Ivar Björklund, a Norwegian anthropologist, passed away on February 14, 2026. He made a huge contribution to the study of the history of Northern Norway and the Sámi community. Many of his friends and colleagues said that Ivar was not a typical scholar. He took with him the original ideal of anthropology: to understand people and society, one must go into the field, spend time among ordinary people, listen to their stories, and observe their work and daily lives.
When the sad news of Ivar’s death arrived, my first reaction was deeply personal. I’d known Ivar since my university days and had been planning a new project about his very first trips to the Bolshezemelskaya tundra of the Nenets Autonomous Okrug in 1991. At that time, the Yamb-to reindeer herders gave him the Nensky name Livar” and loved him dearly for his kindness and compassion. The Nenets word for white cotton grass, livar”, refers to this beautiful, abundant white plant that grows throughout the Nenets tundra. This plant is treasured by both the Nenets and their reindeer.
Dear Ivar, may your path to the afterlife be strewn with cotton grass, and may you find peace and tranquility there. We will always remember you.
Photo of Ivar Bjørklund is coped from https://uit.no/ansatte/person?p_document_id=42592
Arctic Anthropology 
I am shocked to hear this,
dear Ivar. Your groundbreaking work with Nenets reindeer herders and their language and culture will be in our minds and hearts forever, and your legacy in Arctic Anthropology will last!