Vinland Sagas in the context of "Saga of the Greenlanders"

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⭐ Core Definition: Vinland Sagas

The Vinland sagas are two Icelandic texts written independently of each other in the early 13th century—the Saga of the Greenlanders (Grænlendinga Saga) and the Saga of Erik the Red (Eiríks Saga Rauða). The sagas were written down between 1220 and 1280 and describe events occurring around 970–1030.

The Saga of Erik the Red and the Saga of the Greenlanders both contain different accounts of Norse voyages to Vinland. The name Vinland, meaning "Wineland," is attributed to the discovery of grapevines upon the arrival of Leif Eiriksson in North America. The Vinland sagas represent the most complete information available regarding the Norse exploration of the Americas, although due to Iceland's oral tradition, they cannot be deemed completely historically accurate and include contradictory details. However, historians commonly believe these sources contain substantial evidence of Viking exploration of North America through the descriptions of topography, natural resources, and native culture. In comparing the events of both books, a realistic timeline can be created.

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Vinland Sagas in the context of Vinland

Vinland, Vineland, or Winland (Old Norse: Vínland hit góða, lit. 'Vinland the Good') was an area of coastal North America explored by Vikings. Leif Erikson landed there around 1000 AD, nearly five centuries before the voyages of Christopher Columbus and John Cabot. The name appears in the Vinland Sagas and describes a land beyond Greenland, Helluland, and Markland. Much of the geographical content of the sagas corresponds to present-day knowledge of transatlantic travel and North America.

In 1960, archaeological evidence of the only known Norse site in North America, L'Anse aux Meadows, was found on the northern tip of the island of Newfoundland. Before the discovery of archaeological evidence, Vinland was known only from the sagas and medieval historiography. The 1960 discovery further proved the pre-Columbian Norse exploration of mainland North America. Archaeologists found butternuts at L'Anse aux Meadows, which indicates voyages into the Gulf of Saint Lawrence as far as northeastern New Brunswick. L'Anse aux Meadows has been hypothesized to be the camp Straumfjörð mentioned in the Saga of Erik the Red.

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LINKED FROM (PARENTS)
← Vinland
LINKS TO (CHILDREN)
Carl Rasmussen → Iceland → Saga of the Greenlanders → Saga of Erik the Red → Norsemen → Vinland → Leif Eiriksson → North America → Norse exploration of the Americas → Viking →