History

10 Facts About Erik the Red

Erik Torvaldsson, better known as Erik the Red, was a famous Viking adventurer from Norway who, among other things, discovered the icy island of Greenland and led the first Viking settlement there. He also taught his children his adventurous ways and was the father of Leif Erikson, the Viking credited with reaching North America. Since…

History

What language did Vikings speak?

Culture and language are intimately linked. Therefore, one of the best ways to better understand a people is to better understand their language. So, Vikings fans – what language did the Vikings speak? The answer to that question is complicated as the Vikings were not homogeneous over space and time, and neither was their language.…

History

Ivar the Boneless

Anyone who has seen the History Channel’s epic show Vikings will be familiar with Ivar the Boneless, Ivar hinn Beinlausi, the brutal but crippled son of Ragnar Lodbrok. A cunning and ruthless tactician, he leads his brothers on an invasion of England in order to avenge the death of his father. But how likely is…

History

William the Conqueror

What do you think of when you hear the name William of Conqueror or also called Guillaume Le Conquérant in French? King of England after the Battle of Hastings in 1066. True. French leader as the Duke of Normandy. Also true. Viking Warrior King ? This one is true as well. A descendant of the…

History

Bjorn Ironside

The Viking sagas are full of powerful warriors that called themselves kings while raiding across Europe – it is difficult to know how much of their stories are history, and how much are legend. One of the most memorable of these mythical figures is the 9th century Viking raider Bjorn Ironside. One of the many…

History

What did Vikings Drink?

We often imagine the Vikings as having a work-hard, play-hard culture. They gave their all on the battlefield, and afterward celebrated with nights of heavy drinking of mead and beer, out of large drinking horns ideal for drinking games! That is actually not too far from the truth. The Vikings did mark their victories with…

History

Harald Hardrada

While many of us were still grieving about the end of the History Channel’s epic Vikings series, Netflix threw us a lifeline and announced that it would be working with the same creators to make a sequel, Vikings: Valhalla. This new series will be set 100 years after the current show and will tell the…

History

Freydis Eiriksdottir

It was not just Viking men, but also Viking women, that were known and feared as ferocious warriors. Of all the Viking shield maidens whose stories have been preserved, Freydis is probably the most ferocious. The daughter of Erik the Red, she travelled to Vinland in the Americas where she terrified the natives. She was…

History

Leif Erikson

If you know much about Viking history, you have probably come across the name Leif Ericson, the icelandic explorer. A son of Erik the Red, he was more than you typical Viking warrior. Leif Ericson was the 1st Viking explorer that visited North America, and also the man that brought Christianity to Greenland. With such…