Suomen Antropologi: Journal of the Finnish Anthropological Society

Book Review

2025-03-03T14:35:32+02:00

Book Review: Venkatesan, Soumhya. Decolonizing Anthropology: An Introduction. Cambridge: Polity. 2025. 252 pp. ISBN: 9781509540600 (softcover), 9781509540594 (hardcover); 9781509540617 (e-book).

A British Anthropologist in Finland

2025-03-05T18:41:17+02:00

I am a social anthropologist born, raised and educated in the United Kingdom. I have however carried out fieldwork in Finnish Lapland, first in 1971-2, for my doctorate, among Skolt Sámi people, and subsequently, in 1979-80, in the district of Salla, among farmers, forestry workers and reindeer herders of primarily Finnish heritage. I have also taught at the University of Helsinki, in 1973-4 and 1986. In this essay, I offer some personal reflections on my experience as a British anthropologist in Finland, as a fieldworker, teacher and colleague, placing it in the wider context of developments in both Finnish and British anthropology over a period of more than fifty years.

‘To Avoid a Strange European Explanation’

2025-03-03T21:14:44+02:00

This year marks a century since Finnish ethnographer Hilma Granqvist (1890–1972) embarked on her first journey to Palestine, an undertaking that proved intellectually rich alongside becoming a professional impasse. Initially setting out to study ‘The Women of the Old Testament’, she soon shifted her topic to reflect new methodological and theoretical insights. Yet, her pioneering research ultimately fell victim to the fate often faced by those ahead of their time.

In Palestine, al-Sitt Halimah’s (as she was known amongst her Palestinian interlocutors) work has remained highly regarded for decades, with her detailed recordings of rural Palestinian customs contributing to Palestinian scholarship as well as identity-building (Abou-Hodeib 2021). Today, her work resonates more than ever given Israel’s ongoing genocide against the Palestinian people as well as against the erasure of Palestinian heritage and knowledge systems which continues unchecked—a process that Granqvist witnessed in its early stages in the 1920s.

Upon her return to Finland, Granqvist was among the very few who openly criticised the Zionist colonial expansion in Palestine. Arguably, this stance, along with her theoretical and methodological advancements, contributed to her effective banishment from pursuing an academic career in Finland. In recent years, there has been a growing interest in her work, both in her native Finland and in Western academia at large.

A Snapshot of Helsinki Anthropology in Interesting Times

2025-03-12T23:08:21+02:00

Sarah Green was invited by the editorial team of Suomen antropologi to write something for their Jubilee Edition about Finnish anthropology, perhaps about her experience as an outsider, having worked in anthropology departments for a couple of decades in the UK before coming to Helsinki in 2012. She gladly agreed to write a piece, but argued that she would find it difficult to compare UK and Finnish anthropologies. As a specialist on borders, location, space, and place, it was hard to imagine what she could say about that difference without creating, rather than reflecting, that difference. She suggested, instead, that she could both consider where Finnish anthropology is currently located and look forward—that is, where Finnish anthropology might be headed. She added that she preferred to do this collectively, together with other colleagues, to provide a range of views and suggestions from a small selection of those currently practising anthropology in Helsinki. The colleagues Sarah contacted were selected to reflect a range of experiences of anthropology in Helsinki—both long term and more recent, and across a range of potential perspectives. Furthermore, given the exceptionally precarious times in which we are living (early 2025), she suggested that our team effort could also consider how to draw on the skills that anthropology provides in order to intervene in some way. The editors readily agreed. This brief reflection piece is the outcome of that collective effort, and, in a sense, represents the middle of a conversation rather than its beginning or end.

Reimagining public anthropology in Finland

2024-10-01T22:29:45+03:00

Broadly speaking, public anthropology is understood to signify the dissemination of anthropological knowledge beyond academic circles, but no clear definition yet exists. The article takes part in the discussion on what public anthropology is and how it might be promoted through the case study of the online publication AntroBlogi.fi. The article approaches public anthropology through six modes of knowledge sharing derived from AntroBlogi’s portfolio: popularising academic research, applied knowledge, social commentary, light entertainment, multidisciplinary meaning-making, and awareness creation. Through these modes, it is shown what successful public anthropology might look like. It is argued that anthropology can be popularised without compromising academic rigour. Towards this end, it is suggested that it is worthwhile to approach the concept of public anthropology with the same analytical ambition as other central concepts of the discipline. Only by advancing public anthropology inside academia can it be effectively promoted outside of it.

The 1970s Rebirth of Finnish Anthropology

2025-03-12T11:45:26+02:00

The Finnish Anthropological Society (or simply Society) was founded during a period in which the number of academic students increased rapidly. In addition, many young people sought ways to participate in international politics, particularly in the Global South, then known as the ‘Third World’. Eija-Maija Kotilainen served as secretary of the Society in 1976–1979 and wrote the first PhD thesis produced by the newly established discipline of cultural anthropology at the University of Helsinki in 1992. Timo Kaartinen defended his PhD thesis in cultural anthropology in 1993, and chaired the Society from 2000 until 2006. What follows is an edited and abridged version of their discussion about the society’s role in re-establishing anthropology in Finnish universities.

Editor's Note

2025-05-15T15:19:02+03:00

This year, the Finnish Anthropological Society turns 50 years old! Hooray! Founded in 1975, the core focus of the Society has remained trained on promoting high-quality research in the field of anthropology and in disciplines closely aligned with it. By building a collective and offering public venues where researchers can come together to discuss and disseminate anthropological knowledge in Finland, the Society has served as a pilar, solidifying the identity of anthropologists working in Finland across its 50 years of existence.