'Calling of Vikings,' by Viktor Vasnetsov, early 1900s
'Calling of Vikings,' by Viktor Vasnetsov, early 1900s
Credit: WikiPaintings


Many historians commonly associate the term “Viking” to the Scandinavian term vikingr, a word for “pirate.” However, the term is meant to reference oversea expeditions, and was used as a verb by the Scandinavian people for when the men traditionally took time out of their summers to go “a Viking.” While many would believe these expeditions entailed the raiding of monasteries and cities along the coast, many expeditions were actually with the goal of trade and enlisting as foreign mercenaries.

A group of Viking re-enactors charges the crowd at the Stotfold Steam Mill Country Fayre in England.
Credit: i4lcocl2 / Shutterstock.com

The Viking Age references the earliest recorded raid in the 790s until the Norman Conquest of England in 1066. During this time, the reach of the Scandinavian people extended to all corners of northern Europe, and many other nations found Vikings raiding their coasts. The farthest reported records of Vikings were in Baghdad for the trading of goods like fur, tusks and seal fat.

A Viking raid on the monks of Lindisfarne, a small island located off the northeast coast of England, marked the start of the Viking migration from Scandinavia in 793. This location was a well-known abbey of learning, famous throughout the continent for the knowledgeable monks and its extensive library. During this raid, monks were killed, thrown into the sea or taken as slaves along with many treasures of the church, and the library itself razed. This single event set the stage for how Vikings would be perceived throughout the Viking Age: savage warriors with no respect for religion or appreciation for learning.

In the years that followed the initial raid, coastal villages, monasteries and even cities found themselves besieged by these sea-based foreign intruders. Due to the frequency of sea attacks, many developments were made in developing fortifications in the forms of walled-in harbors and sea-facing stone walls, defenses that proved to be quite effective at deterring raids.

The reason behind these attacks is a topic of debate among academics, though the reasons often stem from such things as the Christian persecution and forced baptism of pagans to reduced agricultural outputs in the Scandinavian region. Many more documented reasons might have prompted these people to leave their cold and harsh homes to seek out the means to survive elsewhere. Yet, despite how unforgiving their homeland may have been, most Vikings still returned to their homeland at the end of each season with treasure, slaves and goods to survive yet another winter.

A replica of a Viking ship sits at Pegwell Bay in Kent, England.
Credit: Alan Gordine Shutterstock

The Vikings set up colonies on the west coast of Greenland during the 10th century. The Viking sagas tell of journeys they undertook from these Greenland colonies to the New World. They mention places named "Helluland" (widely believed to be Baffin Island), "Markland" (widely believed to be Labrador) and "Vinland" (a more mysterious location which some archaeologists believe could be Newfoundland). 

At present the only confirmed Viking site in the New World is located at L'anse aux Meadows on the northern tip of Newfoundland. That site was excavated in the 1960s. Additionally there are three possible Viking sites that archaeologists have recently excavated in Canada. Two of the possible sites are located in Newfoundland while a third site is located on Baffin Island in the Canadian Arctic. 

One possible Viking site is located at Point Rosee in southern Newfoundland; at the site, archaeologists found a possible bog iron roasting hearth beside a structure made with turf. Another possible Viking site is located at Sop's arm in Newfoundland and includes a series of "pitfalls" that would have been used to trap large animals such as caribou. These pitfalls are arranged in a straight line, and archaeologists believe that the Vikings could have driven the animals toward these pitfalls where the animals could have been trapped and killed. At the third possible Viking site, located at Nanook on Baffin Island, researchers found artifacts that may have been used in metal production and the remains of a structure that may have been built by the Vikings. 

Many modern perceptions of Vikings found their origins through Catholic propaganda. Upon the sacking of multiple Christian facilities and the loss of countless relics and treasures, the Catholic ministry sought to dehumanize them. Until Queen Victoria’s rule of Britain, the Vikings were still portrayed as a violent and barbaric people. During the 19th and 20th centuries, perceptions changed to the point where Vikings were glamorized as noble savages with horned helmets, a proud culture and a feared prowess in battle.

With regards to the more popular Viking myths created through these misperceptions, the following are proven to be clearly false according to historical record:

1. Vikings wore horned helmets


2. They were filthy and unkempt


A Viking longhouse on the coast of Norway.
A Viking longhouse on the coast of Norway.
Credit: Tyler Olson Shutterstock

3. They spent all their time raiding and warring


4. Vikings were a unified army


5. They were large and heavily muscled

