POLAR REGIONS

Arctic People

Early Explorers

F or centuries the only people in the Arctic were Inuit. Sometimes the climate became warmer. Then the Inuit settled further north following their food supply. When the weather cooled they were forced south to find food. People of the Thule Culture were able to spread during just one such period. During another period of warm weather which lasted several hundred years, people from Europe were able to spread to the Arctic. The Vikings The Vikings were good sailors. They lived in Scandinavia and built strong ships that could carry many goods. They spread across northern Europe and reached Iceland in 860. When they arrived they found a small group of Irish monks. Soon more Vikings came and in less than a hundred years they had formed the Icelandic Althing, or parliament. V ikings were the first Europeans to settle in the Arctic. They reached Iceland and Greenland in strong ships like this.

The Discovery of North America Leif Eriksson, son of Erik the Red, explored further west from Greenland. He reached the coast of North America around 1000 and explored Newfoundland. He had found a land with trees, ample fish in the rivers, and grapes. In the stories of Leif’s voyage the land was called Vinland.

Leiv Erikson Discovring America by Chrisitan Krohg

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