Exercises on the Vikings in America

In the 1960s, evidence was discovered that proved that archaeological remains in the region of Newfoundland and Labrador (present-day Canada) had belonged to the Vikings who began the colonization of the region. Viking colonization, however, was short-lived. Which factor raised by historians explains the failure of Viking colonization in North America?

a) a dispute between Eric the Red and Leif Eriksson that weakened the Vikings in North America.

b) the lack of existing resources in the Halluland region, which forced them to return to Scandinavia.

c) conflicts with skraelingjar , the local inhabitants of the region (Eskimos).

d) the wreck of the expedition of Erik the Red.

e) the harsh winter that hit Vinland and made the region more inhospitable than Scandinavia.

As ​​the Vikings discovered new places, they named them according to their characteristics and purposes. Thus, Greenland, for example, was named Greenland (Terra Verde) and a certain region of Canada was named Vinland . What does this name mean?

a) Land of the Wind

b) Salmon Land

c) Land of the Pines

d) Land of Vineyards

e) Land of the Vikings

The Vikings arrived in North America around the year 1000 and that made them the first European people to set foot on the American continent. The Viking expedition that arrived in America landed in the region of present-day Canada. Who was the leader of this expedition?

a) Eric the Red

b) Leif Eriksson

c) Bjarni Herjúlfsson

d) Ragnar Lodbrok

e) Rollo

Regarding the short Norse colonization of North America and Viking expeditions, select the INCORRECT information:

a) Before reaching the region named Vinland , the Vikings had also reached regions that were called Helluland and Markland .

b) Helluland means Land of the Rock Plate.

c) In the Saga of the Greenlanders, it is stated that Bjarni Herjúlfsson led the expedition from Iceland to Greenland.

d) The archaeological site with the ruins of Viking buildings in Canada is called L’Anse aux Meadows .

e) The natives who inhabit the Vinland region were named by the Norse as skraelingjar , which means "giants of the west".

LETTER C

Historians point out that conflicts with the locals, the Eskimos, who were called by the Vikings the skraelingjar , were the determining factor in the failure of Viking colonization in North America. Historians claim that conflicts between the natives and the Vikings escalated from 1009 onwards and forced the Vikings to give up the endeavor to develop a colony in the region.

LETER D

The name Vinland was chosen by Leif Eriksson in reference to the wealth of that land. The term means “Land of Vineyards” or “Land of Vineyards”. We currently know that Vinland corresponds to the region of Labrador and Newfoundland in Canada.

LETER B

The leader of the expedition was Leif Eriksson, son of Eric the Red. Leif was responsible for both leading the expedition and initiating its colonization, following in the footsteps of his father, who had pioneered the colonization of Greenland.

LETTER E

In fact, Norse accounts claim that the Vikings referred to the native peoples of the North American region where they settled from skraelingjar . The meaning of this word is widely debated, but historians point out that the meaning could be “feeble person” or even “barbarians.”