Sæter

A sæter is a seasonal farmstead used for grazing livestock in the summer, typically located at higher elevations than a farm’s winter residence. The word derives from Old Norse sætr, meaning “summer pasture” or “summer dwelling.” In Norway, sæters were part of transhumance, where cattle and sheep were moved uphill to pasture during the warmer months. A sæter ensemble usually includes multiple buildings such as living quarters for seasonal workers or herders, barns and storehouses, and sometimes a dairy facility for processing milk into butter, cheese, and other products. The term can refer to the pasture itself as well as the farm settlement.

Historically sæters were common throughout Norway, especially in mountainous districts such as Oppland, Telemark, and Trøndelag, where terrain made year-round grazing impractical. The system declined during the late 19th and 20th centuries with agricultural modernization, land consolidation, and urban migration. In many places the buildings were abandoned, but in others they have been preserved as cultural heritage, rehabilitated as tourist accommodations, or repurposed as museums.

Today, seter culture is part of Norway’s rural heritage. Some working sæters continue to operate on a seasonal basis, while others function as historical exhibits or rural tourism sites. The concept also exists in other Scandinavian languages in similar forms, with regional spellings such as sæter or seter.