THE VIKINGS!

Who were the Vikings? The Vikings were a group of people from a region of Northern Europe called Scandinavia. Today, Scandinavia includes the nations of Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, & Iceland. During the Middle Ages, people who came from Northern Europe, like the Vikings, were known as Norsemen. They were most active during the years 793 AD to 1066 AD

How did Vikings make a living? Sailing Fishing Raising livestock Craftwork Beekeeping Trade: silver, gold, furs Raiding

Why did Vikings go on raids? Increased wealth and trading within Europe Fine treasures in monasteries & churches Political instability in Scandinavia Time of political unrest with frequent warfare among kings, nobles, & would-be kings Over-population (only 3% of Norway’s land is good for farming & grazing)

How did Vikings travel? Longships: Long & narrow Carved prows Carried 50 men Bank of oars & a sail Shallow keel allowed boats to travel up rivers easily & make inland raids Made for quick getaway

Where did the Vikings travel and settle outside of Scandinavia? Perhaps the most well-traveled of all Medieval Europeans North Sea, Baltic Sea, North Atlantic, Mediterranean Sea Visited & settled lands that would become Russia, Germany, France (Normandy), England, Scotland, Iceland, & Canada

How do we know about the Vikings? 1. runestones: large stones w/inscriptions written in runes (Northern European alphabet created before the period of Christian conversion) 2. annals or chronicles: histories written by monks whose monasteries were attacked 3. sagas: Vikings’ stories based on oral history (retold from memory). Ex. Vinland Saga 4. archaeology: bone artifacts from Viking settlements (Ex. Viking ship burials)

Did Vikings travel to America before Christopher Columbus? The Vikings were the first Europeans to travel to North America. A Viking named Eirik the Red discovered Greenland in 985 after he was exiled from Iceland Eirik’s son, Leif Eiriksson, was the first European to reach North America in 1000 AD. He made several landings, including an area that he called “Vinland”. It is thought to be modern-day Newfoundland, Canada. The story of this discovery is retold in the Vinland Sagas. Evidence has been found of a short-term Viking settlement in Newfoundland at a site called L’anse aux Meadows.

What are the modern impacts of the Vikings? Days of the week: Tyr’s day = the god of war Woden’s day = the chief god Thor’s day = god of thunder Frigga’s day = Woden’s wife

What are the modern impacts of the Vikings? Place names: Endings for place names having Viking name origins -by (village) -holm (islet) -wick (bay) -ford (fjord) -stad (place) -borg, burgh, -bury (settlement)

What are the modern impacts of the Vikings? Last names: Each child’s last name was based on the father’s first name in combination with “son” for a boy or “dottir” for a girl. Ex. Eirik has a son named Thorfinn. Thorfinn’s last name would be Eirikson.

What are the modern impacts of the Vikings? Old Norse word origins: Many English words having Viking origins such anger, berserk, dirt, egg, hell, knife, muck, reindeer, ski, skirt, steer, ugly, troll