Encyclopedia
| Leif Ericson
Encyclopedia
|
| Tutorials | Encyclopedia | Dictionary | Directory |
|
Leif Ericson
Close up of Leif in front of Hallgrímskirkja, in Reykjavík, Iceland. The statue was a gift from the United States government.
BiographyEarly life in GreenlandIt is believed that Leif was born about AD 970 in Iceland,[4] the son of Erik the Red (Old Norse: Eiríkr inn rauði), a Norse explorer and outlaw and himself the son of a Norse outlaw, Þorvaldr Ásvaldsson. Leif's mother was Thjodhild (Þjóðhildr).[5] Erik the Red had founded two Norse colonies in Greenland, the Western Settlement and the Eastern Settlement, as he named them. Leif Erikson had two brothers, Thorvald and Thorsteinn, and one sister, Freydís. Leif married a woman named Thorgunna, and they had one son, Thorkell Leifsson. Exploring west of GreenlandDuring a stay in Norway, Leif Ericson converted to Christianity [6], like many Norse of that time, at the behest of the King of Norway, Olaf I. When he returned to Greenland, he bought Bjarni Herjólfsson's boat and set out to explore the land that Bjarni had seen (located west of Greenland), which likely was Newfoundland, Canada. The Saga of the Greenlanders tells that Leif set out in the year 1003 to follow Bjarni's route with 35 crew members, but going north.[7] The first land he went to was covered with flat and shiny rocks (Old Norse: hellur, German: "hell"). He therefore called it Helluland ("Land of the Flat Stones"). This was possibly Baffin Island. Next he came to a land that was flat and wooded, with white sandy beaches. He called this Markland ("Wood-land"), which is possibly Labrador. Settlement in Vinland
Statue near the Minnesota State Capitol in St. Paul The sagas mention that one of Leif's men, Tyrkir, possibly a Hungarian (because at that time the Hungarians were referred to as Turks)[8] or a German, found wild grapes.[9] On the return voyage, Leif rescued an Icelandic castaway named Þórir and his crew — an incident that earned Leif the nickname Leif the Lucky (Old Norse: Leifr hinn heppni). Research done in the 1950s and 1960s by explorer Helge Ingstad and his wife, archaeologist Anne Stine, identified a Norse settlement located at the northern tip of Newfoundland, known as L'Anse aux Meadows, which many have connected to Leif's settlement. United States commemoration
1968 United States postage stamp Speculation.">
A few have speculated that Norsemen may have penetrated as far as modern day Minnesota, either coming down from Hudson Bay or going west through the Great Lakes. A runestone with carvings of a Scandinavian nature was discovered near Kensington, Minnesota, aptly titled the Kensington Runestone.[10] In the 19th century, the theory that Ericson and his men visited New England gained in popularity.[11][12][13] The statue of Ericsson on Commonwealth Ave. in Boston, Massachusetts and the Norumbega Tower in Weston, Massachusetts were both created as monuments to the vision of this Viking presence.[14]
 ." title="The " Plaque", a granite marker along the Charles River in Cambridge, Massachusetts reading, "ON THIS SPOT IN THE YEAR 1000 LEIF ERIKSON BUILT HIS HOUSE IN VINELAND". Location: ." class="location-left type-thumb" width="140px" />
The "Horsford Plaque", a granite marker along the Charles River in Cambridge, Massachusetts reading, "ON THIS SPOT IN THE YEAR 1000 LEIF ERIKSON BUILT HIS HOUSE IN VINELAND". Location: . An 11th century Norse coin, the Maine Penny, was found in Brooklin, Maine along with thousands of other artifacts during an excavation of a former Native American trading center. However, it is noted that this coin may have made it from Newfoundland via trade or may have even been brought to North America centuries later by the English or Portuguese.[15] Although there have been numerous attempts over the decades to show Viking presence in United States, such as translations of stone carvings, or possible European traits in some Native American tribes, the professional archaeological community has not yet whole-heartedly accepted this claim.[15] See also
Map NotesExternal links
bs:Leif Ericsson br:Leifr Eiríksson bg:???? ??????? ca:Leif Eriksson cs:Leif Eriksson cy:Leif Eriksson da:Leif den Lykkelige de:Leif Eriksson et:Leifr Eiríksson el:???? ??????? es:Leif Eriksson eo:Leifr Eiríksson eu:Leif Ericsson fr:Leif Ericson fur:Leif Ericsson gl:Leifr Eiríksson ko:??? ???? hr:Leif Ericsson io:Leifr Eiríksson id:Leif Eriksson is:Leifur heppni it:Leifur Eiríksson he:???? ???????? jv:Leif Ericsson pam:Leif Ericson la:Leivus Erici filius lv:Leifs Eriksons lb:Leif Eriksson lt:Leifas Eriksonas hu:Leif Eriksson mk:???? ??????? nl:Leif Eriksson ja:????????? no:Leiv Eiriksson nn:Leiv Eiriksson pl:Leif Eriksson pt:Leif Eriksson rm:Leif Eriksson ru:???? ???????? sco:Leif Ericsson simple:Leif Ericson sk:Leif Eriksson sl:Leif Erikson sr:???? ??????? sh:Lejf Erikson fi:Leif Eriksson sv:Leif Eriksson tl:Leif Erikson th:??? ???????? vi:Leif Ericson tr:Leif Ericson uk:??????? ???? zh:??·???? Source: Wikipedia | The above article is available under the GNU FDL. | Edit this article
|
|
top
©2008-2009 TutorGig.com. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Statement
