Inari Sami people Inari Sami people Inari or Aanaar Sami are a group of Sami people who inhabit the area around Lake Inari, Finland. They speak the Inari (Aanaar) Sami language, which belongs to the eastern Sami languages. There are an estimated 700–900 ethnic Inari Samis in Finland, of whom approximately 300 speak Inari Sami. They are the only group of Sami who live within one state and one municipality. Inari Sami are indigenous peoples of their area. The traditional homeland of Inari Sami is the shores of the Lake Inari and the surrounding areas. Historically they are believed to have inhabited a
Inari Ōkami most popular representations of Inari, according to scholar Karen Ann Smyers, are a young female food goddess, an old man carrying rice, and an androgynous bodhisattva. No one view is correct; the preferred gender of depiction varies according to regional traditions and individual beliefs. Because of their close association with "kitsune", Inari is often believed to be a fox; though this belief is widespread, both Shinto and Buddhist priests discourage it. Inari also appears in the form of a snake or dragon, and one folktale has Inari appear to a wicked man in the shape of a monstrous spider as