Collection of Insane and Fun Facts
Greenland got its name because the Viking who discovered it was banished from Iceland and felt lonely in his new homeland, so he named and advertised it as the lush ‘Greenland’ to attract settlers, despite the fact that it was actually a completely barren and largely uninhabitable land.
Wounded Viking warriors were given strong onion soup. After a few minutes someone would smell the wounds and if onions could be detected it meant that there were serious abdominal injuries and that death was inevitable.
When the Norse vikings sailed for America in the 11th century, they fully expected (and hoped) to find a race of monsters to fight. Instead, they found the indigenous peoples. Disappointed at finding no real monsters, the Norse (known for being tall) called them Skræling, or pygmies.
A Viking named Harald Hadrada fled from his native Norway to Russia, then went on to become an elite guardsman in Eastern Roman Empire and fought in Iraq. He then went back to Russia to marry a princess, and arrived back in Norway as a king, and finally invaded England with his army.
“Berserkers” were Norse warriors who fought in a nearly uncontrollable, trance-like fury. It has been suggested that the warriors consumed hallucinogens before battles. Some were said to wear the pelt of a wolf (or bear) when they entered battle.
Vikings used ravens to navigate. They brought ravens aboard their ships, then released them and sailed in the same direction to find land. The raven was so important to them that it became the symbol on their flag.
The vikings used a stone to be able to tell what direction the sun was in, even when the sun wasn’t visible, and we may have found one.
In 1893 at the World’s fair in Chicago, a group of Scandavian-Americans built a replica viking ship and moored in the harbor to protest Columbus being hailed as the discoverer of North America.
There is no evidence that Viking helmets ever had horns.
