Historical Norse Foodways

Historical period

The food of the Norse expansion across the North Atlantic from the 9th century: cattle, sheep, goats and pigs carried in open boats; barley where it would ripen and not much further; dairying, with skyr-type soured milk and whey as a preservative; sea and freshwater fish; seabirds and their eggs; seals and whales taken opportunistically; and the beginnings of the dried-fish trade. ⚠ EVIDENCE ROW: what is known comes from archaeology, isotope studies, and sagas written centuries after the events they describe. It is not a recipe collection, and modern Icelandic, Faroese or Norwegian dishes are not "Viking food".

What is recorded

Knowledge of Norse diet comes from archaeology, isotope analysis and sagas written centuries after the events described. It is evidence about what people ate. Modern Icelandic, Faroese and Norwegian dishes are not "Viking food", and no continuity of recipe is asserted. documented

Norse expansion across the North Atlantic, carrying cattle, sheep, goats and barley in open boats. documented

Related foodways

This foodway relates to

influenced Faroese Foodways documented

influenced Icelandic Foodways documented

Iceland was settled from Norway and the British Isles and the line is continuous — which is not the same as saying modern Icelandic food is Viking food.