Norse Greenland Research Articles

Norse Greenland Dietary Economy ca. AD 980-ca. AD 1450: Introduction

An initial study of the 13 C values for human bone collagen of 27 Norse Greenlanders in the late 1990s suggested a change in the Norse diet from predominantly terrestrial to predominantly marine food. This shift may well indicate a change in diet; the question left open by the limited initial isotope study was, however, whether the change in diet was a reflection of altered subsistence strategies or altered farming practices. Furthermore, the first study did not convincingly answer the question of whether the dietary change occurred gradually over time or within the space of a few years—and, if the latter case, when? Neither did it answer questions concerning dietary differences between the two Norse settlements, between individual farms and between the sexes, or the nature of the marine food that was consumed. Distinguishing locally born people from foreigners is yet another matter for investigation in order to leave out of account persons that grew up outside of Greenland. This new study includes 437 samples: 183 from humans—118 Norse and 65 Inuit—and 254 from animals. The samples are from 19 Norse sites (farms): 13 from the Eastern Settlement and 6 are from the Western Settlement. For comparison, we have also included samples from both humans and animals from 22 Inuit sites. This paper sets the scene for the new study and the following papers in this Special Volume. Former studies in Norse diet and Norse resource utilization are recapitulated, and all the Norse sites represented in the study are presented, as are all the samples included in the study. Chronology is a recurrent problem in Norse archaeology, and our focus, in particular, is on the attempt to date the samples included in the study that have not been radiocarbon dated.

Stable Carbon and Nitrogen Isotopic Measurements of the Wild Animals Hunted by the Norse and the Neo-Eskimo People of Greenland

Isotopic measurements of the terrestrial and marine wild animal species of greatest importance to Greenlandic Norse and Neo-Eskimo people were obtained to provide a solid basis for undertaking isotopic dietary analyses of these two human groups. The samples studied were animal bones from archaeological excavations of Norse and Neo-Eskimo middens. As expected, the values for the terrestrial and marine species were found to have characteristic isotopic composition, but there is sufficient variation within each group to require detailed consideration in interpreting isotopic information on the humans.

Cultural adaptation, compounding vulnerabilities and conjunctures in Norse Greenland

Norse Greenland has been seen as a classic case of maladaptation by an inflexible temperate zone society extending into the arctic and collapse driven by climate change. This paper, however, recognizes the successful arctic adaptation achieved in Norse Greenland and argues that, although climate change had impacts, the end of Norse settlement can only be truly understood as a complex socioenvironmental system that includes local and interregional interactions operating at different geographic and temporal scales and recognizes the cultural limits to adaptation of traditional ecological knowledge. This paper is not focused on a single discovery and its implications, an approach that can encourage monocausal and environmentally deterministic emphasis to explanation, but it is the product of sustained international interdisciplinary investigations in Greenland and the rest of the North Atlantic. It is based on data acquisitions, reinterpretation of established knowledge, and a somewhat different philosophical approach to the question of collapse. We argue that the Norse Greenlanders created a flexible and successful subsistence system that responded effectively to major environmental challenges but probably fell victim to a combination of conjunctures of large-scale historic processes and vulnerabilities created by their successful prior response to climate change. Their failure was an inability to anticipate an unknowable future, an inability to broaden their traditional ecological knowledge base, and a case of being too specialized, too small, and too isolated to be able to capitalize on and compete in the new protoworld system extending into the North Atlantic in the early 15th century.

Plague and landscape resilience in premodern Iceland

In debates on societal collapse, Iceland occupies a position of precarious survival, defined by not becoming extinct, like Norse Greenland, but having endured, sometimes by the narrowest of margins. Classic decline narratives for late medieval to early modern Iceland stress compounding adversities, where climate, trade, political domination, unsustainable practices, and environmental degradation conspire with epidemics and volcanism to depress the Icelanders and turn the once-proud Vikings and Saga writers into one of Europe's poorest nations. A mainstay of this narrative is the impact of incidental setbacks such as plague and volcanism, which are seen to have compounded and exacerbated underlying structural problems. This research shows that this view is not correct. We present a study of landscape change that uses 15 precisely dated tephra layers spanning the whole 1,200-y period of human settlement in Iceland. These tephras have provided 2,625 horizons of known age within 200 stratigraphic sections to form a high-resolution spatial and temporal record of change. This finding shows short-term (50 y) declines in geomorphological activity after two major plagues in A.D. 15th century, variations that probably mirrored variations in the population. In the longer term, the geomorphological impact of climate changes from the 14th century on is delayed, and landscapes (as well as Icelandic society) exhibit resilience over decade to century timescales. This finding is not a simple consequence of depopulation but a reflection of how Icelandic society responded with a scaling back of their economy, conservation of core functionality, and entrenchment of the established order.

