Archaeological discoveries suggest that people have been moving through the area for several thousands of years.

The name Arvidsjaur itself comes from a Sami word which means "generous water" and was originally the name of the adjacent lake.

They acquired furs and skins from the hunters, and traded them off to southern regions, allegedly in vast numbers.

The Christianization of Arvidsjaur Municipality was slow, as it was in Norrland as a whole, because of the low population, the harsh climate and the long distances.

The Swedish minister and missionary Petrus Læstadius (1802–1841; brother of Lars Levi Læstadius, founder of the largest Christian revival movement in Norrland) collected old stories and myths in the area in the 19th century, which create the basis for our knowledge from that time.

Arvidsjaur Municipality is located about 110 kilometres south of the Arctic Circle, in the center of the northernmost land, Norrland.

Sami people are an indigenous minority group who mainly live on breeding reindeer.