4: Greenland Flashcards
Rough summary of settlement
Greenland was settled from Iceland at the end of the 10y century under the leadership of Erik the Red
Rough summary of Erik’s life, pre-Greenland
Him and his father forced to leave Norway in 980 after committing murder. Arrived in Iceland and made a good marriage for himself and moved to Haukadal in breithafjord. But then he committed more violence and was banished from Haukadal for 3 years with his followers
What did Erik do in his outlawry from Iceland?
With his followers, he went to look for a land in the western ocean which had been discovered around 60 years earlier by a man named Gunnbjorn (who was also settled in Breithajord).
He spent his time exploring the west coast of Greenland and then went back to Iceland with tales of the land he called ‘Grænland’
Why did Erik call this land, ‘Grænland’
It may have been a deliberate attempt to attract people, or just simply the fact the lush inner fjords of Greenland contrasted to the over exploited icelandic countryside.
What was not a reason for people moving to Greenland?
Population pressure in Iceland
New and attractive farm land was becoming available in the lower valleys of Iceland once cleared, so appears that any ‘push’ factors were social rather than environmental
What was the reasons people may have moved to Greenland?
Late colonisers in Iceland were excluded from land ownership, and thus from obtaining any wealth or power— Iceland was not so much overpopulated as overchieftained
… Therefore, Greenland was attractive as it opened up new ways of gaining honour and prestige
When did the Norse settlers set sail for Greenland?
25 ships set sail in 985 but only 14 made it
What was Erik’s farm called?
He claimed a fjord for himself, naming it Eriksjord, and built a farm called Bratahlith
What are the two areas in Greenland settled by the Norse?
There were only two areas of Greenland suitable for Norse style farming– they are about 400 miles apart
They became known as the Eastern Settlement (Eystribyggth) and the Western Settlement (Vestribyggyth)
Where was Bratalith and why was it important?
Bratahlith was in the eastern settlement and it became the political centre of the Norse colony.
Archaeology has revealed there were nearly 450 farms on the eastern settlement alone
What is a MAJOR contrast between iceland and greenland upon the Norse’s arrival
Greenland was inhabited when the Norse arrived
Sub-sections for Greenland, Week 4
1) Erik the Red
2) Why did some people follow Erik to Greenland?
3) Organisation of the Norse settlements
4) Relations with the Inuit and the Norse economy
5) Political organisation
6) Christianity in Greenland
7) Relations with Norway
8) Cultural preferences
9) Social structure
What work gives us an insight into how the Norse perceived the natives of greenland?
The 12th century Historia Norwegie
Sas that they called them ‘skraelings’ and that they completely lacked iron
Who were the native Greenlanders?
The so-called Dorset-culture inuit who lived mainly by hunting seal and walrus, and so were mainly in the North
Where did the Norse and greenlanders encounter each other
Although the norse settled in the south and the inuit were in the north, the norse occasionally made hunting trips to Disko Bay, which they called Nordsetr
What suggests that the two cultures may have managed to get on to some degree?
It seems possible they got on to some degree and some objects found in inuit sites indicate that they had at least some contact with the Norse from that period—
– for example, A coin minted during king Olaf the Quiet’s reign has been found at a 12th century inuit site on the main coast
Why did the Norse continue North, when they had settled in the south?
For economic reasons
– The Mellville Bay coastal region is great for hunting both reindeer and marine animals, and the availability of export goods such as hide and tusks, probably formed the core of their read with Norway from the start
Why was Walrus ivory particularly valuable- why help the Norse?
The rise of Islam in the east had cut off access from Asia and Africa- so the greenlandic norse now had a wanted product to support their economy
How was hunting organised in the settlements?
Appears to have been communal, with the results being evenly distributed between farms and across the community.
These communal systems helped to maximise and exploit the natural resources as much as they could
Relationship between the east and west settlement/ structure?
The two settled regions were integrated and the hunt probably had a communal dimension– survival required cooperation
What indicates that the norse and the natives had opportunities to obersve each other up close
A number of small carvings representing men of european origin found at inuit sites– so did they trade?
What is the issue with assuming things from cultural artefacts found in the domain of a different culture?
There is no way to determine which of these objects the norse gave of their own free will
What indicates that perhaps the Norse did not trade with the inuit?
Some argue that many of the objects found were unlikely objects for trade, and that therefore the Norse did not part with them willingly
What does Ari say about Greenland, and what are the implications of this?
He says that the Norse came to Greenland 15 years before Christianity became law in Iceland, so the first settlers were likely a mixture of pagans an christians
What were the political implications of the initial landam?
As in Iceland, the first colonists had taken more land than they could manage and as new arrivals kept coming….
The system of government must have originally resembled Iceland- in that power lay with the chieftains and there were deliberations at the thing
How was the Thing organised in Greenland/ how did it work? (Layout)
The thing was probably originally held at Brattahith but from the early 12th century it began to meet at Garthar, which was the bishops seat and was conveniently located in the most densely populated part of the eastern settlement.
To our knowledge, it seems that the Norse in Greenland never developed the same elaborate system of courts and laws, as existed in iceland- the population was probably just too small to need this
Who ran the Greenlandic settlement?
Erik the Red seems to have functioned as Patriarch and leader, with his son Lief and then his son Thorkel succeeding him. Not neccessarily a hereditary office, but man who lived at B. seemed to have a lot of power
How is Olaf tryggvarson involved in the greenlandic settlement?
He supposedly gave Lief the job of converting the Greenlanders, but this could well be an exaggeration to inflate Olaf’s achievements as no pagan burials have yet to be found in Greenland, whereas the church at Brattalith dates back almost to the foundation of the settlement
Key thing to remember about Greenland, compared to Iceland
The norse in greenland drifted into a political system that was different from the Icelandic commonwealth, and their use of natural resources also differed from iceland
What were their relations with Norway like?
They were very reliant on Norway for imports of timber, grain, church vestments, iron, weapons and wine.
– They definitely had difficulties maintaining mediterranean religious practices in the far north, but these items couldn’t be supplied from Iceland, so had to be Norway.
What was the largest farm in Greenland?
Garthar
It is unique with exceptionally large buildings and very large storage capacity
What are the implications of the existence of a farm of Garthar’s size? (facts)
Perhaps it acted as a buffer for the colony or perhaps it was for food storage or items to be exported.
But it is clear that whoever controlled Garthar would have wielded immense power by the end of the VA
What are the implications of the existence of a farm of Garthar’s size according to McGovern?
McGovern argues for a sharply hierarchical society dominated by the bishops riling at the episcopal centre of garter, whose connections to dominant continental centres of political and ideological power fatally prevented the Norse greenlanders from adapting and their society from surviving.
In what ways was the Greenlandic economy wildly different from contemporary Scandinavia?
They were dependant on wild animals, as opposed to grain and so their high position on the food web led to instability.
This required community living and economic cohesion
What is an issue with scholarship regarding the greenland colony?
Some argue that the view of Greenland being reliant on some form of ‘motherland’ is too reliant on modern perceptions of colonialism and that the elite in greenland may have been quite independently minded and that it was just SO separated from continental developments
Population of the greenland settlement?
At its height, the eastern had a population of 4,000 to 5,000, and the western of 1,000 to 1,500
