Leif's place of birth is unknown,[9] although it is assumed to have been inIceland.[10][11][12] His father,Erik the Red, founded the firstNorse settlement in Greenland, where Leif was later raised. Following his voyage to Vinland and the subsequent death of his father, Leif became chief of the Greenland settlement. He had two known sons: Thorgils, born in theHebrides; and Thorkell, who succeeded him as Greenland's chieftain.
Early life
Leif was the son ofErik the Red and his wife Thjodhild (Old Norse: Þjóðhildur), and, through his paternal line, the grandson ofThorvald Ásvaldsson. When Erik the Red was young, his father was banished fromNorway for manslaughter, and the family went into exile inIceland (which, during the century preceding Leif's birth, had been colonized by Norsemen, mainly from Norway). Leif was also a distant relative ofNaddodd,[13][unreliable source?] who discovered Iceland.[14]
Leif's year of birth is often estimated in thec. 970s.[15] Though his birthplace is not accounted for in thesagas,[16] it is likely he was born in Iceland,[10] where his parents met[17]—probably somewhere on the edge ofBreiðafjörður, and possibly atHaukadalur Valley, where his mother's family was based.[10] It was in this valley that Erik cleared land and built the farmsteadEiríksstaðir, inc. 970.[18]
Erik was later banished from Iceland and sailed west to a place he namedGreenland. He then briefly returned to Iceland to bring his family and other colonists back with him to Greenland, establishing its first permanent settlement in 986.[16][19] Leif grew up on the family estateBrattahlíð in theEastern Settlement of Greenland. He had two brothers, whose names wereThorstein andThorvald, and a sister,Freydís.[20]Tyrker, one of Erik'sthralls, had been specially trusted to keep charge of Erik's children, as Leif later referred to him as his "foster father."[21]
Discovering Vinland
Leif Eriksson Discovers America byHans Dahl (1849–1937)
TheSaga of Erik the Red and theSaga of the Greenlanders, both thought to have been written around 1200,[22] contain detailed, but sometimes conflicting accounts of the voyages toVinland (usually interpreted as coastal North America).[23][24][25] These sagas are generally regarded as works of literature, rather than purely historical accounts, with scholars debating their factual accuracy.[26] The only known strictly historical mentions of Vinland appear inAdam of Bremen'shistorical treatise (c. 1075) and in theBook of Icelanders (c. 1122) byAri the Wise,[27] though both are merely passing references.[28]
Account in theSaga of Erik the Red
The wordsLeifr hinn heppni, "Leif the Lucky", written out in the early 14th centuryHauksbók, the oldest manuscript of theSaga of Erik the Red
According to this saga, Leif discovered Vinland after beingblown off course on his way from Norway to Greenland.[29] Before this voyage, Leif had spent time at the court of Norwegian KingOlaf Tryggvesson, where he had converted to Christianity. When Leif encountered the storm that forced him off course, he had been on his way tointroduce Christianity to the Greenlanders. After they had arrived at an unknown shore, the crew disembarked and explored the area. They found wild grapes, self-sown wheat, and maple trees. Afterwards, they loaded their ship with samples of these newly-found goods and sailed east to Greenland, rescuing a group of shipwrecked sailors along the way. For this act, and for convertingNorse Greenland to Christianity, Leif earned the nickname "Leif the Lucky".[30] Leif did not return to Vinland, but others from Greenland and Iceland did, includingThorfinn Karlsefni.[31]
Account in theSaga of the Greenlanders
According to this saga, Leif was not the first European to discover Vinland. InsteadBjarni Herjólfsson and his crew—on a voyage from Iceland to Greenland—were overtaken by wind and fog, missed the southern tip of Greenland, and encountered an unknown coast. Believing it to be somewhere other than Greenland, they did not disembark but rather continued to sail and found two additional coasts that did not correspond with their understanding of Greenland.[32] After sailing back east, they eventually made it to their original destination, and then told of their discoveries.[33]
Roughly 15 years later, Leif approached Bjarni, purchased his ship, gathered a crew of thirty-five men, and mounted an expedition towards the lands Bjarni had described.[34][35] Leif's father Erik was set to join him but dropped out after he fell from his horse on his way to the ship, an incident interpreted as a bad omen.[36] Leif followed Bjarni's route in reverse and landed first in a rocky and desolate place he namedHelluland (Flat-Rock Land; possiblyBaffin Island or northern parts of Labrador).[37] After venturing further by sea, he landed the second time in a forested place he namedMarkland (Forest Land; possibly nearCape Porcupine, Labrador).[37] After two more days at sea, he landed on an island to the north (possiblyBelle Isle), and then returned to the mainland, going past a cape on the north side (perhapsCape Bauld).[37] They sailed to the west of this and landed in a verdant area with a mild climate and plentiful supplies of salmon. As winter approached, he decided to encamp there and sent out parties to explore the country.[37] During one of these explorations, Tyrker discovered that the land was full of vines and grapes. Leif therefore named the land Vinland ('Wineland').[37][38] There, he and his crew built a small settlement, which was calledLeifsbudir (Leif's Booths) by later visitors from Greenland.
