Ukko Island (Äijih)

Sacred Sámi island in Lake Inari, used for offerings into the 19th century

Ukko — known in the Inari Sámi language as Äijih, "the old man" — is a small steep-sided rocky island near the centre of Lake Inari, about twenty kilometres north of the village. It was for centuries the most important sacred site of the Inari Sámi: pre-Christian offerings of metal, antler, and bone were left in the cleft at the summit to seek the favour of the thunder god of the same name.

The island remains sacred to the Sámi community. Visitors are asked to be respectful: do not leave objects, do not take stones, do not light fires. Boat trips from Inari village include a brief stop and a guided walk to the top, weather permitting. The view back to the southern shore of the lake is exceptional.

things to do sight
A story
In 1873 an archaeologist from Helsinki found a cache of silver coins, a small bronze figure, and the antlers of dozens of reindeer in a fissure on the island — the residue of a thousand years of Sámi offerings to Äijih, the thunder god. Most of the objects are now in the National Museum in Helsinki; a few were returned to Siida in 2017.

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