An integrated geochemical and palynological study of human impacts, soil erosion and storminess from southern Greenland since c. AD 1000

An integrated pollen-analytical and geochemical study is presented from Qinngua Kangilleq, southwest Greenland. This site was formerly one of the largest farms in the Eastern Settlement of Norse Greenland. The study is the first to determine what link, if any, exists between Norse landnám (early settlement), vegetation change, soil erosion, climate change and peat geochemistry. The data suggest that fluxes in lithogenic elements supplied to a peat column by terrestrial sources and atmospheric deposition were coupled to the pattern of local Norse settlement beginning ∼ cal. AD 1020. A severe phase of soil erosion is indicated which is coincident with the landnám horizon. This may represent proxy evidence for the stripping of turf for the construction of turf-and-stone buildings at the farm. Radiocarbon dates suggest the presence of a hiatus in the sediment column spanning ∼ cal. AD 1380–1950. Following the recommencement of sediment accumulation, the geochemical data indicate a critical change in site conditions which may be consistent with the well-known change in Northern Hemisphere atmospheric circulation that started between c. AD 1400 and 1420. Bromine (Br) and chlorine (Cl) concentrations are demonstrably higher in the sediments dating to the 20th century relative to the pre-15th century deposits. Rising halogen concentrations at Qinngua appear to be correlated with increased levels of Na +(sea salt sodium) precipitation in the GISP2 ice core which earlier studies have interpreted as indicative of increased North Atlantic storminess.

Stable nitrogen isotopic examination of Norse sites in the Western settlement of Greenland

To continue to explore the impact of past human activity on the stable nitrogen isotope ratios of modern vegetation, we have measured the δ 15N values of plants now growing on several ancient farmsteads in the Western Settlement of Norse Greenland. Although this new test area is some 400 km north and in a different ecoregion from the previous study area, the same isotopic effect was observed. A clear isotopic signature was found on the ancient farms which could be directly correlated to past activity areas; in particular, the infields. Further, the magnitude of the δ 15N values was found to be similar between study areas, indicating the same interpretative framework can be applied in widely separate geographic regions. A first test of different plant species showed that although the magnitude differed greatly the same basic information was found for functionally different plants. These observations provide additional information to aid in future archaeological application of this newly observed phenomenon.

Desirable teeth: the medieval trade in Arctic and African ivory

AbstractThis article examines the Danish archaeologist Else Roesdahl’s hypothesis that, by the early fourteenth century, an abundance in Europe of elephant ivory from Africa caused a price drop that edged out walrus ivory, with a devastating economic impact on Norse Greenland that directly contributed to the colony’s collapse. While it seems clear that artisanal use of walrus ivory fell from the late fourteenth century onward, and that Greenland exports of walrus ivory decreased in the fourteenth century, evidence for a pre-1500 price drop for African elephant ivory in the European market is lacking. Nor can it be demonstrated that European demand for walrus tusks shrank prior to 1500. Roesdahl’s speculations about changes in the ivory trade and their effect on the Norse Greenland colony are therefore open to question as an explanation for the colony’s demise. An alternative view is proposed, namely that reduced export of Greenland walrus ivory was initiated by the Greenlanders themselves in response to political and economic changes in the Atlantic and North Sea region, at a time when codfish drew English fishermen and fish merchants ever farther west into the North Atlantic, and that the Greenlanders took part in that westward movement.

Natural climatic variability and the Norse settlements in Greenland

A multi-millennial simulation with the CSIRO Mark 2 coupled global climatic model has been used to determine whether climatic conditions approximate to those experienced by the medieval Norse settlers in Greenland could be identified. The aim of this analysis was to see whether such conditions could be replicated by the natural climatic variability in this unforced simulation, in order to counteract claims that the current observed global warming is merely another example of this type of climatic regime. This view has been expressed in the media in an attempt to refute the existence of a CO2-induced global warming. A 291-year period of above-average temperature followed by a 41-year cooler period were identified in one millennium of the simulation, and subsequently used as an analogue of conditions representative of the time of the Norse settlements. Considerable interannual variability existed in both these periods, but with noticeable positive and negative surface temperature anomalies in the warm and cold periods respectively. Thus the warm period was not a time of uniform benign conditions. Above-average precipitation was also associated with the warm period, and these climatic conditions would have enhanced pasture growth and hay production (the only crop the Norse produced) thereby sustaining the livelihood of the Norse Greenlanders. The climatic conditions associated with the cold period in the model were probably sufficient to limit the survival prospects of the settlers, especially when other, probably more critical, deleterious factors are taken into account. The temperature anomalies replicated in the simulation are similar to the limited proxy data, but may be smaller in magnitude: nevertheless they appear to be sufficiently large to have affected the viability of the Norse Greenlanders. After considering possible climatic mechanisms that could have contributed to these warm and cold periods it was concluded that they are simply a consequence of stochastic influences generated by nonlinear processes in the simulation. Thus this simulation provides no support for the contention that the current global warming is a manifestation of conditions prevailing during the Norse settlements in Greenland.

