VIKINGS IN GREENLAND

Not much is known about the life and culture of the Eskimos. (In fact that is not even their proper name, the correct name being Inuit - "the people".) But now with the Vest-norden Kulturhus in Hafnafjördur, Iceland in place, there is a good resource for those who want to learn more.

Vestnorden Kulturhus is the brainchild of an innovative Icelander, Johannes Vidar B jarnason and a Greenlander, Benedikte Thorsteinsson. From a meeting and discussions to explore mutual interests in their countries' shared Viking and Inuit histories, emerged the concept of the Vestnorden Kulturhus as a showcase of Viking and Inuit history, culture and traditions.

In contrast to the Norsemen who settled in Greenland and Iceland 900-1000 years ago, the Inuit have survived in Greenland for several thousands of years. Today, new museums in Greenland are collecting and displaying the treasures of 4 000 years of Inuit culture. Exhibitions include artifacts such as kayaks, hunting tools, works of ancient art, paintings, carvings and utensils which all bring Inuit history to life. Some museums are actual copies of Inuit turf houses. Historical relics give stirring insights into the everyday lives of those ancient hunters.

Travelling across ice and sea from Canada, the Dorset people migrated to Greenland between 600 and 700 BC and inhabited the Northwestern part. The Dorset culture is believed to have perished around 1300 after assimilation with the Thule culture.

The Thule culture had come to Greenland about 100 years earlier from Alaska and Canada. The Thules were a special tribe, with the world's most specialized hunting cultures. They sustained themselves by hunting large sea mammals such as whale, seal and walrus, as well a land animals including polar bear and reindeer. Their tools were mostly based on the harpoon,
used during summer from kayaks and in winter from dog sleds.

Thule people settled only for short periods in any one area. Their basic transportation consisted of kayaks. The women's boats, were called umiaks. Their houses were partially dug in the ground and had rock walls and the roofing was made of whalebone and turf. Large lamps burned blubber to illuminate and warm the inside when wind, cold and darkness raged outside.

"Although the various Inuit had been in Greenland for thousands of years, the Norsemen, led by Erik the Red, didn't meet them when they settled in Greenland in 982 AD, at least not right away," Benedikte Thorsteinsson explains.

But as the Thule people, the forefathers of present Greenlanders, went further and further south they came closer to both the western and eastern settlements of the Norse. According to historians and archaeologists, the Norse and Inuit probably engaged in trading, because Inuit excavations have turned up Norse-made nails and iron knife blades. Only the Norse had knowledge of iron-making.

Despite the oral history and verbal traditions passed down by generations through the centuries, there had not been a written Inuit language to record their history until the 20th century. The Icelandic Sagas, however, provide written accounts of the earliest Norse voyages, discoveries, settlements and families. They are now printed and translated into many languages as worthwhile, documented accounts of Viking life more than 1000 years ago.

They tell us that Leif Ericson's father, Erik the Red, was the first Norseman to settle in Greenland, laying the foundation for the Viking culture there. He had been exiled from Norway for killing a man. He fled to Iceland, where his nasty temper and another killing made it necessary for him to leave from there also. He had heard of possible land to the west so he sailed in search of it. Early sagas tell us that he arrived in Greenland in 982 and explored the fjords of South Greenland for a period of three years.

Finally, his three years of banishment served, he returned to Iceland with vivid, enthusiastic accounts of the new land he had found. He gave it an appealing name, Greenland, to entice settlers to join him and move there. As a result, 25 Viking ships set out from Iceland in 986 for Greenland, with Erik the Red leading the fleet. Ancient sagas relate that only 14 arrived safely. Erik and his group founded what was called the Eastern Settlement which continued to expand to include the areas now called Narsaq, Qaqortoq and Nanotalik. Years passed and more people arrived from Iceland, spreading beyond the Eastern Settlement to the Western Settlement around present day Nuuk.

Their main livelihood was agriculture and fishing. From ancient sagas and other sources we know that trade relations were maintained between Greenland, Iceland and Norway and contact was also maintained as far away as with the Vatican. A bishop was sent to Gardar, around present day Igaliku, where the Norse bishop's residence and church were built. Remains have been found and are being carefully preserved.

During Viking Year 2000, the anniversary of Leif Ericson's voyage of discovery of The New World, celebrations are taking place in Greenland to honor the heroic Norsemen. The West Nordic House in Iceland ensures that history is preserved and comes alive with artistic creations that represent the best of Inuit and Viking cultures. Vestnorden Kulturhus presents an appealing collection and display of jewelry, ivory, bone, stone and wood carvings, paintings, clothing and other products created by talented Inuit and Norse people who today live in Greenland, Iceland and the Faroe Islands, another Norse settlement area.

Allan A Swenson

Scandinavian Press, Issue 4, 2000