Karin Stenberg was born in 1884 in Árraksuoloj,
Arvidsjaur Municipality,
Norrbotten County, to Maria Mattsdotter Stenberg (born 1851) and Jon Nilsson Stenberg (born 1845). Her parents were both
Forest Sami from the
siida (Sami community) of Västra Kikkejaur in Arvidsjaur. Stenberg studied at the Sami school for primary school teachers in Mattisudden,
Jokkmokk Municipality, graduating in 1904. She spent her entire professional career working as a teacher in Arvidsjaur. In addition to teaching, Stenberg was an active supporter of Sami issues, especially those relating to the Forest Sami. In 1905, she traveled to
Stockholm to attend what has been called the "First folk education course for Samis" (
Samernas första folkbildningskurs), which was financed in part by politicians
Carl and
Anna Lindhagen. In 1916, she helped found a Sami association in Arvidsjaur. During Christmas of 1919, she joined several other representatives of the growing Sami movement in meeting with member of parliament Carl Lindhagen, who supported Sami rights. In 1920, she co-authored the manifesto
Dat Läh Mijen Situd!: Det är vår vilja: En vädjan till Svenska Nationen från Samefolket (
This Is Our Wish: An Appeal to the Swedish Nation from the Sami People). The purpose of the document was to influence the 1919 Lapp Committee, which was investigating Sami rights and the conditions of
reindeer herders. In the 1930s, Stenberg led a project to save Arvidsjaur's old Sami
kyrkstad or
lappstad (a group of cabins used when visiting a church overnight), which was threatened by road construction. The
lappstad is today preserved as a historical site. In 1942, Stenberg and Reverend
Gustav Park led an initiative to open the Sami Folk High School (
Swedish:
Samernas Folkhögskola), a
folk high school for the Sami in
Sorsele,
Västerbotten County. The school is still in operation and has been known since 1999 as the Sami Education Center (Swedish:
Samernas utbildningscentrum,
Sami:
Sámij åhpadusguovdásj) She was also a leader in the Sami organization Same Ätnam, which was founded in Jokkmokk in 1945. Stenberg received several awards over the course of her life, including the
Royal Patriotic Society's medal, the Olof Högberg Award, and the Swedish Craft Association's silver medal. She was also a member of the
Order of Vasa, first class. == References ==