For over 400 years, Jokkmokk Market has been a meeting place by the Lule River, where people and cultures have come together, and goods and services have been exchanged in a bustling array of market stalls and commerce. Established in 1605, Jokkmokk Market is one of the world’s oldest annually recurring markets. Today, it is the most important event for cultural and creative industries in the North Calotte region and holds a unique position as a Sami meeting place.
For the people of Jokkmokk, the market is the hub around which the year revolves – their true New Year’s Eve. The marketplace always opens on the first Thursday in February, when midwinter still maintains its powerful grip and temperatures can drop below minus forty degrees. The northern lights often dance their mysterious dance in the dark polar night.
The epicenter of Jokkmokk Market is the marketplace with nearly two kilometers of market stalls. During the market, numerous exhibitions, concerts, lectures, nature experiences, art openings, food experiences, workshops, and many other events are organized.
The Arctic setting, the polar night, the many cultural encounters, and the unbroken tradition spanning more than four hundred years create something that is completely unique in the world, something that can only be experienced in person.