Who exactly were the Vikings?

They were people like you and me but ...

We are used to seeing Vikings as tough men and women who lived in Scandinavia 1000 years ago. For example. as they can be painted in movies and series. In addition, we often encounter the word "viking" when it comes to various companies in the Nordic countries. But did you know that viking was a verb from the beginning?

To go Viking or to Viking means to travel far from home to be able to plunder and / or find newworlds.

The word viking first appears in Old English sources. Viking probably has a connection to the word "Vik", but no specific etymological origin is known. "Viking" could in its meaning be compared to the word "pirate". Over time, the meaning has changed so that it only refers to people from the Nordic countries (Norwegians).

National romanticism

In the 19th century it begins

time known as the National Romanticism. What does this have to do with Vikings? Well, it was at the beginning of the 19th century that nationalism and the idea of finding "our origin" grew strongly. You will then find the word "VIKING" in very old writings.