Gunnbjörn Úlfsson
Gunnbjörn Úlfsson , also Gunnbjörn Ulf-Krakuson , was a Norwegian Viking and the first known European to see the North American continent .
Úlfsson was drifted off course while sailing from Norway to Iceland . He and his crew saw some islands off the coast of Greenland. However, they did not go ashore there, but sailed on towards Iceland. Greenland is geologically and culturally assigned to North America, so it was the first sighting of the American continent by a European explorer.
The time of this discovery is not exactly documented in the Icelandic Sagas. Different sources assume a point in time between 876 and 932. But these are only estimates. The most likely point in time is the beginning of the 10th century.
It was not until around 978 that Snaebjörn Galti sailed to the islands described by Úlfsson. Shortly afterwards he was followed by Erik the Red , who also explored Greenland's main island and founded a settlement . Both relied on Gunnbjörn's descriptions of their voyages of discovery to the west.
The highest mountain in Greenland, Gunnbjørn Fjeld (3700 m), is named in honor of Gunnbjörn .
Web links
- Discovery of America by the Vikings ( Memento of March 10, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) (archived)
- Viking voyages of discovery ( Memento from January 31, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) (English, archived)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Farley Mowat, West Viking: The Ancient Norse in Greenland and North America (1965) ISBN 978-0771066924
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Úlfsson, Gunnbjörn |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Ulf-Krakuson, Gunnbjörn |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Norwegian Viking and explorer of Greenland |
| DATE OF BIRTH | before 932 |
| DATE OF DEATH | 9th century or 10th century |