Arctic Clothing of North America: Alaska, Canada, Greenland by J.C.H. King, Birgit Pauksztat, and Robert Storrie

Arctic Clothing of North America: Alaska, Canada, Greenland by J.C.H. King, Birgit Pauksztat, and Robert Storrie

The Greenland Norse and the little ice age: Large scale climate changes to a small scale society

This article was submitted without an abstract, please refer to the full-text PDF file.

The use of Artistic Media in Norse Greenland

Abstract The choice of material (or artistic medium) is an important part of the creation of an artifact. At the same time, it is also an indicator of artistic traditions and cultural influences. This article offers an overview of the use of some of the most widely used and, in cultural terms, most significant materials (metal, bone, ivory, wood, and soapstone) as artistic media in Norse Greenland, with special attention to availability (and its limitations), the choice of alternative media, and the influence of the Church on the use of artistic media. The survey reveals, on the one hand, some level of resourcefulness of the Norsemen in Greenland to adapt to local circumstances, and on the other, their strong adherence to European Christian culture.

Palaeoecological and historical evidence for manuring and irrigation at Garðar (Igaliku), Norse Eastern Settlement, Greenland

Palaeoenvironmental data are presented from the site of Garðar (modern Igaliku), the location of the cathedral and the bishop's farm in the Norse Eastern Settlement of Greenland. The latter was founded from c. AD 985 and abandoned some time during the fifteenth century. Inspection of drainage ditches located in close proximity to the settlement ruins revealed inter alia an organic-rich unit containing cultural debris (worked wood, animal bone, stone and charcoal) dated by AMS radiocarbon dates on seeds to the period c. AD 1110—1370. Fossil insect and pollen assemblages contained within the deposit appear representative of natural environments (primarily wet eutrophic meadows) but are mixed with high frequencies of a range of synanthropic insects, including human and animal ectoparasites that could only derive from indoor habitats. This is strongly indicative of the manuring of fields with waste from houses and byres in order to increase yields of hay. Large amounts of hay would have been necessary to provide winter fodder for the bishop's herd of cattle — the largest known in Norse Greenland — and dung from these animals seems likely to have been a significant component of the material used to fertilize the fields. The process of spreading the manure at Garðar was probably integrated with the careful manipulation of water resources across the site, indicated by the presence of a network of irrigation channels and dams in the archaeological record, and comparisons are drawn with similar systems elsewhere in Mediaeval Europe.

Parishes and Communities in Norse Greenland

The isolation of the two Norse Greenlandic settlements, from each other as well as from the rest of the world, is a well rehearsed topic. Ideas about communications within the two settlements are, on the other hand, not much developed. One way of looking at intra-settlement communication is through the parish system. The parishes arguably reflect the community structure, but they also provided the framework for much of the social interaction in the everyday lives of ordinary Greenlanders.The parish system can be reconstructed by analysing the different types of churches and their spatial and chronological distribution in relation to the location of farm sites. Based on fleldwork in southern Greenland as well as comparisons with Icelandic data, a reconstruction of parishes in Eystribyggð is proposed. This analysis reveals significant differences between the structure of Greenlandic and Icelandic parishes, the former being more centralized but also much larger with correspondingly less pastoral care available to each household. These differences highlight the particular nature of Norse Greenlandic society and may help to explain why that society came to an end in the late middle ages.

Graves and Churches of the Norse in the North Atlantic: A Pilot Study

Abstract Was there a sacred Norse geography in the North Atlantic region during the Viking and Early Middle Ages? In this study, the locations of Late Iron Age pagan Norse graves in West Norway and Iceland are analyzed and compared. The analysis also includes medieval church-sites in these regions, as well as in Norse Greenland. The approach is that of landscape archaeology, and two sets of analyses are used: an attribute analysis where the locations of pagan burials and medieval churches are situated relative to landscape attributes, and a distance analysis where the distances from graves and churches to the original farm cores are analyzed. The results show distinct differences in landscape organization between Norway and Iceland, both concerning pagan burials and church locations. No pagan Norse graves are yet known in Greenland, but the church locations are compared to Norway and Iceland. The church locations in Greenland have features in common with both Iceland and Norway. The political organization...

