Niillas Holmberg (b. 1990) is a Sami poet, musician, actor, and cultural and environmental activist living in his native Utsjoki in Lapland. He combines spoken word with singing and joik, traditional chanting, and performs his work with various bands. His poetry collection Lest the Weird Become Weirder (Amas amas amasmuvvat, 2014) was awarded the Saami Council’s Prize for Literature and was shortlisted for the Nordic Council Literature Prize. Also his latest collection Underfoot (Juolgevuod¯d¯u, 2019) was nominated for the Nordic Council Literature Prize. Halla Helle (2021) is Holmberg’s first novel.
Here’s a short interview that will give you an even better picture of author’s work.
(Photo: Marek Sabogal)
Halla Helle (2021)
Underfoot (2019)