Oʹlssee oʹdinakai peiʹvv has been selected for the IBBY-UNESCO collection
Oʹlssee oʹdinakai peiʹvv (2023), published by the Skolt Saami Cultural Foundation, has been selected for the IBBY-UNESCO Collection of Remarkable Books in Indigenous and Endangered Languages in May 2026. The book was written by a Skolt Saami teacher Maria Porsanger, and illustrated and layed out by her sister Anna Illikainen. Oʹlssee oʹdinakai peiʹvv is a children’s book that can be used as a support and discussion basis, for example, in emotional education, when learning to name and verbalize different emotions.
About the IBBY-UNESCO Collection
At a time when linguistic diversity is receiving unprecedented attention and faces challenges in AI, the IBBY–UNESCO Collection of Remarkable Books for Young Readers in Indigenous and Endangered Languages stands as a testament to the enduring value of languages as living expressions of knowledge, identity and imagination.
IBBY and UNESCO have joined forces to protect linguistic diversity in children’s literature by launching a global call for submissions to put together the IBBY-UNESCO Collection of Remarkable Books for Young Readers in Indigenous and Endangered Languages.
It is known today that, due to a lack of speakers, 40 per cent of the approximately 7.000 languages around the world may disappear by the turn of this 21st century. In view of this threat, which is all the more critical to the 4.000 Indigenous languages in the world today, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed the period between 2022 and 2032 as the International Decade of Indigenous Languages (IDIL) to draw global attention on the critical situation of many Indigenous languages and to mobilize stakeholders and resources for their preservation, revitalization and promotion. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) serves as lead UN Agency for the implementation of the International Decade.
The books in the collection will be selected by an international committee composed of IBBY and UNESCO.
The book will be featured in the UNESCO Official Catalogue and at the 40th IBBY World Congress in Ottawa from 6 to 9 August 2026, as well as at future international book fairs and travelling exhibitions. The book will also be part of the permanent collections of UNESCO and IBBY.
The number of readers does not determine the value of a book
For Maria Porsanger, the author of the book Oʹlssee oʹdinakai peiʹvv, the selection for the IBBY-UNESCO collection was a great honour, but also a surprise – she does not know how the book has caught IBBY’s attention.
– It takes a lot of work to create a book, so it feels good to receive recognition for it, and it makes me happy that people other than the Skolt Saami community have noticed the book‘s existence, Porsanger sums up her feelings.
Porsanger, who works as a Skolt Saami teacher at a primary school in Sevettijärvi, recognizes the importance of variety of children’s literature also in Skolt Saami language. She hopes that the recognition will also encourage other Skolt Saami speakers to write in Skolt Saami for different ages – I find it easiest to write for young children, but people of all ages need Skolt Saami literature.
Porsanger highlights how significant it is that people other than the language community also see the Skolt Saami language as valuable. According to her, the recognition the book has received also highlights how the number of readers does not determine the value of a book; literature is also needed for smaller languages.
Oʹlssee oʹdinakai peiʹvv is a book published by the Skolt Saami Cultural Foundation in 2023 as part of the project Ǩiõllpieʹzzest škoouʹle – sääʹmpäärnai jiijjâsǩiõllsaž škooulpääʹljes (English: Skolt Saami Children’s School Path in their Native Language), managed by Skolt Saami Cultural Foundation and funded by the Finnish Cultural Foundation in 2021–2023. The WSOY Literature Foundation has supported the manuscript and illustrations of the book.
The book can be purchased from the Skolt Saami Cultural Foundation (Sevettijärventie 9080, 99930 Sevettijärvi) or by ordering the book by email (info@kolttasaamelaiset.fi).
Read more about the IBBY-UNESCO Collection of Remarkable Books: IBBY-UNESCO Collection of Remarkable Books in Indigenous and Endangered Languages: IBBY International Board on Books for Young People
You can view the collection’s catalogue in English and French here.