After having wintered over in Vinland, Leif returned to Greenland in the spring with a cargo of grapes and timber.[34][39] On the return voyage, he rescued an Icelandic castaway and his crew, earning him the nickname "Leif the Lucky".[40] Leif never returned to Vinland, but others from Greenland and Iceland did.
Archeological evidence of Vinland
Modern recreation of the Norse site atL'Anse aux Meadows. The site was originally occupied c. 1021[41] and listed byUNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 1968
Most researchers and scholars agree that Vinland was a region in North America.[42]
Research done in the early 1960s by Norwegian explorerHelge Ingstad and his wife, archaeologistAnne Stine Ingstad, identified a Norse site[43] located at the northern tip of Newfoundland. It has been suggested that this site, known asL'Anse aux Meadows (carbon dating estimates 990–1050 CE[44][45][46] andtree-ring analysis dating to the year 1021[47]) could be Leifsbudir. The Ingstads demonstrated that Norsemen had reached North America about 500 years beforeChristopher Columbus.[48][49] Later archaeological evidence suggests that Vinland may have been the areas around theGulf of St. Lawrence and that the L'Anse aux Meadows site was a ship repair station and waypoint for voyages there. That does not necessarily contradict the identification of L'Anse aux Meadows as Leifsbudir[49][50] since the two sagas appear to describe Vinland as a wider region which included several settlements. TheSaga of Erik the Red mentions two other settlements in Vinland: one calledStraumfjǫrðr, which lay beyond Kjalarnes promontory and theWonderstrands, and one called Hóp, which was located even farther south.[51]
Personal life
Leif has been described in theVinland sagas as a wise, considerate and strong man of striking appearance.[52] When he was of a proper age, Leif went to Norway, likely to serve as aretainer to its king,Olaf Tryggvason.[53] It was on this journey to Norway that theSaga of Erik the Red states that Leif's ship was driven to theHebrides, where he and his crew were forced to remain for much of the summer, awaiting favorable winds.[54] During his stay there, Leif fell in love with a noblewoman, Thorgunna, who gave birth to their son Thorgils.[20] Thorgunna remained in the Hebrides when Leif left, as he refused to take her along without permission from her family.[55] Thorgils was later sent to Leif in Greenland, but he did not become popular.[56]
After arriving at the court of Norway's King Olaf Tryggvason, Leif was converted to Christianity. According to both theSaga of Erik the Red, andOlaf Tryggvason's Saga as found inHeimskringla, after Leif's conversion, the king then commissioned him to return to Greenland to convert the settlers there. During the journey, he was blown off course and discovered Vinland before finding his way to Greenland.[31] Leif's father Erik reacted coldly to the suggestion that he should abandon his religion, while his mother Thjóðhildr became a Christian and built a church called Thjóðhild's Church.[57] Adifferent version ofOlaf Tryggvason's Saga, found inFlateyjarbók, makes no reference to Leif being blown off course and discovering Vinland during his return from Norway, but indicates that after arriving in Greenland, all of that country was converted, including Leif's father Erik.[58] Some versions ofOlaf Tryggvason's Saga also indicate that to help with the conversion, Leif brought a priest and clerics with him to Greenland.[59]
Chieftaincy and death
The winter following Leif's return from Vinland, his father died (shortly after 1000 CE),[1] making Leif paramount chief in Greenland.[35] Leif is last mentioned alive in 1018 in theSaga of St. Olaf.[1] According toThe Saga of the Sworn Brothers, by 1025 the chieftaincy ofEiríksfjǫrðr had passed to his son Thorkell.[60][1] Nothing is mentioned about his death in the sagas—he probably died in Greenland some time between these dates.[61] Nothing further is known about his family beyond the succession of Thorkell as chieftain.[1]
Historicity
