reckon you ’re on England ’s eastern coast sometime in the 9th one C CE and you see legion of men and women bear down your small town , axes and shields in hand , and they all look a routine mingy . However , while our imaginations have been saturated with such image through democratic shows like the History Channel’sVikingsor TV games likeAssassin ’s Creed Valhalla , there is one matter missing : the Viking adorn in a horned helmet .
Vikings never wore horned helmets so where did the idea come from?
For years , this titular image of a Viking clad in furs and leather armor wearing a gravid helmet with bull horns protruding from its top wastherepresentation of these other medieval warriors . The helmet has appear on everything from toy dog and mascots to fancy dress costume andcartoon depictions – but the trueness is that this definitive symbol is dead wrong .
There is no historical grounds that Vikings wore such helmets , and similar specimens have never been find in any archeological site .
The image of the horned helmet was first made democratic through 19th - century costume designer , particularly Carl Emil Doepler who included horn helmet in hiscostume designsfor the 1897 operation of Wagner ’s classic sagaDer Ring des Nibelungen . The opera house consists of four German - spoken language epic dramas that were slackly establish on Teutonic grand legends drawn from Norse sagas and theNibelungenlied(Song of the Nibelungs ) – a Middle eminent German epic verse form that was drop a line around the year 1200 CE . Wagner ’s narrative mixed motifs from Norse and German traditions so as to make them identical – or , more accurately , to tie German heritage to the fabled Norse heroes .
German nationalism was on the rising slope at this time , and many intellectual were attend for ways to bolster ideas about the superiority of German culture . Norse legends were perfect as they present an ancient origin that was free from that of the Greeks and Romans . The inspiration for horned helmets in reality has roots in old Germanic tribe from the medieval period who did indeed produce such clunky items , but their transmission onto democratic images of Vikings was an artificial and historically specific determination . Within no time , this becametherepresentation of these warriors and became part of a wider enthusiasm for all things Viking within late-19th century Europe more in the main .
This was the birth of the “ Viking age ” , as the historiographer Roberta Frank described it , a mythical invention that companion a historic reality . “ Until the viking old age was invented , there was no tusk - helmeted viking , and vice versa : the two go together like Easter and bonnet ” , Frankwrote . The “ Viking age ” was not mentioned as a historicalthinguntil the 1870s and was , she argues , tied to the belated - C captivation for all things link up to warfare , expansion , empire - building , and naval prowess .
This is not to say Vikings did not subsist . There surely were masses from Norway , Sweden , and Denmark who , from the 8th to the 11th century , explored mainland Europe , Britain , Iceland , Greenland , and evenAmerica . They also magnificently raid and pillaged as they die , before eventually settle in various position and becoming active dealer . However , many stereotypes and misconceptions ( such as the horned helmet ) were born with the imagined “ Viking age ” , and some of those myth have endured ever since .
Viking is a verb, not a noun
Today we are unlikely to utilise the parole “ Viking ” as averb(“I’ll be back later mum , I ’m going a - viking ” ) , but that ’s how the word was first used in Old Norse – to denote an bodily function , though it is not readable exactly what this activity involved . It is actually the word “ vikingr ” that was first used to represent someone on an military expedition , usually abroad and usually by ocean , and in a group ( vikingar for the plural ) . By the twelfth hundred , “ vikingar ” was being used in Icelandic sagas to describe aggressive , piratical Hunter who terrorise the Scandinavian , Baltic , and British waters . These Icelandic Sagas heavily lend to our perception of what a “ Viking ” was in our modern world .
To contemporaries , mostly Christians in northern and southern Europe , these masses were referred to as Norse Men , the North Men , or just “ pagans ” . Another deceptive feature of this story includes the idea that Vikings were a exclusive Scandinavian citizenry , but they really were n’t . In realness , each region had its own leaders and distinct identity . There were indeed times when a ruler may have been able to mix their forces with another to enhance their military capability , but to draw them as a homogeneous “ Viking ” people would be inaccurate .
There is mess of archaeological grounds to show that Viking warbands were not ethnically exclusive . The mobility of these people led to many fusions of cultures within their groups and their ranks , peculiarly as their trade networks distribute from North America to Afghanistan . This is partly why they were so successful – they could adapt and take in various cultures and people , from Christians on the British Isles toMuslims in Abbasid Caliphate . According to the depth psychology of the genomes of 442 ancient humans from archaeological sites in advanced Scandinavia , the UK , Ireland , Iceland , Greenland , Estonia , Ukraine , Poland and elsewhere , Vikings weregenetically diversepeople and therefore had no concept of ethnic purity .
Were Vikings illiterate?
