What were Vikings commonly eating as food?

What were Vikings commonly eating as food?
By Jennifer Baker

Using the The Viking Food Data base * as a source to answer this question we come up with the following answer to this question

Out of a total number 18 of country/ regions looked at (Denmark, Frisia, Zeeland, Norway, Sweden, Gotland, Poland, Russia, England, Scotland, Isle of Man, Ireland, Orkney, Shetlands, Faroe Islands, Iceland, Greenland, Vinland, ) that Viking lived in and that there is archaeological data from

* NOTE: This is a 126KB Microsoft Excel file. To view this file you must have Excel or download the Excel viewer from the Microsoft website

FRUIT

  1. Apple / Crab Apple ( Malus sylvestris Miller) Found in 8 Country / regions
  2. Crowberry - Black Crowberry or Curlewberry ( Empetrum nigrum) Found in 6 Country / regions
  3. Raspberry ( Rubus idaeus) Found in 6 Country / regions
  4. Juniper - Seeds & Berries ( Juniperus communis L / Juniperus sp.) Found in 5 Country / regions
  5. Plum / Wild Plum - bullace or cherry plum ( Prunus domestica ssp. Domestica / Prunus domestica sl ) Found in 5 Country / regions
  6. Rose - Rose hip ( Rosa sp.) Found in 5 Country / regions
  7. Blackberry / Bramble ( Rubus fruticosus agg.) Found in 4 Country / regions
  8. Cherry / Cherries & wild cherries ( Rosaceae, genus Prunus / Cerasus vulgaris) Found in 4 Country / regions
  9. Strawberry / Strawberry Alpine / Wild Strawberry ( Fragaria vesca) Found in 4 Country / regions

GRAIN

  1. Barley ( Hordeum sp.) Found in 16 Country / regions
  2. Rye ( Secale cereale) Found in 9 Country / regions
  3. Wheat - Bread Wheat / Club Wheat / Common Wheat ( Triticum aestivo-compactum / Triticum vulgare) Found in 8 Country / regions
  4. Wheat – Emmer ( Triticum dicoccon) Found in 5 Country / regions

HERB

  1. Fat Hen - Sedge, Swamp Grass . Sedge Family (Chenopodium album L. / Cyperaceae / Carex sp.) Found in & Country / regions
  2. Black Mustard (Brassica nigra / Brassica / Sinapis sp.) Found in 5 Country / regions
  3. Buttercup / Buttercup Shrub ( Potentilla) Found in 5 Country / regions
  4. Violets / Parma / Yellow Violet ( Viola sp.) Found in 4 Country / regions
  5. Strawberry / Strawberry Alpine / Wild Strawberry ( Fragaria vesca) Found in 4 Country / regions

NUTS

  1. Hazel / Hazel Nuts / Common Hazel ( Corylus avellana) Found in 8 Country / regions
  2. Walnut (Juglans regia) Found in 5 Country / regions

OIL PLANT

  1. Flax - Flax Seed / cultivated flax (Linum usitatissimum) Found in 8 Country / regions
  2. Hempseed oil Found in 4 Country / regions

PULSE

  1. Pea / Garden Pea / Field Pea ( Pisum sativum) Found in 6 Country / regions
  2. Bean - Field / Horse bean ( Vicia faba L) Found in 3 Country / regions

SEED – EDIBLE

  1. Poppys / Poppy Seeds ( Papaver sp. / Papaver somniferum) Found in 4 Country / regions

VEGETABLE

  1. Cabbage / Wild Cabbage or kale / Cabbage Family ( Brassica oleracea / Cruciferae) Found in 7 Country / regions
  2. Carrot / Wild Carrot ( Daucus carota ssp. Sativus) Found in 5 Country / regions
  3. Chickweed / Chickweed, common / spring-beauty- Portulacaceae. / Chickweed, mouseear ( Stellaria sp. / Stellaria media (L.) Vill ) Found in 5 Country / regions
  4. Turnip ( Brassica rapa var. rapa ) Found in 5 Country / regions

TREE

  1. Oak ( Quercus sp.) Found in 5 Country / regions
  2. Pine - Scots pine ( Pinus sylvestris) Found in 5 Country / regions

MEAT - DOMESTIC ANIMAL

  1. Cattle / Cows ( Bos taurus dom. L.) Found in 13 Country / regions
  2. Pig ( Sus domesticus / Sus scrofa) Found in 13 Country / regions
  3. Sheep ( Ovis aries dom. L.) Found in 10 Country / regions
  4. Goats ( Capra hircus dom. L.) Found in 6 Country / regions

MEAT - WILD MAMMAL

  1. Seal ( Phocidae sp. Seal sp.) Found in 5 Country / regions
  2. Hare (leporidae Lepus) Found in 4 Country / regions
  3. Whale ( Cetacea sp Whale sp) Found in 4 Country / regions

BIRD

  1. Duck Family / Species ( Anser sp. / Anatidae sp / Duck species) Found in 6 Country / regions
  2. Chicken ( Gallus domesticus ) Found in 5 Country / regions
  3. Goose / Geese ( Branta / poss. Domestic / Goose sp. / Anatidae) Found in 5 Country / regions

FISH - ESTUARINE SHELLFISH

  1. Mussel - Common or blue mussel ( Mytius edulis) Found in 3 Country / regions

FISH – FRESHWATER

  1. Salmon / Salmonid family (Salmonidae sp ) Found in 5 Country / regions

FISH – MARINE

  1. Cod - Atlantic Cod & Cod family / Gadid / Gadid family ( Gadus morhua L. / Gadidae sp.) Found in 9 Country / regions
  2. Fish ( Fish species indet.) Found in 9 Country / regions
  3. Herring & Atlantic Herring ( Clupea harengus) Found in 6 Country / regions
  4. Salmon / Salmonid family (Salmonidae sp ) Found in 5 Country / regions

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