CHRISTIANISATION IS A PROCESS that manifests as locally distinctive traditions and behaviours. While traditionally in Finland it has been assumed that local populations were subjected to a forced conversion, recent research has abandoned such top-down approaches and has emphasised local agency in the Christianisation process. This article contributes to the investigation of religious conversion in the Bothnian Bay coastal region of Finland, where the northernmost Catholic parish of Kemi was established in the early medieval period. The site under scrutiny, the Cape Valmarinniemi burial ground, presents archaeological evidence that questions long-held assumptions about the area’s Christianisation. We employ AMS-radiocarbon dating, geographic information systems (GIS) mapping, and a thorough osteological analysis to examine the site. This article addresses the importance of scientific methods and the careful analysis of excavation data in the investigation of religious transformations.

中文翻译：

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瓦尔马林涅米角：芬兰北部中世纪凯米教区的墓地

基督教化是一个体现当地独特传统和行为的过程。虽然传统上在芬兰，人们认为当地居民被迫皈依，但最近的研究已经放弃了这种自上而下的方法，并强调了基督教化过程中的当地机构。本文有助于调查芬兰波的尼亚湾沿海地区的宗教皈依，该地区最北端的凯米天主教教区建立于中世纪早期。被审查的地点，瓦尔马林涅米角墓地，提供了考古证据，质疑长期以来关于该地区基督教化的假设。我们采用 AMS 放射性碳测年、地理信息系统 (GIS) 制图和彻底的骨学分析来检查该地点。