Top 20 facts about Vikings
1. They came from Scandinavia
But they travelled as far as Baghdad and North America. Their descendants could be found across Europe – for instance, the Normans in northern France were Viking descendants.
2. Viking means “pìrâ†é raid”
The word comes from the Old Norse language that was spoken in Scandinavia during the Viking Age.
3. But they weren’t all pirates
The Vikings are infamous for their plundering ways. But many of them actually travelled to other countries to settle peacefully and farm or craft, or to trade goods to take back home.
4. They didn’t wear helmets with horns on
The iconic horned helmet that we know from popular culture was actually a fantastical creation dreamt up by costume designer Carl Emil Doepler for an 1876 production of Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen.
5. In fact, most may not have worn helmets at all
Only one complete Viking helmet has ever been found suggesting that many either fought without helmets or wore headwear made of leather rather than metal (which would have been less likely to survive the centuries).
6. A Viking landed on American shores long before Columbus
Although we commonly credit Christopher Columbus with being the European who discovered the land that would become known as the “New World”, Viking explorer Leif Erikson beat him to it by a whopping 500 years.
7. Leif’s father was the first Viking to set foot in Greenland
According to Icelandic sagas, Erik the Red journeyed to Greenland after being banished from Iceland for murdering several men. He went on to found the first Viking settlement in Greenland.
8. They had their own gods…
Although Viking mythology came long after Roman and Greek mythology, the Norse gods are far less familiar to us than the likes of Zeus, Aphrodite and Juno. But their legacy on the modern-day world can be found in all kinds of places, including superhero films.
9. … and the days of the week are named after some of them
The only day of the week not named after a Norse god in the English language is Saturday, which is named after the Roman god Saturn.
10. They ate twice a day
Their first meal, served approximately an hour after rising, was effectively breakfast but known as dagmal to the Vikings. Their second meal, nattmal was served in the evening at the end of the working day.
1. They came from Scandinavia
But they travelled as far as Baghdad and North America. Their descendants could be found across Europe – for instance, the Normans in northern France were Viking descendants.
2. Viking means “pìrâ†é raid”
The word comes from the Old Norse language that was spoken in Scandinavia during the Viking Age.
3. But they weren’t all pirates
The Vikings are infamous for their plundering ways. But many of them actually travelled to other countries to settle peacefully and farm or craft, or to trade goods to take back home.
4. They didn’t wear helmets with horns on
The iconic horned helmet that we know from popular culture was actually a fantastical creation dreamt up by costume designer Carl Emil Doepler for an 1876 production of Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen.
5. In fact, most may not have worn helmets at all
Only one complete Viking helmet has ever been found suggesting that many either fought without helmets or wore headwear made of leather rather than metal (which would have been less likely to survive the centuries).
6. A Viking landed on American shores long before Columbus
Although we commonly credit Christopher Columbus with being the European who discovered the land that would become known as the “New World”, Viking explorer Leif Erikson beat him to it by a whopping 500 years.
7. Leif’s father was the first Viking to set foot in Greenland
According to Icelandic sagas, Erik the Red journeyed to Greenland after being banished from Iceland for murdering several men. He went on to found the first Viking settlement in Greenland.
8. They had their own gods…
Although Viking mythology came long after Roman and Greek mythology, the Norse gods are far less familiar to us than the likes of Zeus, Aphrodite and Juno. But their legacy on the modern-day world can be found in all kinds of places, including superhero films.
9. … and the days of the week are named after some of them
The only day of the week not named after a Norse god in the English language is Saturday, which is named after the Roman god Saturn.
10. They ate twice a day
Their first meal, served approximately an hour after rising, was effectively breakfast but known as dagmal to the Vikings. Their second meal, nattmal was served in the evening at the end of the working day.