It is often believed that Vikings were illiterate and ignorant people , but this is not accurate . They had their own alphabet calledfuthark(named after the first six letter of the first rudiment – f - u - th - a - r - k ) , which was made up of runes . This written arrangement was n’t unique to the Vikings either , it was used by others such as the Teutonic peoples of northern Europe , Britain , and Iceland . Nor was there a undivided system , as the use of runes change over sentence – the Elder Futhark , with 24 characters , was mostly used from 100 to 800 CE ; Younger Futhark , with 16 characters , was used from 800 to around 1200 CE ; and the Anglo - Saxon Futhark , with 33 role were used mostly in England from the 5th one C .
It iscurrently believedthat the runic system come out among early Germanic people who acknowledge the business leader and status that do with being able to write in some meaningful and legible way . It is likely they were warbands who amount into link with people living in Italy , which has led scholar to debate whether rune were educe from Old Italic ABC’s or from anEtruscan script .
While often link up with sorcerous and occult beliefs , it is probable these former marking were first used for mundane things such as recording defrayment and stocks , and keep track of order . Although rune would certainly appear on all sorts of devotional andreligious objectsover clock time and were used for charms and tour , they also recorded short subject matter , pronounced memorials , and even distinguish jokes .
It is interesting to mark that many of the runic letter have physique that would have made them easier to reduce into Grant Wood , which suggests they were designed for this design . It would also explain why so few examples have survived to this Clarence Day .
But while Vikings did not create extensive and lasting written records , that does not think of they were a round-eyed people . They were in reality fecund teller and produced many sagas and poems . These tale were passed from person - to - person and from genesis to generation through unwritten contagion . Although it may seem unconvincing , thismode of transmissionappears to have been more accurate than you might think .
Were Vikings godless savages?
Unfortunately , little is known about the beliefs and rituals practise by the various mass who we now identify as Vikings . But one matter is certainly true : they were far from being “ godless pagans ” as many present-day Christians described them . To see their intricate impression , however , we have to do more creative detective work , as there is very petty compose material to go on – and , what we do have , was mostly written centuries later byChristian commentators .
As the Vikings were not a homogeneous group of the great unwashed , it make sense that their practices and beliefs would vary from area to part . So what was believed in Norway would not needs be the same as in Demark . Each community had its own ways to abide by the immortal and practice devotion .
Chieftains and rulers were creditworthy for spiritual ritual and ceremonies . There is evidence of other spiritual self-confidence , such as thevölur(seeresses who had magical prophetical abilities ) that allow religious guidance in Nordic lodge . Sacrifice ( blót ) was an important feature of Viking ritual , and though human forfeiture did take situation , it was not ascommonas Christian writer made it seem . In most cases , the sacrificial ritual was acquit by a non-Christian priest , and it would necessitate the offering of either grains or livestock . These sacrifice were performed to promote fertility and re-formation for society .
Although we do not have any written textual matter describingViking belief , there are several themes that stomach out from the established narratives . Overall , the Vikings believed in a vibrant cosmogony fill with god , whale , pixie , midget , and various spirits . The cosmos was divided between life on Earth – Midgard – and various other realms which were all connected by the roots of the sacred treeYggdrasil . The gods , jazz as the Aesir , survive in the realm ofAsgard , and warrior who died in effect decease would go toValhalla .
Were Vikings as violent as we think?
With the recent rise of Vikings in pop civilization , the idea that they were all hyper - aggressive masculine warriors has become worrying . Not only is it historically inaccurate , but it is also now a assay-mark of multiple ethno - nationalist and white supremacist trend who believe Vikings would have share their views on race , polish , and grammatical gender . The myth of Viking racial pureness is as old as the 19th century “ Viking age ” and was an theme rear by Nazi ideology in the 1930s . However , it has beendebunkedmany times and , render their wide - ranging body process across the mediaeval world , it would have been Laputan for Viking to be hostile to all the various people they mixed with .
every bit , thecommon emphasison Vikings as “ pillager ” , “ raiders ” , and “ marauders ” has fostered the idea that they were always crimson and , more often than not , adult male . This too is inaccurate . Not onlywere womensometimes among the war parties , but ten of research has shown that Vikings more by and large hire in legion mannequin of action other than raid . They were merchants , explorers , diplomats , farmers , settler , and so on .
Moreover , many news report concerning their apparent barbarism come from Christian sources who criticized them for their early approach on Christian settlement , specially monasteries . This natural action is n’t likely to endear them to those produce written records . However , Viking furiousness should be understood within the panoptic setting of the mediaeval period where other peoples performed as ( and sometimes more ) fearsome acts . A key example here would be Charlemagne ’s famousMassacre of Verdenin 782 CE , where Christian forces murdered more than 4,500 Saxons . You could argue the only reasonableness we do not reckon Charlemagne in the same violent term as we do Vikings is because he had a Christian biographer .
So while the historical reality concerning Viking may not be as sensational , it is important to realise where these inaccuracies have come from . Regardless of whether these impressive Internet Explorer were as homogeneous or belligerent as popular culture likes to think , their real activities nevertheless had an important influence on history that should be celebrated in its own right .
