People discovered America nearly 500 years ago Columbus

So far, people have been accustomed to the belief that the "discoverer" of the Americas is Christopher Columbus, but forgets the fact that there have been indigenous people living here for a long time. At the same time, another fact was ignored: the new world was visited and made a temporary settlement of a European man named Leif Erikson at the time before Columbus to 492 years.

Adventure of a deported family

Leif Erikson was born around 970 in Iceland. He was the son of Erik Red and Mrs. Thjodhild. Leif has a Freydis and two younger brothers: Thorsteinn and Thorvald. They are the children of the people who occupied Greenland as a settlement. The naming of 'Red' for Erik most likely relates to the color and color of his beard

According to the Sagas of Icelanders book, Leif is the first European to set foot on Canadian territory today. But before that, Leif grew up in Greenland, where Erik Red's family moved after he captured the land. Leif's wife was Thorgunna, who gave birth to him at least two sons: Thorgils and Thorkeil. Leif Erikson is remembered as an elegant, strong and thoughtful man.

Leif Erikson on an expedition to America (Christian Krohg's painting in 1893).

The history of the expedition in the Leif family began when Thorvald Asvadsson (Leif's grandfather) was expelled from Norway for murder. Mr. Asvaldsson began his family's first adventure with his son, Erik Red. The family lived in Iceland until Erik was expelled from his new residence and the family began traveling to the West, stopping in a place now known as Greenland . It was in 986.

However, this is not the end of this family trip. Leif left Greenland, made adventures to find a more lively life. Many documents recorded that, unlike his father and grandfather, he was not expelled from his homeland but only because of his adventurous nature. Leif died around 1020 in Greenland and his life was viewed as a myth by posterity.

Venture to new lands

Leif left Greenland for the first time at the age of 24, when he accepted the task of bringing his father's gift to King Olaf of Norway. This trip inspired him to explore strange lands, farther than Norway and Greenland.

When he returned to his homeland, Leif thought about the previous expeditions of his grandfather and father, who decided to experience his own adventure. He sought to buy a boat and embarked on the biggest journey of his life. Many sources said that he sailed west 965km and found a rocky area with high ice, which he called Helluland , meaning "the land of stones".

Today, researchers believe this place is Baffin Island (the largest island in Canada today and the fifth largest island in the world). Leif and his entourage did not end the trip here, but decided to take the boat to the south, where they saw a land with a beach and a forest, which they called the Markland. This place is probably the east coast of Canada today.

When they found a suitable location, they decided to build houses to live through the cold winter. After having gone through the coldest period of the year, Leif dispatched an expedition team to better explore the land they had come to. When returning, these people were very excited when they discovered the grapes in the area. According to legend, the discoverer of this fruit is one of Leif's entourage named Tyrkir, possibly a Hungarian.

Statue of Leif Erikson, in the port of Seattle, USA.

This discovery made Leif call this place Vinland , meaning 'wine land'. Grapes are one of the greatest treasures that he brought back to Greenland with many other products. Studies in the 1950s and 1960s by explorer Helge Ingstad and his wife, archaeologist Anne Stine Ingstad, indicated that the stop of Leif Erikson and his entourage in Vinland was on the nose. In the north of Newfoundland today, the site was named L'Anse aux Meadows , and was listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 1978.

Different beliefs between father and son

Leif and his wife renounced their ancestral faith and became Christians. He was baptized by King Olaf Tryggvason and belonged to the group of "evangelizing Vikings" in Greenland. Leif also served in the court of Tryggvason in Norway.

After returning to his homeland, he sought to convert Greenlanders to Christianity. Leif and his wife, Thorgunna, built the first church in Greenland. At the same time, Erik Red is still a Norwegian polytheist and does not like Christianity.

While Leif goes to North America today, perhaps part of Newfoundland, Erik is still worshiping his ancient gods. Before the trip, Leif hoped his father would accompany him. However, Erik does not want to leave Greenland.

According to legend, Erik believed in luck, before refusing to go with Leif. He rode a horse to his son's ship. However, when he got close to the harbor, he fell off his horse and said it was a bad omen. Therefore, he decided not to join the expedition. The prediction of the bad omen has come true, because they never see each other again. Erik died in the winter, before Leif returned home.

L'Anse aux Meadow is said to be the land of Vinland of Leif.(Photo: Hans Dahl).

Excavations confirm the legend

A 11th century Viking village was discovered in 1960, in L'Anse aux Meadow, the northernmost of Newfoundland. Archaeologists excavated 8 houses and found many pieces of food in it.

They also found bodies of hunters like caribou, wolf, fox, bear, wild cat, mink, trailer, seals, whales and all kinds of birds and fish. For many, the results of the excavation confirm that Leif's expedition in North America is real. L'Anse aux Meadow is said to be the land of Vinland of Leif.

Greenland became part of Denmark in 1814. In 1932, a group of Danish archaeologists unearthed Erik Red's farm, named Brattahlid, meaning 'Slope'. Their work revealed the ruins of a church, surrounded by walls to keep animals from running out. Next to the church, they also found a large hall, where people cooked meals and played cards in their free time.

In 1961, another discovery was made at this location. A small horseshoe chapel built to commemorate Erik, Thjodhild's wife, was found. This chapel provides a glimpse into the faith of the woman, who followed her son's conversion to Christianity. The chapel has a room containing 20 to 30 worshipers.

While excavating the church in 1960, archaeologists also discovered 144 human skeletons. Most of these are strong and tall people, very similar to modern Scandinavian people. Among the skeletons, there was a group of men buried in a large tomb. This evidence suggests that they died while fighting. One of these is found with a large knife between the ribs.

Especially in the corpses found, there are 3 bones buried near the church wall. According to medieval documents, buried close to the church, especially the first in line to wait for the day of judgment. Researchers believe these three bones could be Erik Red, his wife Thjodhild and their famous son, Leif Erikson. Today, these skeletons are preserved in laboratory compartments in Copenhagen.