The Viking Rune Blog

Norwegian Names: Top 100 Names Popular in Norway

January 13, 2012 Norse Names

Find below the list of the most used Norwegian names from 1880 through 2010, according to the data provided by Statistics Norway (Statistisk sentralbyrå). Statistics for 2011 are not ready as yet, but in 2010 the most popular boys’ name in Norway was Lucas and the most popular girls’ name was Emma. In 2009 the [...]

Viking Gods

January 8, 2012 Norse Mythology

Odin Odin is the supreme god of the Norse pantheon, the most worshipped among Viking gods. Odin corresponds to West Germanic Woden or Wotan. Etymology of his name points to poetic inspiration and shamanic ecstasy. As it seems, initially Odin was a patron of military unions and initiations, as well as a sorcerer god. With [...]

Viking Shield

January 6, 2012 Viking Weapons

For defense, Vikings used large circular shields. Usually, the size of the Viking shields varied between 30″ and 36″ (75 – 90 cm). The shield excavated at a Viking fortress Trelleborg (Denmark) in 2008 was 33,5″ broad. No less renowned are shields from Gokstad Viking ship burial (Norway). With the end of the Viking Age [...]

Futhark Runes 101

January 4, 2012 Norse Runes

Futhark is the name given to a group of runic alphabets. Runes were letters used in ancient Germanic languages before the Roman script was adopted. Futhark was used for a long period of time by various peoples to write various languages and thus evolved. Its earlier version is known as the Elder Futhark. Later variant [...]

Ardnamurchan Viking Ship Burial

November 14, 2011 Viking Burials

Stunning archaeological find was made last month in Scotland. A Viking ship burial, which is about 1,000 years old was unearthed on the Ardnamurchan peninsula. It was the grave of a chieftain buried in a rather small vessel (about 16ft) as compared to famous Gokstad or Oseberg ship burials in Norway or Sutton Hoo grave [...]

St. Brice’s Day Massacre at Oxford

September 9, 2011 Viking Burials

St. Brice’s Day Massacre is an event recorded in an ancient chart, which says that in AD 1002 the Saxon king Ethelred the Unready was told that there was a Danish plot to assassinate him. After that he ordered to kill all the Vikings in England. The same chart reports that in Oxford the Danes [...]

100 Facts About Iceland

September 5, 2011 Scandinavia

In Iceland, prohibition of alcoholic beverages came into effect in 1915. Prohibition was partially lifted for wines in 1922, because Spain and Portugal refused to import Icelandic salted cod unless Iceland imported Iberian red wine. Beer remained illegal in Iceland until 1989. In 1956 boxing was banned here. In 2002 amateur boxing was allowed under strict [...]

MGM Vikings Series

August 22, 2011 Viking History

After emerging from bankruptcy last year, MGM is going to produce a new TV series on Vikings. The project’s executive producers are Michael Hirst and Morgan O’Sullivan. This team has already proved to be successful in both Camelot and The Tudors. Producers/managers Sherry Marsh and Alan Gasmer also take part in the project. MGM Vikings [...]

The Cawood Sword

February 5, 2011 Viking Weapons

The Cawood sword is probably the finest Viking sword ever found. It was discovered in the River Ouse near York in the 19th century. The pommel type is characteristic for the Viking Age swords, while the shape of the guard is more like the ones found in 12th century weapons. This fact inclined many to [...]

Necropants: Nábrók

February 2, 2011 Scandinavia

The Icelandic Necropants (Nábrók) is perhaps the weirdest way to get rich ever. According to odd medieval practice in Iceland, to get that horrible device, it was necessary to make deal with a male friend, when he was alive, about digging up his body from the churchyard after he would die. The cause of death [...]

Viking Brands

January 28, 2011 Scandinavia

No, I don’t mean brand in the archaic sense of this word, which once could designate sword or torch :) Searching for all kinds of information about the Vikings, I constantly hit on various companies that have the same name. Indeed, the word Viking turned to be very attractive as a brand. People trust it [...]

Viking Museums

July 8, 2010 Vikings

Below is the list of Viking museums across the world. Do you know of any other Viking museums? Help expand the list! If you visited any of these, leave a review for us. Dublinia & the Viking World (Dublin, Ireland) A heritage centre, located in central Dublin, at the heart of the medieval city. The [...]

Germanic Names in the Eldest Runic Inscriptions

July 6, 2010 Norse Names

Male Names Ado – Gammertingen (Baden-Württemberg, Germany), ivory box. Adujislu – Westeremden A (Groningen, Netherlands), weaving-slay of yew-wood. Meaning: ādu- < *auda, ‘wealth’ and -jīslu < *gīsalaz, ‘hostage’ or ‘offspring’. Aebi – Schwangau (Bayern, Germany), gilt-silver buckle. Æko – Chessel Down II (Isle of Wight), silver plate. Æniwulufu – Folkestone (Kent, England), gold tremissis. Meaning: [...]

Viking Necklace Discovered in Glencurran Cave

April 29, 2010 Viking Hoards

Excavations by Dr Marion Dowd at Glencurran Cave, the Burren National Park (Ireland), led to a stunning discovery: a unique Viking necklace estimated to be 1,150-year-old. Necklaces dating to the Viking Age that have been found previously, usually had five to six glass beads, but this one has 71 beads covered with gold foil. This [...]

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