Leif is, in all likelihood, a historical figure who remains the first known European to set foot in continental North America,[62] but other details of his life vary and are a subject of debate. It has been suggested by several scholars that both Leif's sister, Freydís, and his foster father, Tyrker, are works of fiction, as are their roles in the Vinland sagas.[63] Leif's commission as a missionary to Greenland may also be fictional, as that aspect of his story is often attributed toGunnlaugr Leifsson'sversion ofÓláfs saga Tryggvasonar (which likely served as a source for some of the other sagas which mention Leif).[64][35]
Legacy
Norse and medieval Europe
Discovery of America, a postage stamp from theFaroe Islands which commemorates both Leif Erikson and Christopher Columbus
Leif's successful expedition in Vinland encouragedother Norsemen to also make the journey, and the Norse became the first Europeans to colonize the area. In the end there were no permanent Norse settlements, although sporadic voyages at least to Markland for forages, timber and trade possibly lasted for centuries.[65][66] The casual tone of references to these areas may suggest that their discovery was not seen as particularly significant by contemporaries, or that it was assumed to be public knowledge, or both.[27] Knowledge of the Vinland journeys spread around medieval Europe, although to what extent is unclear; writers made mention of remote lands to the west, and notably the medieval chroniclerAdam of Bremen directly mentions Vinland (c. 1075) based upon reports from theDanes.[note 2] It has been suggested that the knowledge of Vinland might have been maintained in European seaports in the 15th century, and that Christopher Columbus, who claimed in a letter to have visited Iceland in 1477, could have heard stories of it.[67]
Norse encounters with the Indigenous peoples
While Leif had no contact with the Indigenous peoples of Vinland,[68][69] later Norse explorers did, referring to them asskrælingi, an archaic term for "wretches".[70]
According to theSaga of Erik the Red, the first encounter was made during a colonizing expedition led by Thorfinn Karlsefni, which also included Leif's brother Thorvald. At first this group traded with the natives, but weeks later the new Norse settlement at Hóp was attacked and Karlsefni decided to abandon it. The Norse retreated to their other settlement at Straumfjǫrðr, where they remained and continued to explore the general area. One morning they encountered aone-legged native, who shot an arrow that killed Thorvald.[68] He is famously known for pulling the arrow out, and poetically reciting the phrase, "This is a rich country we have found; there is plenty of fat around my entrails", upon which he dies.[70] On their return to Greenland, Karlsefni's crew captured two native boys, taking them to Greenland.[68]
According to theSaga of the Greenlanders, Leif's brother Thorvald made first contact with the natives.[67] The encounter happened while Thorvald and his crew were exploring the coast, likely in the Markland area, and found nine natives asleep under boats. They attacked the natives, killing eight of them, while one escaped. Shortly after, in an apparent reprisal, Thorvald was killed by a native's arrow. Later, Thorfinn Karlsefni led a group to colonize Vinland and encountered natives, who they initially traded with, but relations soured when a native was killed attempting to steal weapons from the Norse. In retaliation, the natives attacked and Karlsefni decided to abandon the colony.[68]
In 1924, a party of four consisting of a Swede, an Englishman, and two Americans attempted to emulate Leif's voyage in an eponymous 40-foot vessel but were lost after reaching the west coast of Greenland.[74]: 267
In 1930, astatue of Leif was erected in the city center of Reykjavík, Iceland – currently situated in front ofHallgrímskirkja – as a gift from the United States to Iceland to commemorate the 1,000 year anniversary ofAlþingi, the parliament of Iceland.[75]
TheLeif Erikson Awards, established 2015, are awarded annually by theExploration Museum inHúsavík, Iceland. They are awarded for achievements in exploration and in the study of the history of exploration.[76]