The Place of Greenland in Medieval Icelandic Saga Narrative

This paper explores the accounts of Norse Greenland in the medieval Icelandic sagas, looking past the Vínland sagas to examine ways in which Greenlandic settings are employed in the “post-classical” saga-tradition and other texts. The style and content of these tales varied over time, but the recurrence of certain conventional patterns indicates that stories set in Greenland retained important thematic continuities for Icelandic saga audiences. From as early as the 12th century, Icelandic writers identified Greenland as a peripheral space in the Norse world, connected with Iceland, but markedly distinct and remote. This marginalization is evident in the Vinland sagas and developed further in the post-classical tradition, which made Greenland a place of exile in which Icelandic heroes were tested by extreme adversity in the settlements and wilderness. Embodying the preoccupations of Icelandic writers and audiences, these writings tell us little about historical realities in Norse Greenland; but they do show how details of geographical and historical lore were subsumed and transformed in the Icelandic narrative tradition.

The Runic Inscriptions from Vatnahverfi and the Evidence of Communication

Abstract This article forms the beginning of a planned edition of Greenlandic runic inscriptions. It deals with the runic inscriptions from the Vatnahverfi area, found on various forms of domestic utensils—first and foremost on fragments of soapstone, so-called loom weights. The inscriptions indicate that the tradition of writing in Norse Greenland played an important part in the expression of Christianity, and that it had the purpose of maintaining connections with the Scandinavian Christian world.

Continuity and Change: The Dwellings of the Greenland Norse

In his 1941 thesis, Aage Roussell established a typology for the dwellings of the Greenland Norse. While some of his conclusions have since been dismissed, Roussell's typology itself has not been subject to a fundamental review, although there are problems with it. This paper reviews Roussell's typology for the dwellings of the Greenland Norse and suggests a revised typology and terminology. It argues that the medieval architecture of the Greenlanders may have been more inspired by contemporary Scandinavian architecture than Roussell imagined, and that the so-called passage house is very sparsely represented in Greenland.

The Norse in Greenland and late Holocene sea-level change

ABSTRACTNorse immigrants from Europe settled in southern Greenland in around AD 985 and managed to create a farming community during the Medieval Warm Period. The Norse vanished after approximately 500 years of existence in Greenland leaving no documentary evidence concerning why their culture foundered. The flooding of fertile grassland caused by late Holocene sea-level changes may be one of the factors that affected the Norse community. Holocene sea-level changes in Greenland are closely connected with the isostatic response of the Earth's crust to the behaviour of the Greenlandic ice sheet. An early Holocene regressive phase in south and west Greenland was reversed during the middle Holocene, and evidence is found for transgression and drowning of early-middle Holocene coast lines. This drowning started between 8 and 7ka BP in southern Greenland and continued during the Norse era to the present. An average late Holocene sea level rise in the order of 2–3 m/1000 years may be one of the factors that negatively affected the life of the Norse Greenlanders, and combined with other both socio-economic and environmental problems, such as increasing wind and sea ice expansion at the transition to the Little Ice Age, may eventually have led to the end of the Norse culture in Greenland.

Environmental impacts around the time of Norse landnám in the Qorlortoq valley, Eastern Settlement, Greenland

Palynology, radiocarbon dating, and open-section stratigraphies from archaeological trenches are used to examine the impact of human activity around the time of Norse landnám on vegetation and landscape associated with a small farm (Ø34) in the Qorlortoq valley, Eastern Settlement, Greenland (61° N 45° W). Peat deposits from a mire abutting the Norse ruins revealed a discontinuous palaeoenvironmental record containing a possible hiatus from ca. AD 410–1020. Palaeovegetational data were recovered either side of this period. Pollen assemblages suggest that open Salix scrub dominated the landscape during the pre-settlement phase. The later phases of landnám resulted in the creation of hay fields and heavily-grazed grassy heath. Site abandonment is reflected by a re-expansion of Salix. This occurs shortly before the onset of deposition of a Sphagnum peat, dated to cal AD 1420–1630 (2 σ) and reflecting an increase in mire surface wetness, probably in response to a deteriorating climate. Radiocarbon dates were obtained on peat and plant macrofossils sampled from either side of the proposed hiatus at two different but closely-spaced (<20 m) locations across the mire. These produced significantly different dates for the cessation of peat formation in the pre- landnám period (cal BC 2130–1770 and cal AD 240–410 respectively), but near-synchronous dates for the recommencement of peat growth (cal AD 890–1150 for peat and a probably more reliable interval of cal AD 1020–1190 based on plant macrofossils). It is suggested that this hiatus may represent the first direct evidence for peat cutting in Norse Greenland.

Book Review: The Viking Discovery of America, 985–1008: The Greenland Norse and Their Voyages to Newfoundland

Book Review: The Viking Discovery of America, 985–1008: The Greenland Norse and Their Voyages to Newfoundland