Norsemen & Vikings
About Our Travel Guide to Norsemen & Vikings
This is not a history of the Vikings, rather, it is a travel guide to the many and varied sites, landmarks, towns and museums associated with the Norsemen and Vikings, and collections of their artefacts on display. Whether you want to visit a few of the more spectacular sites or are planning a more extensive trip to a specific region, you are sure to find what you need here. From recommendations for the best sites and museums to visit to tools to create your own itinerary and travel lists. As well as many other resources, travel tips and ideas. The guide is primarily produced by Ricky Menzies, currently studying for an MA in Viking and Medieval Norse studies in Iceland, and Thomas Dowson, an archaeologist and the founder of Archaeology Travel, along with contributions by other authors and researchers on this website. Read more about the authors and this website, as well as our mission and vision.
Must See Viking Sites & Museums
Vikings or Norsemen?
The Norsemen were the group of people who inhabited Scandinavia (modern-day Norway, Sweden and Denmark) during the Viking Age. This is a period that starts in the late 8th century AD and ends in the mid 11th century. Today they are commonly referred to as Vikings, but this term is somewhat misleading.
The Old Norse word “víkingr” originally meant a person who goes on expeditions and raids, often overseas. The term ‘Viking’ emerged in modern English during the 18th-19th centuries and was popularized as a blanket term for those who raided and traded from Scandinavia during the Viking Age. Norse people did not refer to themselves as Vikings. Rather, they used terms like ‘Norseman’, ‘Northman’, or ‘Dane’.
Norsemen, as a more encompassing term, refers to all the Germanic peoples who spoke Old Norse and inhabited Scandinavia during the Viking Age, whether they raided other lands or not. Norse society and culture extended beyond raiding and warfare. The Norse had a rich literary tradition, mythology, art, and poetry. They were also traders, merchants, farmers, and skilled craftsmen.
Viking has come to refer to seafaring raiders from Nordic regions, while Norsemen refers to the broader Scandinavian culture and people during that historical period.
