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Viking Settlement Society in Iceland

Type Object Region Iceland Time c. 870–1262

From the 9th century CE, Viking settlers from Norway and the British Isles established a settlement society in Iceland, forming a free commonwealth w…

Timeline

  1. c. 850–874West coast of Iceland · IcelandViking seafarers explored Iceland via the Faroe Islands route; among the first settlers, Naddodd (Naddör Snorri) established a temporary camp on the west coast, scouting routes and arable land for the subsequent wave of large-scale settlement.
  2. 874–930Throughout Iceland · IcelandViking clans from Norway, Scotland, and Ireland seized land according to customary law (landnám), establishing farm settlements based mainly on livestock husbandry supplemented by fishing and hunting, forming a dispersed chieftain territory society.
  3. 880–900Southern and western Iceland · IcelandBy the end of the 9th century CE, most arable land had been occupied and competition among clans intensified, driving growing pressure toward social integration, a unified legal order, and a centralized assembly system.
  4. 930–1262Þingvellir · IcelandAfter the founding of the Althing, Iceland became a kingless republic held together by chieftain (goði) territories and a shared legal code; the settlement society entered a period of stable development resting on assembly self-rule, oral epics, and customary law.

Sources