LE3 .A278 2012

2012

MacDonald, Jennifer

Acadia University

Bachelor of Arts

Honours

History

History & Classics

Burials reveal a lot about the society which created them. The power structure of Viking society comes out when burials are compared to one another. The Vikings were a culture where women could hold power, but the elite of the society was the male dominated warrior class. The Vikings were also an expansive culture, which came into contact with many other cultures. Understanding the power structure, and burial practices, of the Vikings in Scandinavia, allows for a comparison to be drawn between practices and structures at home, and the adapted and assimilated rituals of Vikings which settled in other areas. Viking settlement and assimilation in England and Scotland was very different, despite the fact that the regions are geographically close. Looking at changes in burial construction, and composition, reveals how the Vikings assimilated with the cultures of each of these areas. In England factors which led to the assimilation of the Vikings, were government and local pressures, which led to a very rapid, and near complete assimilation. In Scotland, on the other hand, the assimilation happened at different rates in different areas. Within given regions the amount of assimilation is pocketed, from near complete assimilation, to burials which are almost completely Scandinavian.

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https://scholar.acadiau.ca/islandora/object/theses:930