In the early days coastal Saami followed an annual cycle as they migrated between settlements. After livestock keeping became common in the 1600s or somewhat earlier, the migration was limited to moving between two settlements, a summer settlement and a winter settlement. The best documented is the Varanger Saami's seasonal migration, but a similar pattern of migration has been described in other fjords in Finnmark too.
The winter settlement lay as a rule some distance inside the country where the forest meets the inner reaches of the fjords. People and animals moved here in the autumn, after the hay had been cut by the summer settlement and then by the winter settlement. Any fishing during the winter was for household use only, so being close to the good fishing grounds was therefore not so important. "Cooking fish" was available everywhere. It was more important that the winter settlement lay in an area with good access to fuel and good hunting and trapping.
The summer settlement lay by the sea, preferably some distance out along the fjord where access to the fishing grounds was easy. At this time of the year fish were a major commodity for bartering with the Russians, the "Pomors". The migration to the summer settlement usually took place early in the spring, over the course of February- April, when the forage at the winter settlement was used up. The snow disappeared early from coastal areas and domestic animals could be fed seaweed ad fish scraps until the grass grew.
The turf hut was the coastal Saami' s most common type of housing until the end of the 19th century. The turf hut consists of an open wood structure in which the individual components are pounded, riveted or nailed together. This framework is usually lined with split logs or planks, which are insulated with birch bark and brushwood and covered by a compact layer of turf or earth.
Turf huts could be built in a variety of ways, divided into two main types. The bealjegoathtti (arched rafter turf hut) is virtually round and consists of an inn skeleton of two sets of arched wooden rafters. Total floor space was normally between 20 and 30 square meters. The later stavgammen or sperregammen (stave turf hut) has four straight corner poles and a square floor plan. Stave turf huts were often slightly bigger than the arched rafter turf huts.
At the winter camp people lived in a communal turf hut, which served as a common home for both humans and animals. In early days the animals had a section in the same room as the people. The fireplace was placed in the middle of the room between the barn and living quarters. Later it was common to give the animals a separate room in the turf hut, or also a separate turf barn.
Traditionally the turf hut had a central, open fireplace and a flagstone or twig-covered floor. In more modern times turf huts were fitted with wood stove and pipe placed by a wall or in a Corner of the room. Glass windows, wooden floor and panelled walls were also common.
From 1800 onwards it became more common to build wooden houses. The last turf huts were in
use as houding until the 1950s, although it was common to build turf barns for animals
after this period too. Turf huts are still used by hunters in the wilderness.