How Did The Vikings Influence North America

In 1903 a miraculous discovery was made in western Norway.  Under a large mound on a small farm in the Vestford region, there was unearthed a massive Viking ship.  Its treasures and contents were so large they are still being studied today. The Oseberg ship burial, as it has come to be known, gives us important information on Norwegian Viking culture.   This essay will look at the history of its discovery, the ship itself,  its objects, the intriguing carvings, the intricate fabrics, and of course, the bodies .  By studying the Oseberg burial ship we can learn about burial practices, Norwegian Viking diets, Norwegian dress and decoration, shipbuilding practices, arts, and religion.

These nomads continued moving all the way to South America. By the time Europeans arrived in America, there were already at least forty to fifty million indigenous people inhabiting the land (Faber 4-5). Other explorers, from Norway, Greenland, and Iceland reached America centuries before Columbus (Faber ix). Although these people attempted to live in this new land, they didn’t stay long, and failed to create a lasting historical impact (Faber 20-26).

There is substantial evidence that suggest that people from Siberia, Polynesia, China, and other various part of the world landed in America long before the arrival of Columbus.

Leif Eriksson set out from Greenland towards the west and first reached Baffin Island which he named Helluland or Land of Stone. From there he sailed south to Labrador and into the Gulf of St. Lawrence region which he named Vinland or Land of Wine for the wild grapes that were found there. He created a town at L'Anse aux Meadows,

After the discovery of the New World by Christopher Columbus in 1492, the powerful Old World scrambled to colonize it. The three major nations involved in this were Spain, France, and England. Spain took more to the south in the Central American and Mexico areas while France went north in the Canada region. The English came to America and settled in both the New England and Chesapeake area. Although the people in these regions originated from the same area, the regions as a whole evolved into different societies because of the settlers’ purpose for coming to America and the obstacles faced in both nature and with the natives.

Many people believe believed throughout history that the beginning of North America’s inhabitance was when Christopher Columbus crossed the Atlantic Ocean in the year 1492. They believed that he is the person who discovered America where in fact it was the Native Americans who made the initial discovery. Therefore, Columbus’s mission is considered more of a journey. One of the motivators behind the voyage was to move away from Britain and begin a new life in what was to them, land of potential opportunity.

12 October 1492- Columbus arrives in the Americas- Christopher Columbus had the support of King Ferdinand II and Queen Isabella I. Columbus set sail in April of 1492. It took him nearly six months for him to touch land. Although Columbus was not the first to actually discover the Americas, he has been given that credit despite there being evidence that Vikings actually discovered the Americas around 1000 AD. “Icelandic legends called sagas recounted Eriksson’s exploits in the New World around A.D. 1000. These Norse stories were spread by word of mouth before becoming recorded in the 12th and 13th centuries.” (History.com/Vikings) The significance of Columbus coming to America over the Vikings is that following the voyage of Columbus, is when settlers really began to start traveling to the Americas and “a new phase of civilization began.” (Reference.com)

Norwegians are credited with being the first Europeans to discover North America. Live Eriksson cam to America in A.D. 1000, which was nearly five centuries before Columbus. The Norwegian immigration to America began in 1825 in which several dozen Norwegians left Stavanger headed for America on the sloop Restauration,

There is no certain answers as to how pre columbian natives got to America. There are many theories based on hard evidence. The Paleo-Indians, archaeologists refer to as the first americans. At this point there was no official scripture in their society. Paleo Indians seemed to have paved the way for many other cultures to settle. All though in many cases these native settlers were very different from one another, they also had a plethora of similarities.

Even though Columbus did find his way to the Americas, it was not North America he discovered. In fact, he never stepped foot in the United States during his four expeditions. Columbus actually made landfall in various islands located in what is now known as the Bahamas, which had hundreds of thousands Native American inhabitants that had already made

People have had this concept in their mind that there were no people in America before Christopher Columbus made his trip to America. This misconception can be backed up with a lot facts from primary sources. For example, The McGraw Hill Discovering Our Past textbook explains one of the early people in America who were the nomads. They were people that moved from place to place in search of food. The Olmec, The Maya, and the Aztec were also groups of people that were in America centuries before Columbus was even born. Lastly, of course our Native Americans were officially the first one to discover America and live in it.

An Icelandic trader named Bjarni Herjolfsson sailed the shores of North America, but had not yet stepped foot onto the land. Leif Eriksson, son of Erik the Red, decided to buy the trader’s ship and gather a crew to retrace Herjolfsson’s route in reverse. In the “Saga of the Greenlanders,” it states that Leif

The first attempt of Europeans coming over to America was in 1000 a.d. by the Vikings. They sailed from the British Isles to Greenland, where they established a colony, the moved on to the Baffin Islands, and then finally Newfoundland. In Newfoundland, they established a colony in a fertile region and called it Vineland. From there, they sailed along the coast of North America observing the native plants, animals, and people. Strangely though, after a few years Vineland was abandon. Although, the Vikings never returned to America, their accomplishments became known to other Europeans.

Many nations at the time, assumed that there was nothing worthwhile out to the West and that by sending ships and explorers out West, they would never return. The Vikings never had such thoughts, rather they firmly believed that fate was predetermined at the moment of birth, and all that life really is, is just playing out those acts of fate; therefore, if fate was to say that it was the time for death to occur, then there is no point in being scared to die; "so why not go out and be bold?" (Walsh). They had a mindset that was focused on success, and without the fear of death to deter them, they were not only ruthless in their conquests but also courageous in their voyages across the Atlantic. This mindset, combined with the marvel that is the Viking Longboat, was the core strength used by the Vikings as they slowly went across the Atlantic Ocean and settled the land, starting with the "Faeroe Islands, northwest of Scotland" in about 860 AD, "then, about a decade later, the Norse reached Iceland" (Lemonick and Dorfman 2).

Many people believe that the first person to discover North America was Christopher Columbus, but in fact, the Vikings discovered America long before Columbus was even born. Viking leader Leif Eriksson was leading a large group of sailors in search of new land when they stumbled upon North America. When the Vikings first discovered North America, it was around the year 1000 AD in a place he named Vinland. Eriksson named the land Vinland after the abundance of wild grapes growing in that area along with the overall fertility of the land