1988. But who were their slaves and what can we learn from the archaeological findings? But it is forcing scholars to rethink the idea that it was solely for warriors, as well as the place of slaves in Viking society.Nevertheless, as scholars focus on the Norse need for human chattel, the kinder and gentler aura surrounding Vikings today may begin to diminish.Illustration by Tom Lovell, Nat Geo Image Collection,Kinder, Gentler Vikings?
Some speculate that these may have been a mark of a warrior class, since the skeletons were all male.âThis is not the same as saying that modified teeth is a feature only found in slaves,â Kjellstrom added. institution,Society for the Advancement of Scandinavian Study. Slavery in the Viking Age was a common practice throughout Scandinavia and the Scandinavian diaspora with the use of slaves socially, culturally, and economically, depending on the region in which they existed. They could also be manumitted, or released from slavery, at any time. It has been estimated that approximately 10% of the people in Viking Age Scandinavia were slaves. One is an 11th-century, highly decorated runestone from Hovgården, the royal estate on Adelsö island in Lake Mälaren, Sweden. In 2009, archaeologist Frands Herschend at Uppsala detailed a burnt structure from this early era in which people and animals were immolated. You are currently offline. Introduction: Viking women are commonly portrayed in the media as strong warriors in their own right. In particular, there is ambiguity in the terminology because a very different word has always been used in place of “slave”: the Old Norse.A judicious combination of archaeological and textual sources can produce a relatively comprehensive picture of Viking slaveholding. âThere was a significant shift in agriculture,â said Price. In the Viking Age, this picture changed dramatically because, for the first time, Scandinavians began to make the active acquisition of human chattel a key part of their economy. Slaves and thralls in the Viking Age Slaves or thralls were amongst the most important commodities traded by the Vikings. Later in the period, further reorganization of the economy, in connection with an escalating need for sailcloth (and therefore wool and sheep), had obvious implications for the consequent rise in labor requirements. Others recorded that slaves from northern Europe were funneled from Scandinavia through Russia to Byzantium and Baghdad.Price suspects that âslavery was a very significant motivator in raiding.â One key factor may have been a dire need for women.Some scholars believe that the Vikings were a polygamous society that made it hard for non-elites to find brides. Karras, Ruth M. "Concubinage and Slavery in the Viking Age," Scandinavian Studies. The pressing need for wool production likely led to a plantation-like economy, a topic now being studied by researchers.For example, at a Swedish site called Sanda, researchers in the 1990s found a great hall surrounded by small houses. The majority entered the wider network of trafficking and were transported to markets and points of sale in settlements across the Viking world and beyond, even reaching the emporia of western Europe. Markey, T.L. The Press publishes more than 120 new books and 30 scholarly journals each year in an array of subjects including American history, labor history, sports history, folklore, food, film, American music, American religion, African American studies, women's studies, and Abraham Lincoln. © 1996-2015 National Geographic Society, © 2015- As two prominent Viking scholars observed 50 years ago, “The slave could own nothing, inherit nothing, leave nothing.” They were not paid, of course, but in some circumstances, they were allowed to retain a small portion of the proceeds they obtained at market when selling goods for their owners. Their different functions and roles—such as / Karras, Ruth M. In: Scandinavian Studies, Vol.
75-85. Their different functions and roles—such as concubines, domestic and agricultural labourers, captives, rebels, and sacrificial victims—
Concubinage and Slavery in the Viking Age. This also may have driven the need for slaves. Among their names were … They could be captured during raids, purchased – it is likely that slaves taken during battle by warring Irish tribes were sold on to the Vikings in Dublin, and certain crimes could be punished by slavery. Some of them arguably could have been used to restrain animals but were more likely designed to be placed around a human neck, wrist or ankle.Most of the archaeological material is harder to read, in that it only indirectly reflects the presence of the enslaved. With a personal account, you can read up to.Scandinavian Studies, official journal of the Society for the Advancement of Scandinavian Study, focuses on the languages, cultures, and histories of the Nordic region, including the countries of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden.
Courtesy of burials and their accompanying grave goods, we know that most women seem to have worn outfits comprised of two or three layers, the first of which being a linen or woollen sleeved shift or underdress fastened at the neck with a small disc brooch and sometimes pleated there, too. JSTOR®, the JSTOR logo, JPASS®, Artstor®, Reveal Digital™ and ITHAKA® are registered trademarks of ITHAKA.Published By: University of Illinois Press,Read Online (Free) relies on page scans, which are not currently available to screen readers.