How Did The Vikings Influence The World

While few written records were left behind by the Indo-Europeans for historians to work with, recent archeological discoveries have uncovered a wealth of information about the development of Viking civilization. With the expansion of archeological research on land and water, researchers have gained an even more valuable insight into the Viking’s development and explorations. After reading Gwyn Jones’s narrative, “A History of the Vikings”, I found the Viking culture and level of sophistication rather fascinating in regards to their influence on the world. The history of the Viking civilization lasted less than three hundred years; however, during that time they traveled everywhere from Persia to Central Asia and even the shores of North America. Their extensive exploration would not have been possible without several technological innovations. One of these was the long ship, a durable and quick vessel. Utilizing new technology that allows for underwater archaeology, researchers are learning more about …show more content…
They also established new towns in the unpopulated areas of England. This resulted in northern Europe’s economy transforming from one where goods were traded for other goods to one where they were traded for money. They also turned the gold and silver they had previously acquired into currency for their trade centers. This led to the creation of international markets that greatly changed Europe’s economic development. European merchants took advantage of the international long distance trade routes and were able to increase their profits. In fact, some of the trade routes are still used today throughout the United Kingdom and Ireland. The Vikings had a considerable influence on their English neighbors they traded with and to this day, traces of Scandinavian can be found in the dialects of Northern England and