Author: Victor Rouă

The Mystery Behind The Legendary Viking Ulfberht Swords

During the Early Middle Ages, a considerable number of swords marked with the inscription ‘VLFBERHT‘ (as well as variants of it) were used in many places throughout Europe. Quite many myths and legends surround their making or creation process. These swords were wrought with such durable metal that they proved resistant to these days. Part…


Ancient Dragons In The Norse Mythology And Scandinavian Folklore

Since ancient times, the dragon was an important creature and symbol associated with the Norse mythology and, later on, integrated and described in the folk tales of the Scandinavian countries. So it is that dragons were mentioned and depicted in various legends, sagas, chronicles, and skaldic poems during the High Middle Ages in both Iceland…


The Goths: The History Of A Forgotten Ancient People Of The North

Historical Background (Ancient History/Early Medieval History) The Goths were an ancient Germanic-speaking population of Northern Europe who considerably contributed (alongside other Germanic and Slavic peoples of the Migration period) to the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD.슠Their geographic origins are rather debated by many contemporary historians. Although it is clear…


Ingólfur Arnarson And The Foundation Of Iceland’s Capital City, Reykjavík

According to슠Landn쎡mab쎳k (a medieval manuscript detailing the Norse settlement of Iceland), Ing쎳lfur Arnarson is widely ascribed to have been one of the first permanent settlers of Iceland, alongside his wife,슠Hallveig Fr쎳쎰ad쎳ttir, and his foster brother Hj쎶rleifur Hr쎳쎰marsson. A nobleman of Norwegian descent, Ing쎳lfur (his name literally meaning ‘noble wolf’) was forced to leave early medieval…


Did The Norsemen Reach The Shores Of Svalbard During The Viking Age?

Whether or not the Norsemen discovered the barren Arctic archipelago of Svalbard in the Viking Age remains a rather debated matter nowadays. Theoretically, given their in-depth knowledge on ship building and navigation, the Norsemen were able of reaching Svalbard. There are far greater milestones with regard to Norse exploration which can be identified as furtherest…