Proto-Norse inscriptions
Early runes record the emerging North Germanic language.
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The Illustrated History of Norse
From early Scandinavian runic inscriptions to the Viking Age, medieval Icelandic literature and today's North Germanic languages. Norse did not simply vanish: it developed into several living languages.
Norse in five milestones
The big picture first. Explore the detailed timeline below for dates, people and definitions.
AD 200
AD 500
AD 800
AD 1100
AD 1400
AD 1700
AD 2000
AD 200–700
Early Scandinavian speech developed into Old Norse.
AD 700–1050
Vikings traveled, traded and settled across Europe and the North Atlantic.
AD 1050–1400
Norse stories were written down, especially in Iceland.
AD 1400–1800
Different Scandinavian varieties developed into more distinct languages.
Language periods
Proto-NorseAD 200–AD 700
Old NorseAD 700–AD 1350
Later NorseAD 1350–AD 1550
Modern Nordic languagesAD 1550–AD present
Dates vary by region. Old Norse developed into several languages rather than ending everywhere at once.
AD 200 to the present
Click and drag left or right to travel through the history of Norse. Underlined words in the event descriptions link to their definitions below.
Proto-Norse and Viking Age
Medieval Norse and manuscript culture
Early modern Scandinavian languages
Modern North Germanic
Language changes
Proto-Norse undergoes sound changes on the way to Old Norse.
Old Norse emerges
Viking-Age Norse becomes recognizable in Scandinavian speech.
Lindisfarne raid
A Scandinavian raid becomes a landmark in Viking history.
Army in England
Scandinavian armies and settlers increase Norse–English contact.
Settlement of Iceland
Norse-speaking settlers establish communities in Iceland.
Alfred and Guthrum
A peace settlement follows warfare in England.
Eastern and western Norse
Regional varieties of Old Norse develop distinct features.
Greenland settlement
Norse settlers establish communities in Greenland.
Vinland voyages
Norse explorers reach North America around this period.
Christian Scandinavia
Conversion and manuscript culture expand Latin-letter writing.
Icelandic saga age
Old Icelandic literature flourishes in manuscripts.
The Eddas
Norse myth and poetic tradition are preserved in medieval texts.
Kalmar Union
Scandinavian kingdoms enter a political union.
Mainland language shifts
Danish, Swedish and Norwegian continue diverging; trade shapes vocabulary.
Norway's language question
Political changes encourage debate about Norwegian written language.
Aasen and Nynorsk
Dialect research lays foundations for a new Norwegian written standard.
Modern language standards
National schooling and publishing strengthen distinct standards.
Norse descendants today
Five living languages carry the North Germanic tradition forward.
Dates mark representative evidence and events, not abrupt boundaries between language stages.
From one language tradition to several modern languages
Old Norse belonged to the North Germanic branch of the Germanic language family. During the Viking Age, Scandinavian speakers traveled and settled across northern Europe and the North Atlantic. Old West Norse is especially well documented in Icelandic literature, while eastern Scandinavian varieties contributed to Danish and Swedish. Over many centuries, distinct modern languages developed. Icelandic and Faroese preserve some older grammatical features, while mainland Scandinavian languages changed in different ways and influenced one another.
Definitions: names, events and language terms
These definitions explain the historical and language terms used in the timeline above.
Faroese
Faroese is a North Germanic language spoken in the Faroe Islands, an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark in the North Atlantic. It developed from Old Norse and is closely related to Icelandic.
Why it matters: Faroese is one of the modern languages descended from Old Norse. Its continued use shows how Norse developed into distinct languages across the North Atlantic.
↑ Back to timelineNordic
Nordic refers to the northern European region comprising Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden, together with territories such as the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Åland.
Why it matters: The term describes a region, not a single language family. Most Nordic languages descend from Old Norse, but Finnish and Sámi languages belong to the Uralic language family.
↑ Back to timelineScandinavian
Scandinavian usually refers to Denmark, Norway and Sweden and their peoples, cultures and languages. In language history, Scandinavian languages are the North Germanic languages descended from Old Norse; this linguistic grouping also includes Icelandic and Faroese.
Why it matters: Scandinavian is narrower geographically than Nordic, which also includes Finland and associated territories. The Scandinavian languages belong to the North Germanic branch.
↑ Back to timelineNorth Germanic
The branch of the Germanic language family that includes the Scandinavian languages.
Why it matters: Old Norse and today's Icelandic, Faroese, Norwegian, Danish and Swedish belong to this branch.
↑ Back to timelineProto-Norse
An early North Germanic language spoken in Scandinavia before Old Norse.
Why it matters: It is known in part from early runic inscriptions, especially around AD 200–700.
↑ Back to timelineRunes
Letters used in several ancient Germanic writing systems.
Why it matters: Early Scandinavian inscriptions preserve evidence of Proto-Norse and Old Norse.
↑ Back to timelineOld Norse
A North Germanic language spoken in Scandinavia and Norse settlements during the Viking Age and Middle Ages.
Why it matters: It is the ancestor of modern Icelandic, Faroese, Norwegian, Danish and Swedish.
↑ Back to timelineViking
A term commonly applied to Scandinavian seaborne raiders and, more broadly, the people and culture of the Viking Age.
Why it matters: Not every Scandinavian person was a Viking raider.
↑ Back to timelineLindisfarne
A tidal island off northeastern England with a historic monastery.
Why it matters: A Viking raid there in AD 793 is a famous marker of the Viking Age.
↑ Back to timelineGuthrum
A Scandinavian ruler active in ninth-century England.
Why it matters: After defeat by Alfred in AD 878, he was baptized and later ruled East Anglia.
↑ Back to timelineIceland
An island country in the North Atlantic.
Why it matters: Norse settlement began in the late ninth century; its language preserves many features of Old Norse.
↑ Back to timelineGreenland
A large Arctic island.
Why it matters: Norse settlers established communities there from the late tenth century.
↑ Back to timelineVinland
A Norse name for a region of North America described in medieval Icelandic sources.
Why it matters: Norse exploration reached North America around AD 1000.
↑ Back to timelineSaga
A prose narrative, especially one associated with medieval Iceland.
Why it matters: Sagas preserve literature and historical traditions in Old Norse and Old Icelandic.
↑ Back to timelineOld Icelandic
The medieval form of Icelandic used in sagas and other texts.
Why it matters: It is a particularly rich source for the study of Old West Norse.
↑ Back to timelineKalmar Union
A political union of Denmark, Norway and Sweden formed in 1397.
Why it matters: Its political setting shaped Scandinavian administration and language contact.
↑ Back to timelineDanish
A modern North Germanic language chiefly spoken in Denmark.
Why it matters: It developed from eastern Scandinavian speech and influenced written Norwegian for centuries.
↑ Back to timelineSwedish
A modern North Germanic language chiefly spoken in Sweden.
Why it matters: It developed from eastern Scandinavian speech.
↑ Back to timelineNorwegian
A modern North Germanic language chiefly spoken in Norway.
Why it matters: It developed from western Scandinavian varieties and has two official written standards.
↑ Back to timelineIcelandic
A modern North Germanic language spoken in Iceland.
Why it matters: It remains relatively conservative in grammar compared with mainland Scandinavian languages.
↑ Back to timelineNynorsk
One of Norway's two official written standards.
Why it matters: It was developed in the nineteenth century from Norwegian dialects.
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