Viking Age
The period of Scandinavian expansion, raiding, trade, and settlement, conventionally dated from the late eighth to the mid-eleventh century.
Viking longship: A fast, shallow-draft vessel used by Scandinavians for travel, trade, and warfare. Its speed and ability to navigate rivers and open seas helped make distant raids and settlements possible.
Lindisfarne raid: A Viking attack on the monastery of Lindisfarne in Northumbria in 793. Its date became a conventional marker for the beginning of the Viking Age.
Scandinavia: The northern European region comprising Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, with definitions varying by context. Its landscapes, communities, and political divisions formed the Viking Age's point of departure.
Norman Conquest: The conquest of England in 1066 by William, duke of Normandy, and his forces. The Normans descended from Scandinavian settlers whose earlier migrations reshaped northern France.
Viking raids: Armed attacks by Scandinavian groups on settlements, monasteries, and other targets. Raiding was one highly visible form of the expansion that marks this period.
Danelaw: The region of England where Danish law and Scandinavian settlement held substantial influence. It shows how raiding could lead to enduring political control and settlement.
Vendель Period: The archaeological period in Sweden preceding the Viking Age, roughly spanning the sixth through eighth centuries. Its elite culture and ship technology provide important background to early Viking society.
Old Norse: The North Germanic language spoken by Scandinavians during the Viking Age and medieval period. Its words and place-names remain evidence of settlement across the British Isles.
Norse trade: The exchange of goods across networks linking Scandinavia with Europe, the Middle East, and beyond. Trade connected the same maritime routes used for migration and raiding.
Rurik: A Varangian ruler traditionally associated with the foundation of the Rus polity in the ninth century. His story points to Scandinavian participation in the formation of eastern European states.