The Viking Age was a tumultuous period when raiders and pirates from Scandinavia changed
the very face of Europe. For England, the apex of that era was the Great Heathen Army’s invasion.
A large number of warriors attacked, and, unlike in prior decades,
they were not there to loot and pillage, but to conquer and settle.
Norse and Anglo-Saxon ways of life differed greatly. The warfare, politics and diplomacy
of the occupied areas, known as the Danelaw, are well-known and popular topics, however,
the daily life of the people there is a neglected topic, which we will cover in this video.
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Most often the Vikings are typed as seafaring marauders
who looted Christian settlements and recorded their barbaric adventures in epic poetry.
But this picture, inspired by the hostile pens of the English and Irish clergy,
is far from complete. The Norse were a civilized people, who flourished on land as well as sea,
and the vast majority of them were simple farmers, fishermen, and traders.
Scandinavia was a very inhospitable place, with short warm periods each year and a small amount of
arable land. It was also undergoing a population boom by the middle of the 9th century, putting
additional strain on the people living there. That being the case, the Great Heathen Army’s
invasion of England proved to be a much-needed opportunity for many families to find new land.
The Danelaw was a world of violence and gold, swords and slaves. But it is important that we
don’t confuse myths with reality during the period. Though very different from our own,
there was a much more ordinary, mundane side to life. People made things and traded them,
tended crops and livestock, cooked, looked after their homes, drank, gambled, and went
to the market. The streets of Viking York or Dublin would have been lined with beggars,
thieves, and prostitutes, and yet alive with the sounds of children playing, artisans working,
and merchants selling their wares. The functional unit of these communities was
the family and The Norse took great pride in their clans, especially the ancestors, as they knew
of their forebears’ lives and deeds through many generations. The family formed a tight-knit group.
Members stood by each other through any difficulties and an insult to one was an
insult to all, just as well as dishonor incurred by one brought dishonor to the entire family. Yet
at the same time, family authority did not bury independence and initiative, as sons were allowed
to follow their own path of life, be it at home or away as warriors and traders. Women enjoyed
significant rights as well, both legally and in practice. They could own and manage properties,
had authority in household matters and very often ran things while their husbands were away.
For the Norse, marriage was a sophisticated matter. It was not only the marriage between a man
and a woman, but also a joining of two families in an alliance. The marriage was typically organized
by the heads of each household, yet both the bride and the groom had the right to refuse.
Wives would also keep their own patronymic instead of taking their husband’s.
Not only that, but in case of a dispute between the husband and someone in the
wife’s side of the family, the wife was allowed to take the side of her relative.
The legal matters behind a marriage were also quite complex – the two sides had to exchange a
dowry and a bride-price, and the bride would also receive a gift from the groom on their wedding
night. Due to their complexity, the exchange of property and promises would take place before the
actual religious ceremony. The wedding ceremony itself would be traditionally held on Fridays,
as it was the day of Frigg, the goddess of love, marriage, and childbirth. During the wedding,
an animal would be sacrificed and the priest conducting the wedding would smear their own
forehead with the blood and then sprinkle the married couple with it. Divorce was also common
and there was no stigma towards either party if it happened.
After a woman from the Norse household gave birth, the newborn would be presented to the father who
would name the child or, if the child was sick, deformed, or born to a slave, have it left in the
wild to die. A classical education did not exist for them. Instead, children would work hard from
an early age and learn to farm, craft, and fight. Hard work was highly respected and the child most
likely to be ostracized or ridiculed would be the one that worked the least. A child would become an
adult at the age of 12. Most children stayed at home for several more years after that,
however it was not uncommon for boys of that age to be sent on Viking expeditions
or to live and work with a foster family. Inheritance was also a complex matter in
the Danelaw. The oldest, or sometimes favorite, son would inherit all of the family properties,
however, he was obligated to pay his brothers for their share of the inheritance. As stated before,
each family member had the right to pursue their own goals, and younger brothers would often use
their inheritance to build or buy their own house, whether in a town or on a farm. Younger brothers
also frequently bought longboats with their inheritance, to use for trading or raiding.
Friendship was also quite important in Norse society, as people who were very close but not
related could establish a blood pact, known as a foster brotherhood. As Viking society was not
as clearly stratified as in the rest of Medieval Europe, blood bonds could even be formed between
chieftains and their slaves. This goes to show how social mobility functioned in Norse communities.
As people did not become slaves through birth or divine right, but through sheer bad luck, masters
would often grant them freedom and even land, property, or the right to marry into the family.
Another aspect of society which was lost after the fall of Rome and that the Vikings
reinvigorated was hygiene. The Norse bathed at least once a week and changed clothes regularly.
They also took great care of their long hair, so it is no surprise that one of the common objects
in Viking excavation sites is the simple comb. Most Norse households also contained a bath,
similar to the modern Finnish sauna, something unheard of in the rest of Europe at the time. One
Anglo-Saxon chronicler John of Wallingford wrote that “The Danes made themselves too acceptable to
English women by their elegant manners and their care of their person. They combed their hair daily
and took a bath every Saturday, and even changed their clothes frequently, and improved the beauty
of their bodies with many such trifles, by which means they undermined the chastity of wives.” The
famous Arab traveller Ibn Fadlan even noted in his travels: “Every day they must wash their faces and
heads, every morning a girl servant brings a great basin of water, she offers this to her master and
he washes his hands and face and his hair – he washes it and combs it out with a comb in the
water”. Accordingly, it was also considered very offensive to make somebody or their clothes dirty.
