![]() ![]() Both farming and trading were family businesses, and women were often left in charge when their husbands were away or dead. The Viking colonists settled down to the farming life in their new home, or established themselves as traders and became town-dwellers. Families heading for the North Atlantic colonies would also have to take all the livestock they would need to establish a new farm, and the journey cannot have been pleasant. Most journeys from Scandinavia involved sea-crossings in small, open ships with no protection from the elements. In regions with an established indigenous population, Viking settlers may have married local women, while some far-roving Vikings picked up female companions en route, but there is evidence that Scandinavian women reached most parts of the Viking world, from Russia in the east to Newfoundland in the west. Iceland, for instance, was uninhabited, and a permanent population could only be established if women also made the journey there. ![]() ![]() Women could and did play a part in this process of settlement. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |