Want to know some of the Viking History that Swedish towns and cities have to offer? If YES, then read below. Uppsala Uppsala was a national center of the Svear (“swedes”) kingdom in the Viking age, especially before the Christianization of the country. In Uppsala there was pagan feasts that German church historian Adam…
Swedish Vikings and the Eastern World – Vikings in Russia There are evidence for that a East Slavic empire was created by Vikings in Russia. A Viking called Oleg in Russian. This information comes from the “The Russian Primary Chronicle” that tells about Oleg and the foundation of Kievan Rus. Oleg took control of Kiev in around 882 and the city/town became the capital of the empire. It should be said though before I continue this text that there are a lot of speculation regarding this matter and controversy. Some view the Swedish Vikings as the origin of the Russian nation, and you can imagine the controversy in that. And also some more background on this story. VIKINGS/SWEDES IN THE EAST, EARLY SIGNS. It is known that even before the Viking age (650-800) Scandinavians established colonies at the shores of…
The Icelandic Sagas are a big source to our knowledge about the Viking cultures of the Scandinavian-speaking Nordic countries (Iceland, Denmark, Sweden, Norway). Many different researching fields are having a significant use of them. Examples are religious studies and cultural history, but these are only two of many fields. What about sports for example? Did the Vikings performed any sporting activities? The answer is yes, they had many sports. Ice skating, wrestling, board games, horse fights and knattleikr. This article is going to focus on knattleikr. But you can read more about other Viking sports on this link: http://www.hurstwic.org/history/articles/daily_living/text/games_and_sports.htm THE SAGA SOURCES ABOUT KNATTLEIKR AND VIKING SPORTS In the Egill Skallagrimssons saga it is written about the game. It was played with a ball and a bat/stick but we do not know the rules of the game. The equipment they used…
VIKING FACTS INFOGRAPHIC IN NORMAL TEXT FORM, READ BELOW. THE HORNED HELMETS ARE A MYTH. The first “surprise” is today not so suprising any longer to all. You have likely heard about the fierce Vikings with horn helmets. Vikings did plunder and was in that sense fierce. But there is not historical or archaeological…