As Scandinavia was a region where fertile soil was rare and low temperatures made crop
failures regular, the Norse lived in rural areas more infrequently than people from the
rest of the continent. Many of them relied on craftsmanship and trade, so the settlers in the
Danelaw brought those habits with them. As those occupations were less profitable in rural areas,
the Vikings founded various cities throughout Europe to be able to survive. Prior to the
arrival of the Norse, England had only 5 settlements which could be considered cities,
however, only a few decades afterwards the number of cities would increase significantly.
In developed cities, such as York or Norwich, the Vikings had a crucial impact on urbanization.
The cities grew significantly and even two-story buildings began appearing.
Many Anglo-Saxons would migrate to those cities in the following decades as well, as the large
number of Norse manufacturers and traders provided a chance to earn and learn new skills.
As big an impact as the masterful Viking shipbuilding techniques had on warfare,
it is safe to say that it had an even more significant influence on trade. After the
fall of the Western Roman Empire, trade outside of the Mediterranean ground down to almost a complete
halt. The Norse, who were renowned travellers, sailed to lands as far as the Mediterranean,
the Levant, and by sailing through the grand rivers of Eastern Europe and the Caspian Sea,
they managed to set up trade missions even as far as Persia, Mesopotamia, and Volga Bulgaria.
York and Norwich may be good examples for Viking trade cities, however, the one that grew to be one
of the most important trading centers was Dublin. It prospered from the trade of goods imported from
England, Scandinavia, and further lands, however, what made it extremely rich was the slave trade.
Viking raids into Ireland brought back many enslaved into Dublin,
and from there they were sold even as far as the Khazaria and Kufa, in Iraq.
Some of the most sought after products in the Danelaw were walrus hides and tusks. The hides
provided for excellent ship ropes, while the tusks were made into crucifixes, caskets or sword-grips.
Other important resources which were needed in England were timber, iron, and meat.
The Viking raiders and warrior bands may have frequently preyed upon the Anglo-Saxon commoners
in the areas of the Danelaw, however, the relationship between the new Scandinavian
settlers and the locals was cordial. Initially there was a certain degree of enmity between the
two populations, especially in places with a large Anglo-Saxon population. As time passed, though,
relations became much warmer as both communities found ways of benefiting from one another.
The rise of trade and cities, for example, meant that the Anglo-Saxon commoner would be able to
sell his product for much better prices and would not have to travel dangerous distances to
do so. Intermarrying also became increasingly common throughout the years – something which
was a catalyst for the conversion of the local Norse population to Christianity.
All this would not have been possible, however, had the Old English and Old Norse languages
not been similar to the point where neither translators nor bilingualism were needed.
The Norse language had a crucial impact on the English language,
as modern English grammar is almost identical to the grammar of the Scandinavian languages.
Although it is true that the majority of the Scandinavian settlers converted to Christianity,
that did not happen immediately. Before their conversion,
the Scandinavians believed in the Germanic gods, such as Odin, Thor, Freya, and many others.
The difference between Christianity and Germanic paganism was not just in the gods themselves,
but in the way that they were perceived, how devotion was shown, and the extent to which they
affected the daily lives of the people. For the Anglo-Saxon Christians, god was an omnipotent and
omniscient being, who was an integral part of their lives. They feared god, wanted to
appease him, and behaved within the norms which were considered properly Christian. Meanwhile,
the Norse saw their gods as beings which did not require devotion, adoration, or even approval.
For the Norse, their gods would still exist even if the people would not
and they did not have to like them, they merely had to deal with them and stay out of their way.
Norse temples were quite rare compared to churches, especially in the Danelaw. Instead,
religion was a personal matter for each person and each family. Religious leaders existed in
Scandinavia, however, it is unclear whether any of them were present in the Danelaw too. It is
far more likely that local chieftains took the role of religious leaders when it was necessary.
On a daily basis, each person would choose if and how they would present their belief – some would
wear necklaces with various religious symbols, others would wear the famous arm and neck rings,
and craftsmen would dedicate their works to a god. For important holidays and rituals,
the Viking community itself would be the most important actor in the ceremonies.
The most important of the Norse holidays was Jul, the celebration of midwinter and the Norse New
Year. It marked the point when the Sun would be at its lowest, and its subsequent rebirth. The first
day of Jul was considered the day when the god Ingvi-Freyr would bring love and light back into
the world. The wild hunt is also considered to start during Jul – a period of increased
supernatural activity when Odin, riding his eight-legged horse Sleipnir, would roam the world
together with the dead. One Jul tradition was that children would leave sugar and hay in their
breeches for Sleipnir, and in exchange, Odin would leave them gifts. This is probably the origin of
the Christmas stocking tradition and it may also be one of the origin stories for Santa Claus.
The Midsummer holiday marked the height of the Sun’s power and it was during this time that
most foreign trade and raiding were conducted. The Winter Nights’ festival marked the beginning
of winter. Trade, travel and war would often cease during this period and hunting and feasting
would take their place. The Charming of the Plow festival marked the beginning of spring and the
return to normal yearly activities. One integral part of each holiday, festival, and celebration
was the blot – the sacrifice. Although humans were sometimes sacrificed during this time, it
happened far less than it is widely believed. The usual sacrifices would involve cattle and crops.
Although most of the Norse were gradually assimilated by the local Anglo-Saxon population,
or violently exterminated during the 11th century during the Harrying of the North
and St Brice’s day Massacre, the Danelaw’s impact on society cannot be overlooked. Whether
it is simple words and names or even customs, ideas, and social norms, they left their mark.
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