Many of Just Knud Qvigstad’s works are out of print, and most are not in English. This is my paraphrased translation of stories from Sápmi from a French translation of his work.
The Angry Loon
God made the magnificent birds and let them fly away. The loon grumbled that his legs were not as beautiful as those of the goose and the swan, so he flew away without them. God captured him and fixed his legs on the back of his body. This is why the loon can’t walk today.
[The word “plongeon” simply means to dive. There are many varieties of diving birds in Sapmi, but the loon in particular has legs very far back on its body and can barely walk on land.]
Source: J.K. Qvigstad, Contes de Laponie, Editions Esprit Ouvert, 2008, p. 23.
The Origin of Lice
A bored old woman asked God for lice one day so she could pass the time killing them on pleasant summer days. People still blame the old woman for their lice.
Source: J.K. Qvigstad, Contes de Laponie, Editions Esprit Ouvert, 2008, p. 23.
How the Perch Got its Stripes.
One day, when a bear was bragging about its strength, the perch said it had more fat in its head than there are provisions in the stabbur of a rich man. [A stabbur is a grain house raised on stilts.} The bear bragged about its fat. The perch then said that it tasted like pure gold, but men hit bears with spades as if they are excrement. The bear hit the perch on its side, and the fish carries the marks of the bear’s claws to this day.
Source: J.K. Qvigstad, Contes de Laponie, Editions Esprit Ouvert, 2008, p. 37.