The Vikings Quiz

1. Where did the Vikings originally come from?

1. Germany and Poland
2. Iceland and Greenland
3. Scandinavia — modern Denmark, Norway, and Sweden
4. The British Isles

2. The Viking Age is traditionally said to have begun with the raid on which English monastery in 793 AD?

1. Canterbury
2. Iona
3. Lindisfarne
4. Westminster

3. Who was Leif Erikson?

1. A Danish king who conquered England
2. A famous Viking warrior king
3. A Norwegian explorer who reached North America centuries before Columbus
4. The founder of Iceland

4. What was the Viking parliament called?

1. The Althing
2. The Folketing
3. The Senate
4. The Witan

5. What material were Viking longships famously made from?

1. Cedar
2. Elm and ash
3. Oak primarily
4. Pine and birch

6. What is a 'berserker' in Viking culture?

1. A ferocious warrior who fought in a trance-like rage
2. A skilled trader
3. A type of Viking ship
4. A Viking chieftain

7. Which city did the Vikings found in Ireland around 841 AD?

1. Cork
2. Dublin
3. Galway
4. Waterford

8. What was 'Danegeld'?

1. A tribute paid by Anglo-Saxon England to Vikings to prevent raids
2. A Viking legal code
3. The Viking monetary system
4. Viking treasure buried underground

9. Who was the Viking king who ruled a 'North Sea Empire' including England, Denmark, and Norway?

1. Cnut (Canute)
2. Eric Bloodaxe
3. Harald Hardrada
4. Rollo

10. Erik the Red founded a Norse settlement on which island?

1. Faroe Islands
2. Greenland
3. Iceland
4. Newfoundland

11. In Norse mythology, what is Valhalla?

1. A magical forest
2. The hall of Odin where warriors who die in battle feasted
3. The home of the gods
4. The Viking underworld

12. What is the name of the Viking runic alphabet?

1. Cuneiform
2. Futhark
3. Ogham
4. Uncial

13. The Norman Conquest of England (1066) was led by descendants of which people?

1. Anglo-Saxons
2. Danes
3. Franks
4. Vikings (Normans)

14. What were female Viking warriors possibly called?

1. Drengrs
2. Nornir
3. Shieldmaidens
4. Valkyries

15. The city of Kyiv (Kiev) was founded partly by which Scandinavian group?

1. Danish Vikings
2. Icelandic settlers
3. Norwegian Vikings
4. Swedish Vikings (the Varangians/Rus')

16. What were Viking sagas?

1. Battle plans written on vellum
2. Heroic prose narratives of Viking history, adventures, and legends
3. Lists of Viking laws
4. Religious hymns to Norse gods

17. The days of the week Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday are named after which Norse gods?

1. All of the above are correct versions
2. Tyr, Odin, Thor, Freya
3. Tyr, Woden, Thor, Freya
4. Tyr, Woden, Thor, Frigg

18. What was the traditional Viking funeral for important figures?

1. Burial at sea with no marker
2. Burial in a stone cairn
3. Mummification
4. Ship burial or burning

19. The Viking Age is generally considered to have ended with which event in 1066?

1. The Battle of Stamford Bridge
2. The Christianisation of Norway
3. The death of Cnut the Great
4. The Norman Conquest of England

20. What does the word 'Viking' most likely mean?

1. Norse chieftain
2. One who goes on a raid/expedition (from Old Norse 'víkingr')
3. Sea raider or pirate
4. Warrior from the North