In 1929, theWisconsin Legislature passed a bill to make 9 October "Leif Erikson Day" in the state, and in the years following, several other states adopted laws to observe the day.[81] In 1935, legislation was introduced to theUnited States Congress requesting federal observance of the day. Before the legislation was passed, it was amended so that the observance would only occur in 1935[82] (which it was, following a proclamation that year by President PresidentFranklin D. Roosevelt).[83] In the subsequent decades, a number of unsuccessful attempts were made to pass legislation requesting Leif Erikson Day be proclaimed annually by the president.[84] Proponents eventually succeeded, when, in 1964, the Congress authorized and requested the president to proclaim 9 October of each year as "Leif Erikson Day".[19] In the years since, each president has issued an annual proclamation calling for observance of the day.[85]
The Sagas do not give the exact date of Leif's landfall in America, but state only that it was in the fall of the year. At the suggestion of Christian A. Hoen ofEdgerton, Wisconsin, 9 October was settled upon for Leif Erikson Day, as that already was a historic date for Norwegians in America, the shipRestaurationen having arrived inNew York Harbor on 9 October 1825[81][86] fromStavanger with the first organized party of Norwegian immigrants.[87]
A 'Leif Ericson'proof dollar from the United States, minted in 2000. It reads 'Founder of the New World'
In fiction
The character 'Leif Ericson' features in this Japanesemanga adaptation of the Vinland sagas.
Leif is the main character in the 1928 filmThe Viking.[89]
An Old Captivity is a novel which involves a dream sequence featuring a character called Leif Ericson. Notably, it also features an attempt to uncover historical Viking settlements using air surveys. It was written byNevil Shute and published in 1940.[90]
In children's literature, Leif the Lucky written and illustrated byIngri and Edgar Parin d'Aulaire. Published by Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1941.[91]
Leif is the main character in the juvenile historical novelVinland the Good. The author isHenry Treece, and it is illustrated by William Stobbs. It is an account of Viking Era explorations, based mainly on the Greenland saga.[93]
^Adam mentions Vinland (Winland) in Chapter 39 of Book IV of hisGesta: 'In addition, he [i.e.,Sweyn Estridsson, king of Denmark (reigned 1047–1076)] named one more island in this ocean, discovered by many, which is called "Vinland", because vines grow wild there, making the best wine. For [that] crops [that are] not sown, abound there, we learn not from fanciful opinion but from the true account of the Danes.'Adam von Bremen (1917). Schmeidler, Bernhard (ed.).Hamburgische Kirchengeschichte [Hamburg's Church History] (in Latin and German). Hannover and Leipzig, Germany: Hahnsche. pp. 275–276.
References
^abcdefg"Leif Eriksson".The Canadian Encyclopedia. 12 October 2018.Archived from the original on 13 April 2021. Retrieved6 March 2023.
^Sanderson, Jeanette. (2002)Explorers, Teaching Resources/Scholastic. p. 14.ISBN0-439-25181-8.
^Bolender, Douglas (2020). "Opportunity, Autonomy and the End of Viking-Age Expansion in the North Atlantic". In Pedersen, Anne; Sindbæk, Søren M. (eds.).Viking Encounters: Proceedings of the Eighteenth Viking Congress, Denmark, August 6–12, 2012. Aarhus, Denmark: Aarhus University Press. pp. 134–149.ISBN978-87-7184-936-3.
^Lindkvist, Thomas (2003). "Early political organisation". In Helle, Knut (ed.).The Cambridge History of Scandinavia: Prehistory to 1520. Cambridge University Press. p. 212.ISBN978-0-521-47299-9.
^Jones, Gwyn (1986).The Norse Atlantic Saga: Being the Norse Voyages of Discovery and Settlement to Iceland, Greenland, and North America (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press. pp. 121–122.ISBN0-19-215886-4.
^"L'Anse aux Meadows".L'Anse aux Meadows National Historic Site of Canada. Parks Canada. 2018.Archived from the original on 9 December 2019. Retrieved21 December 2018.Here [L'Anse aux Meadows] Norse expeditions sailed from Greenland, building a small encampment of timber-and-sod buildings ...
^Cordell, Linda S.; Lightfoot, Kent; McManamon, Francis; Milner, George (2009)."L'Anse aux Meadows National Historic Site".Archaeology in America: An Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. p. 82.ISBN978-0-313-02189-3.Archived from the original on 30 December 2016. Retrieved24 February 2021.This is a substantial base for analysis, which yields an entirely credible range of dates between 990 and 1050 and a mean date of 1014 CE, which is popularly rounded off at 1000 CE .
^Kuitems, Margot; Wallace, Birgitta L.; Lindsay, Charles; Scifo, Andrea; Doeve, Petra; Jenkins, Kevin; Lindauer, Susanne; Erdil, Pınar; Ledger, Paul M.; Forbes, Véronique; Vermeeren, Caroline (20 October 2021)."Evidence for European presence in the Americas in AD 1021".Nature.601 (7893):388–391.doi:10.1038/s41586-021-03972-8.ISSN1476-4687.PMC8770119.PMID34671168.S2CID239051036.Our result of AD 1021 for the cutting year constitutes the only secure calendar date for the presence of Europeans across the Atlantic before the voyages of Columbus. Moreover, the fact that our results, on three different trees, converge on the same year is notable and unexpected. This coincidence strongly suggests Norse activity at L'Anse aux Meadows in AD 1021. In addition, our research demonstrates the potential of the AD 993 anomaly in atmospheric 14C concentrations for pinpointing the ages of past migrations and cultural interactions.
^Schledermann, Peter. (1996). Voices in Stone.A Personal Journey into the Arctic Past. Komatik Series no. 5. Calgary: The Arctic Institute of North America and the University of Calgary.
^Sutherland, Patricia. (2000). "The Norse and Native Norse Americans". In William W. Fitzhugh and Elisabeth I. Ward, eds.,Vikings: The North Atlantic Saga, pp. 238–247. Washington, DC: The Smithsonian Institution.
^abWeaver, Jace (2011).The red atlantic. American Indian Quarterly. pp. 418–463, 477.
^Forbes, Alan and Ralph M. Eastman, "Some Statues of Boston: Reproductions of some of the statues for which Boston is famous, with information concerning the personalities and events memorialized", State Street Trust Company, Boston MA 1946 and Forbes, Alan and Ralph M. Eastman, "Other Statues of Boston", State Street Trust Company, Boston MA 1947.
^Buck, Diane M; Palmer, Virginia A (1995).Outdoor Sculpture in Milwaukee: A Cultural and Historical Guidebook. Madison: The State Historical Society of Wisconsin. pp. 9–12.ISBN978-0-87020-276-6.
^"Wild Grapes Robert Frost 1874 – 1963". Poets.org.Grapes, I knew grapes from having seen them last year. One bunch of them, and there began to be Bunches all round me growing in white birches, The way they grew round Leif the Lucky's German;
^Aarek, Hans Eirik (2000). "A Short History of the Troms Quakers And their Emigration to America".Norwegian-American Studies.35. University of Minnesota Press: 92.doi:10.1353/nor.2000.a799212.S2CID258610849.Conflict with the Norwegian authorities was one of the main motivations for emigrating to America. Quakers were not allowed to live everywhere in Norway...This led to the first organized emigration in 1825.
Ingstad, Helge (1985).The Norse Discovery of America (Volume 2): The Historical Background and the Evidence of the Norse Settlement Discovered in Newfoundland. Oslo: Norwegian University Press (Universitetsforlaget AS).ISBN82-00-07039-5.
Wallace, Birgitta Linderoth (2006).Westward Vikings: The Saga of L'Anse aux Meadows. St. John's, NL: Parks Canada and the Historic Sites Association of Newfoundland and Labrador.ISBN0-919735-09-6.
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![Leif Eriksson Memorial (1929–1932), Reykjavík, Iceland. This statue is at the front of the Hallgrímskirkja. There is a copy of this statue in Newport News, Virginia, USA.[88]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aLeifur_heppni_(603381304).jpg)
