With regard to the names of places in Lapland, thefe will never
be fixed while Laplanders remain in the unfettled ilate of a
paftoral and wandering people. Thofe that have permanent habitations
are wholly unacquainted with the names of mountains,
rivers, brooks, and lakes at any great diftance, to which there is
little if any refort. The Laplanders who know the names of thefe
objedls, are o f the paftoral or erratic tribes. But here another difficulty
occurs. Various families of thele Laplanders aflociate to gether,
and thus wander from place to place : and as the inter-
courfe of thefe hordes with one another is but trifling, and of a
very tranfient nature, the language of each is marked by fuch
ihades of variety, that it can fcarcely be faid with propriety that
there is one Lapland tongue, common to all. Hence it happens
that the fame places have very diflimilar denominations, and that
a map of any diftriél under the guidance of one Lapland lhepherd,
would not be recognized and underftood by a traveller who had
drawn a plan of the fame traél, under the conduit and information
of another. An inftance of this diverlity of names, and the
inconvenience that naturally thence arifes, I experienced myfelf in
my progrefs from Pallojervi to Kautokeino. On my arrival at
this laft village, I was influenced to look over my names o f places,
and the little map I had drawn ; all which I ihewed to an inhabitant
of Kautokeino. I found that the Laplander who attended
us, and from whole account I had projedted my geographical
Iketch, had called the places by names totally different from thole
by which the fame objedls were known to the people of Kautokeino.
Among the Laplanders of Kautokeino was one, as I have mentioned,
who bore the fpècious title of fchool-mafter. This appellation
ftruck me very much ; for I had conceived that I was in a
place far removed from any fchool, or any inftitution for the pur-
pofe of inftrudtion. The name o f fchool-mafter w-as as great a
fubjedi of pride to this Laplander, as a red or blue ribband may be
to any one in the'refined parts of Europe. He was, doubtlefs, as
much gratified by the appellation of fchool-mafter, as any one in
our ftate of lociety may be by his rank of nobility, or other eminent
diftinction. This fchool-mafter, both in his perfonal appearance
and manners, was as complete a Laplander as his neighbours
around him, except that from fome defedtivc conformation of nature,
there was fomething very lingular and ludicrous in his mode
of walking, his feet being always turned out into what is called
by dancing-mailers the firft pofition.
Having paffed the frontiers of Lapland,* and continued fome
time in Norway, he had learned the Danilh, or rather the N orwegian
language : and his knowledge of this opened an employment
to him the moft fingulaf and droll in its nature of any that
ever fell under my obfervation in any country. The prieft, or
minifter, being wholly unacquainted with the Lapponian tongue,
cannot convey his fentiments to his audience, who know not any
other. To remedy this inconvenience, the fchool-mafter takes his
* Norwegian Lapland is named by the Danes and Norwegians Finmark. I ihall
ftill, however, call it Lapland, in order not to confound the inhabitants of this
country with thofe of Finland ; for both affume the appellation of Finlanders.
L 2 ftation,