Allemann, L. The sami of the Kola Peninsula : about the life of an ethnic minority in the Soviet Union / Lukas Allemann ; [transl. by Michael Lomax]. - Rovaniemi : University of Lapland Printing Centre, 2013. - 151 p. : ill., map, portr. ; 25 см. - (Senter for samiske studier, Skriftserie ; 19).

The Sami of the Kola Peninsula A word of thanks Many people were involved in the creation of this work, without whom my research would not have been possible. First and foremost I thank my interview partners Nina Afanas'eva, Apollinarija Golyh, Anna Jur'eva, Anastasija Matrehina and Marija Popova. They agreed to tell me about their lives and patiently answer all my questions. The information they gave me forms the core of this work. Ms Afanas'eva also very kindly made the effort to seek out numerous photos from her vast private archive and make them available to me. For this too I thank her most sincerely. My special thanks also go to Ms Anna Prahova who is active in various organiza­ tions to promote the interests of Russian Sami. She was my first port of call when looking for interlocutors. With her extensive circle of acquaintances among the Sami of the Kola Peninsula, she prepared for me a long list of people willing to talk with me. Her preliminary conversations with these people paved the way to a warm and trusting reception by my interviewees. Of great help to me also was my wife Julia Drozd, who is Ms Matr§hina's grand­ daughter. She assisted with the transcription of the interviews and in understanding her grandmother's difficult pronunciation. Many passages became comprehensible to me only on relistening to the recording together with my wife. The additional in­ put from her granddaughter was also indispensable in reconstructing the Ms Matrehina's life story. I would also like to thank her. I would like to thank the Centre for Sami Studies of the University of Tromso (Norway) for suggesting to publish an English version of my book within this series, and the programme "Focal Point North" (Tromso Forskningstiftelse, University of Tromso) for providing funding for the translation of the German manuscript into English. Also, I wish to express my gratitude to the translators Michael Lomax and Nikolai Nadtochy who mastered their difficult task with great professionalism and accuracy. Last but not least I want to thank my lecturers Prof. Dr. Heiko Haumann (Basel, Switzerland) and Dr. Catherine Bosshart-Pfluger (Fribourg, Switzerland). By attending Senter for samiske studier, Skriftserie nr. 19 L M IB B IV