. A siida , or a "reindeer pastoralistic district," is a Sami reindeer foraging area, a group for reindeer herding and a corporation working for the economic benefit of its members...
headed by their father Aslak Olsen Somby during the summer of 1852. It was from this siida which the Kautokeino rebellion was carried out.
Aftermath of the Kautokeino rebellion
Mons also had a 25-year-old brother who participated in the uprising, named Ole Somby, who died of a brain injury after being hit in the head with a bat while trying to escape capture during the transport from Kautokeino to AltaAlta, Norway
-Birdlife:For those interested in bird watching, the river outlet, known locally as Altaosen is well worth a visit. This tidal area is used as a stopover for many wetland species.-Transportation:...
. The death penalty was not invoked for his sister Marit Somby, but she died in prison before her case came to trial. His farther Aslak Olsen Somby, he was sentenced to life imprisonment. Their mother, Inger Mons Siridotter, who was 60 years old during the rebellion, was prosecuted, but was found innocent of the charges.
Mons Aslaksen Somby and Aslak Jacobsen Hætta
Aslak Hætta
Aslak Jacobsen Hætta was one of the leaders of the Sami revolt in Guovdageaidnu in November 1852. During the riots, the merchant Carl Johan Ruth and the local government official Lars Johan Bucht were killed and the pastor Fredrik Waldemar Hvoslef was whipped...
was sentenced to death and decapitated
Decapitation
Decapitation is the separation of the head from the body. Beheading typically refers to the act of intentional decapitation, e.g., as a means of murder or execution; it may be accomplished, for example, with an axe, sword, knife, wire, or by other more sophisticated means such as a guillotine...
at Elvebakken in Alta, Norway on October 14, 1854.
After their execution, their bodies were buried in graves just outside the Kåfjord
Kåfjord, Alta
Kåfjord is a fjord in northern Norway, an arm of the Altafjord, in the county of Finnmark, and a village located on the fjord. The village is in the municipality of Alta, 18 km west of the town of Alta on the European route E6....
church graveyard in Alta, which meant that they were outside the Norwegian State Church's blessing. However, their heads were sent on to the Anatomisk Institute at the Kong Medical Frederiks University in Oslo
University of Oslo
The University of Oslo , formerly The Royal Frederick University , is the oldest and largest university in Norway, situated in the Norwegian capital of Oslo. The university was founded in 1811 and was modelled after the recently established University of Berlin...
. Which became part of the university's skull collections.
Retrieval of Mons Somby's skull
In 1985, a relative of Mons Somby, Niillas SombyNiillas Somby
Niillas Somby is a Sami political rights activist and film director. He was one of the seven hunger strikers during the Alta controversy...
tried to obtain Mons skull for proper burial, but the Anatomisk Institute refused the extradition, claiming that the skull was the department's property. The department also stated that Mons Somby was a convicted criminal, murderer and that no attempt should describe Mons as a martyr to any cause. After the Norwegian Television NRK of Finnmark aired a story about the case in 1996, the president of the Sami Parliament took up the issue up with university and shortly afterward, the skulls of both Mons and Aslak Hætta were released to relatives.
In November 1997, the skulls of both Mons Somby and Aslak Hætta were buried in a grave at the Kåfjord Church in Alta, at the same spot as their bodies were buried over one-hundred and forty years earlier. The story of the extradition of Mons Sombys skull to Niillas was the focus of the 2000 movie, Give Us Our Skeletons
Give Us Our Skeletons
Give Us Our Skeletons! is a 1999 documentary film directed by Paul-Anders Simma about Niillas Somby, a Sami man who retraces his family ancestry as he searches for the head of his ancestor, Mons Somby.Mons Aslaksen Somby and Aslak Jakobsen Hætta were executed by decapitation on 14 October 1854 for...
.
Sources
- Nellejet Zorgdrager. De rettferdiges strid : Kautokeino 1852 : samisk motstand mot norsk kolonialisme ; omsett frå nederlandsk av Trond Kirkeby-Garstad. - Nesbru : Vett & viten ; Oslo : i samarbeid med Norsk folkemuseum, 1997. - 558 s. .(Samiske samlinger ; B.18, red.: Ove Pettersen).
- Audhild Schanche, Nordisk samisk inst.; Knoklenes verdi: Om forskning på og forvaltning av skjelettmateriale fra samiske graver (PDF)
See also
- Finnmark fylke, Kautokeino, Karasjok i Kistrand, Klokkerbok nr. 1 (1821-1829), Fødte og døpte 1825, notat- og visitassider m.m. 1825, side 20-21.
- Kåfjord i Talvik, Ministerialbok nr. 16 (1847-1857), Døde og gravlagde 1855, side 161
- Kautokeino, Ministerialbok nr. 2 (1843-1861), Døde og gravlagde 1854, side 199
- Artikkel i Dag og Tid nr. 16, 17. april 1997 (om avrettinga)