The average height of Vikings as found by researchers and scholars, varied depending on a number of factors, including their age and gender. Typically, the average male Viking would usually be between 5 foot 7 and 5 foot 9, while the average female would be between 5 foot 1 and 5 foot 3.
However, experts believe Vikings were quite large, muscular people, capable of striking fear into the hearts of their enemies as a result of their strength and size. The physical build of the Vikings was likely to be somewhat similar to our own, but with significantly more mass and muscle.
Experts believe that the average height of a Viking man was around 5 feet 7 inches. This is slightly taller than the average height of men in Europe during that period. However, some Viking men may have been as tall as 6 feet 4 inches or more.
Clifford Thompson, the world's tallest man and Count Olaf, the Norwegian Viking Giant claimed to be 8 foot, 7 inches tall. He performed with several circuses and sideshows but also secured a law degree in 1944 from Marquette.
The average Viking was 8-10 cm (3-4 inches) shorter than we are today. The skeletons that the archaeologists have found, reveals, that a man was around 172 cm tall (5.6 ft), and a woman had an average height of 158 cm (5,1 ft).
Diet is probably a big factor in why the Vikings were so tall. While most Europeans were living in agricultural societies, and therefore ate a lot of carbohydrates, the Vikings prioritized animal husbandry and fishing, which meant that they had more protein in their diet.
The best-known Viking explorer is, of course, Lief Erikson, the first European to set foot in the Americas, beating Columbus to the continent by over 400 years.
On average, Vikings were rarely over 5 foot 7 in height, but this didn't mean they weren't large in comparison to some of the other peoples of the time. Vikings might have been short by today's standards, but they were still seen as larger than life attackers in their day.
Why are Norwegians so tall? Norwegians are often ranked among some of the tallest people in the world. Experts say natural selection, combined with a good animal protein diet, makes these Nordic locals taller than their counterparts elsewhere in the world.
They were taller on average than most Europeans of their time. Sometimes by much, sometimes not so. For example, average height of the Viking era (9th to 11th century) male skeletons found in Denmark, Norway and Iceland is 172cm. Those found in Sweden were taller, 176cm.
Archaeological findings show that the Vikings had everything required of a terrible foe. Their axes, swords, spears, bows and arrows, shields, and armour were equal to the weapons and armours of continental Europe and Britain – and often of the highest quality available at the time.
Perhaps the epitome of the archetypal bloodthirsty Viking, Erik the Red violently murdered his way through life. Born in Norway, Erik gained his nickname most likely due to the colour of his hair and beard but it could also reflect upon his violent nature.
The Vikings have the benefit of nearly 1,000 years of weapons development from the Bronze age Spartans, with stronger weapons, armor and shields, and unlike the Spartans, the Vikings believed in the principle of combined arms.
The chances are Vikings were a lot leaner than many people today, thanks to their protein-rich diet, and their commitment to hard labor. However, it's likely that the comparative 'largeness' of Vikings was down to their muscular bodies and strength, rather than simply being “fat”.
Dr Tarrin Wills, from the Centre for Scandinavian Studies, has examined early Icelandic literature and discovered that its authors pinpointed physical characteristics of high testosterone levels – known to cause violent behaviour – creating some of the earliest 'criminal mugshots'.
The Viking trained their what Shaul calls their “tactical or combat chassis”—legs, hips, and core—daily. They did this by farming (lifting heavy stuff), shipbuilding (chopping trees), and rowing (strengthening legs, arms, and lungs).
* Dutch men are the tallest on the planet, with an average height of 182.5cm. Latvian women are the tallest on the planet, with an average height of 170cm. * The top four tallest countries for men are the Netherlands, Belgium, Estonia and Latvia.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO)'s research, the average height for a man in Europe is 5 feet 11 inches (180 cm), while the average height for a woman in Europe is 5 feet 5.9 inches (167 cm).
Russians are descended from genetically tall Eurasian people whose height is still seen today in Northern Europe. In some way, such height was evolutionary useful for surviving in the steppe lands that their ancestors arose from.
Given the average life expectancy of 40-45 in the Viking Age, it was important that early on children could help and carry out the work of an adult.
The events of 1066 in England effectively marked the end of the Viking Age. By that time, all of the Scandinavian kingdoms were Christian, and what remained of Viking “culture” was being absorbed into the culture of Christian Europe.
At the battle of Ashdown in 871, Alfred routed the Viking army in a fiercely fought uphill assault.
Old Norse: the Viking language
Although Old Norse is recognized as a single language, there were discernible dialects that varied between regions such as Denmark and Iceland. Nonetheless, individuals from these regions could presumably still comprehend one another.
- King of Norway 1046-1066
Harald Hardrada (Harald III Sigurdsson) is often known as "the last real Viking," and maybe he was what many understood by a real Viking king.