Lief+Eriksson

By Michael Walsh Leif Eriksson, a brave Norse explorer, is known today for his famous discoveries such as the discovery of Vinland. Leif was born and raised in Norway, but he didn’t stay there for long. He later started a crew and left for the life of a Viking where he had many adventures! Leif was born on a farm in Norway, called Bratthlid, which means steep hillside. Leif was also born into a family of explorers. His father was Erik the Red, a well known Norse explorer. Leif and his family lived in a normal Norse home, so it was built into the side a hill. In the Norse culture, a boy is given his last name by using his father’s first name followed by the word “son.” For example, Leif’s last name is Eriksson because his fathers name was Erik. Later in Leif’s life, his brother started the first war between North America and Europe. Sometime within that war, Leif’s sister murdered his brother. Leif eventually obtained the nickname Lucky Leif from his family and his crew; he got it because he made a million of daring rescues and survived them all. In Leif’s life he was more than just an explorer. He was a Viking leader! He and his crew lived in a traditional Viking homeland. His homeland was Norway. Leif had an elite crew of Viking mercenaries, one of which was his brother and for a while his dad. Leif and his crew were some of the first Vikings to settle and trade instead of robbing and going home. Even though, monks saw Leif and his crew as pure destruction, Leif and his crew ignored the monks and they eventually became allies. During Leif’s spare time he would challenge crew members to a game like chess. Sometimes they would also make carvings out of bones or wood. During the time, there was few ways to tell which way the wind was going so Leif and his crew had something like a weather vane on the bow of his boat. Leif had a walrus on his helmet, and today people think it’s because his family would hunt them for food. Another fact about Leif’s personal life was that no actual paintings were done of him so no one knows exactly what he looks like. Leif’s many adventures and discoveries were told in sagas. A saga is a major event that is written down for generations to read. One of the most major events that happened in Leif’s life was his discovery of Vinland. Leif got Vinland from the Norse word vin. Vin has two meanings: grass or wine. Some people think it is called Vinland because of the grapes found on it and others think it is named for its green grass. Archeologists do have proof it happened though. They found a type of nut that grows only in Norway and they found a Viking ship. All of these sagas and more were written on runes. Runes are a stone with carvings on it that is said to be blessed by Odin. Odin is the Norse god in charge of Valhalla. He is also the father of Thor, the God of Thunder. The Norse explorer, Leif Eriksson is a hero who should be looked up to today by anyone looking for adventure. His dad, Erik the Red, was also a great explorer. Leif also helped people who may have been stranded in the ocean. For example Leif rescued a shipwrecked party of 15 on his way to Vinland. He was an amazing explorer and leader. **__ Bibliography __** Burgan, Michael. __Leif Eriksson__. Chicago: Reed Educational and Professional Publishing, 2002. Wikipedia contributors. “Leif Eriksson”. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.. 1 April 2008. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Cite&page=Leif_Ericson&id=207831092
 * __ Leif Eriksson __**