As well as being warriors that terrified and raided their neighbors, the Vikings had a rich culture with elaborate religious beliefs, sophisticated literature, stunning art, and, of course, traditional music. Our knowledge of Viking age music, like our knowledge of the traditional music of many cultures, is limited. We do not really have any idea…
Every year in the Danish city of Odense, named after the Norse god Odin, there is an annual flower festival. This reflects the importance of flowers in Scandinavian culture. You are unlikely to enter a home in Sweden or Norway without finding potted plants with carefully cared-for flowers. But were flowers equally important in the…
Any Viking enthusiast will be familiar with the Marvel film Thor: Ragnarok and the idea that Ragnarok is the story of the end of the world in Norse mythology. But Marvel takes significant liberties for the sake of entertainment and the continuity of their timeline. What really happens in the story of Ragnarok, and why…
Today, Norway is famous for its distinctive medieval wooden stave churches. These were once constructed throughout the Viking world as they transitioned from the Old Norse religion to Christianity. Elements of the Old Norse religion found their way into these new houses of worship. Stave Church Construction These churches are named stave churches because they…
Questions of destiny and pre-determined fate loom large in Viking culture. They believed that the moment of every person’s death was preordained from the moment of their birth. Even the gods are subject to the laws of fate. The Ragnarok prophecy tells the story of the death of all the gods, which is inevitable and…
If you follow Viking Age archaeology, you will have seen recent stories about the discovery of over 3,000 silver coins in Norway, representing the country’s largest silver hoard. It is only one of several important Viking Era archaeological finds from across Norway made in the last 12 months. See our 2024 update here. The Morstad…
The god Tyr is always listed as among the most important Viking deities in the surviving sources. For example, he is one of the 12 gods enthroned in high seats in the Skáldskaparmál. Despite that, Tyr is rarely mentioned in the surviving sources and we know very little about him. His name, Tyr, simply means…
According to the sagas, an enormous army of Vikings, assembled and led by the sons of Ragnar Lodbrok, attacked England in 865 to avenge their father’s death at the hands of King Aella of Northumbria. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle called this the “Great Heathen Army,” which was larger than any previous invading force. The Viking army…
The Viking world was full of symbols, many of which have become popular designs for Viking tattoos (I may have one or two). Understanding what common surviving symbols meant to the Vikings and how they were used is a bit like putting together an historical puzzle. We look at archaeological evidence, surviving art, and often…
Title Image: Tin alloy dragon head found in Brika, Sweden, c. 750-900. Source: Science Nordic Dragons are important figures in many mythologies, including Norse. However, understanding Norse dragons can be difficult because almost everything we know about them comes from Christian sources, which project established Christian ideas about the mythical beasts onto the Norse stories.…
