Vikings were fierce pirates and warriors who terrorized Europe from the late 700s to about 1100. During this period, daring Viking sailors also explored the North Atlantic Ocean and even reached America. Such deeds have given this period of European history the name the Viking Age. The Vikings lived in Scandinavia, a region of Europe that includes what are now Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. The Vikings conquered or looted parts of England, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Russia, Scotland, and Spain. At first, they raided these areas to obtain loot. Later, they set up trading centers and trade routes. Viking ships carried settlers to Iceland and to Greenland, which had been unknown to Europeans until then. Leif Ericson (also spelled Ericson, Ericsson, or Eiriksson), a Viking explorer, landed in North America around 1000, about 500 years before Christopher Columbus arrived there in 1492. The Vikings established a settlement in North America, but it lasted only a few years.
The name Viking did not come into use until after the Viking Age. It probably came from Vik, the name of a pirate center in southern Norway during Viking times. Among the Scandinavians, the expression to go a-viking meant to fight as a pirate or warrior. Other Europeans called the Scandinavians Norsem*n, Northmen, or Danes. Swedish Vikings settled in eastern Europe, including part of what became Russia. Many historians believe that the Swedes became known there as the Rus, and that Russia was named for them.
Few Scandinavians of the Viking Age spent all their time going a-viking. The majority worked most of the time as farmers or in other peaceful occupations. These skills allowed the Vikings to establish outposts in places such as Iceland where there were few other people.
The Viking Age began during a period of rapid population growth in Scandinavia. Historians speculate that this growth reduced the amount of available farmland, leading many Vikings to seek wealth or a new place to live outside of Scandinavia. At the same time, Scandinavians developed new shipbuilding techniques that enabled their ships to travel farther than ever before.
The Vikings had no direct effect on the history of America. But their conquests in Europe influenced relations between England and France for hundreds of years after the Viking Age. (World Book Encyclopedia, Vikings)
