Painting of Vikings in ships

Viking

An illustration of Vikings sailing on a longship across the Atlantic

General History

Who owns Greenland? Why the island's history is more complicated than you think

Reading the runes: uncovering the everyday lives of the Vikings. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Rune stone. (Photo by Getty Images)

Reading the runes: what we can learn about everyday life in the Viking Age. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Ordinary Vikings: hidden histories of the Nordic world. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Week fourViking Kingdoms

Week threeEveryday Life. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Week twoTrading and exploring. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Week oneThe Viking Raids. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A warrior battling a dragon in Skyrim concept art.

Best Viking videogames for history enthusiasts in 2025

Frida Gustavsson as Freydís Eiríksdóttir in season 3 of Vikings: Valhalla

Was Freydís Eiríksdóttir a hero or a deranged murderess?

Leo Suter as Harald Sigurdsson in season 3 of Vikings: Valhalla

Vikings: Valhalla ending explained: here’s what would have happened in season 4, according to history

Laura Berlin as Emma of Normandy in season 3 of Vikings: Valhalla

Emma of Normandy: not just a two-time queen consort of England

Painting of the Wild Hunt of Odin

Norse gods and goddesses: 14 of the most important deities venerated by the Vikings

Beowulf: everything you wanted to know. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

An amulet depicting Thor’s hammer, Mjollnir, which he wielded with devastating effect against his foes in Norse mythology (Photo by Werner Forman/Universal Images Group/Getty Images)

Old Norse poetry: how the Vikings viewed the world. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Viking ships arriving in Britain, c1130.

The ultimate Viking quiz. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Viking ships arriving in Britain, c1130.

"A Viking wedding involved a bed and eight people", plus four other facts about the Vikings you might not know.... This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Vikings podcast episodes

In the final week of the HistoryExtra Academy Vikings course, Professor Ryan Lavelle explores the ways in which Norse rulers established their own kingdoms, and offers his thoughts on the end of the Viking Age

Viking kingdoms, with Professor Ryan Lavelle. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Vikings quiz – week four. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Vikings quiz - week three. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Daily life, with Professor Ryan Lavelle. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Vikings quiz - week two. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Trading and exploring, with Professor Ryan Lavelle. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Vikings quiz - week one

Vikings quiz - week one. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

HEX Academy Vikings - week one video

Viking raiders, with Professor Ryan Lavelle. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

What Norse poetry reveals about the Viking age. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Illustration of a Viking with a blue tooth wearing mail and a helmet

Q&AIs it true that Bluetooth was named after a Viking king?

Bradley James as Jomsvikings leader Harekr in season 2 of Vikings: Valhalla

JomsvikingsLegendary Viking mercenaries or men of myth?

Perhaps the most charming idea about the origins of the festive tradition of kissing under the mistletoe derives from a Viking myth of Frigg, goddess of love and marriage, and her ill-fated son Balder. (Photo by Jurg Waldmeier/StockFood Creative/Getty Images Plus)

Q&AWhy do we kiss under the mistletoe?