About 500 years before Christopher Columbus, the Icelandic explorer Leif Erikson became the first European to arrive in North America. Son of Erik the Red, who was the originator of the European colonization in Greenland, much of Leif Erikson’s life is provided by the two sagas, Saga of the Erik the Red and Groenlendinga Saga. They both agree that Erikson discovered America considerably earlier than Christopher Columbus while having differing narratives of his journey to North America and subsequent discovery of Vinland. After sailing from Greenland to Norway, the Norwegian King converted Erikson to Christianity. He got blown off on the way back, and as a result, he discovered North America. According to the second legend, Erikson set out to locate the same area after learning from an Icelandic trader that there was a land west of Greenland. Regardless of the situation, he was the first European to enter the nation. He traveled back to Greenland after spending the winter in Vinland, never to set foot on North American soil again. Erikson propagated Christianity for a large portion of his later years.
Early Life & Childhood
Around Iceland, Leif Erikson was born around 970 AD to Erik the Red and Thjodhild. Freydis was his sister, and the other two siblings were Thorsteinn and Thorvaldr. He headed west when his father was expelled from Iceland. Senior Erik named this region Greenland after he came into it while traveling. He founded Greenland’s first permanent settlement in AD 986.
A Later Years
Leif Erikson is thought to have traveled from Greenland to Norway in 999 AD with his crew. He became a Christian under the leadership of Olaf Tryggvason, the King of Norway. After his conversion, the king gave him a mission to spread Christianity among the other Greenlandic aboriginal people. His return trip to his hometown is largely hypothetical. Some reports claim that Erikson was blown off course on his return trip to Greenland. He discovered a dry region ultimately on the North American continent and dubbed it Vinland because of its overall fertility and the profusion of grapes growing there. Today, the area is referred to as Nova Scotia.
The Groenlendinga saga states that Erikson most likely learned of Vinland from Bjarni Herjólfsson, an Icelandic trader who claimed to have seen land west of Greenland after being blown off course fourteen years earlier. Herjólfsson did not, however, set foot on the territory. According to the Icelandic trader, Erikson deliberately set out on an expedition to the region in the west. His father had been supposed to sail with a thirty-five-man crew, but he had fallen off a horse and had withdrawn. Taking the tumble as a negative sign, Erikson changed his path to prevent any accidents.
Erikson is thought to have made his initial landing in a barren, stony area that he called Helluland. He continued and eventually arrived in a forest that he called Markland. After two more days at sea, the crew arrived in an area that appeared lush and bountiful. The crew stayed there as winter approached and explored the area. Tyrker found a region covered with vines and grapes during his excursions, which Erikson eventually dubbed Vinland. Erikson established a tiny town at Vinland that became known as Leifsbúðir (Leif’s Booths) throughout time. He and his crew set out to return to Greenland after spending the winter there. According to another version, Erikson became known as Leif the Lucky after saving two shipwrecked men on his return trip.
After arriving back in Greenland at his family’s Brattahlio estate, Erikson faithfully finished the mission of converting the Norwegian king to Christianity. He began converting Greenlanders to the religion by preaching to them. One of the first converts, his mother went on to found Thjóðhild’s Church, which bears her name. Erikson’s journey was seen to have been successful in inspiring more Norsemen to follow in his footsteps. Thorvald, his brother, traveled to Vinland with other Norsemen. However, if the sagas were to be accepted, there was fighting and slaughter between Norse men and indigenous people.
Although Norsemen frequently went to Markland for commerce, lumber, and foraging, no permanent Norse settlement was found in Vinland after the animosity and violence. These trading expeditions persisted for generations after that. In 1019, Erikson was last reported to be alive. It is thought that around 1025, he gave his son Thorkell the chieftaincy.
His Important Findings
Erikson’s discovery of North America as the first European has been his primary contribution. In addition to becoming the first Norse explorer to arrive on the coast of North America, he also founded the first Norse settlement in Vinland, which is now Nova Scotia. The location known as L’Anse aux Meadows lies in modern-day Canada at the northernmost point of Newfoundland.
Individual Life and Heritage
Erikson is thought to have been blown off course during his voyage from Greenland to Norway, ending up spending the majority of the summer in the Hebrides. He fell in love with Thorgunna, a noblewoman, while he was staying there. Thorgils, their son, was a blessing. His other son, Thorkell, is not from Thorgunna. While the details regarding Erikson’s demise are unknown, it is thought that he passed away somewhere between 1019 and 1025. Thorkell, his son, assumed the chieftaincy after his death.
The Norwegian couple Helge Ingstad, an adventurer, and his wife Anne Stine Ingstad, an archaeologist, conducted research in the 1960s. They asserted that the Norse settlement was most likely situated at Newfoundland’s northernmost point. L’Anse aux Meadows is the name of the location. Over 2,000 Viking artifacts have been retrieved from it, earning it the title of oldest European habitation in North America. The identity of Nordic Americans and immigrants was significantly reconstituted when Erikson’s historic voyage to North America was discovered. They felt more confident about themselves after making this discovery.
The United States of America erected statues of Erikson in several locations, including Boston, Milwaukee, and Chicago, to honor his contributions as an explorer. Every year on October 9th, people commemorate Leif Erikson Day. Although prior celebrations were restricted to Wisconsin, the US Congress requested and approved nationwide celebrations in 1964.
Random Facts About Leif
North America was founded by this European traveler in 1492, 500 years before Christopher Columbus.
Estimated Net Worth
Leif is one of the richest Movie Actors in the United States. Based on our research and information from Forbes, Wikipedia, and Business Insider, Leif Erickson has a $5 million net worth. (Published on January 13, 2024)