Viking Occupations: What Did They Do for a Job?

The Vikings are often portrayed as fearsome warriors and raiders. However, the reality of daily life for most Vikings involved more mundane occupations. Like all societies, the Vikings had a range of jobs and professions that kept their communities running just with fewer modern luxuries like technology and the ability to print a professional CV template!. Here is an overview of some of the most common Viking occupations:

Farming

Most Vikings lived in rural areas and made their living through farming. Viking farms tended to be small, family-run operations. Common crops included barley, rye, wheat, and oats. The rocky terrain and cold climate of Scandinavia made farming challenging. Viking farmers used tools like the plough and sickle to work the land. They raised livestock including cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, and chickens. Farming was a year-round job as animals had to be tended through the winter. Women often milked the cows and made dairy products like cheese and butter.

Fishing

Living near the sea, many Vikings relied on fishing for food and trade. Cod was abundantly available in the North Atlantic and was a dietary staple. Vikings fished from small boats using handlines or nets. Fish that wasn’t immediately eaten was preserved by salting, smoking, or drying. Herring was also commonly caught and was processed into salt-cured products traded throughout Northern Europe. Some Vikings specialised as professional fishermen while farmers supplemented their income through seasonal fishing.

Hunting

Hunting wild game was another important source of food and income for Vikings. Reindeer, elk, and bear were hunted in the forests of Scandinavia. Seals and whales were hunted along the coast. Vikings had hunting dogs to help track and retrieve prey. Bows and arrows, spears, and traps were used to capture animals. Furs from bears, foxes, and otters were prized for warm clothing. Antlers were carved into tools and decorative objects. Like fishing, hunting was a seasonal activity interleaved with the demands of the farm.

Crafts and Trades

Though most Vikings lived off the land, some specialised in skilled crafts and trades. Blacksmithing was an essential occupation as tools, weapons, and other metal objects were vital. Vikings smelted and worked iron, copper, bronze, silver and gold into both practical and decorative items. Other crafts included woodworking, leatherworking, pottery, stone carving, jewellery making, glass blowing, and weaving/textile production. Goods like combs, bowls, clothing, and more were crafted by hand. Craftsmen relied on their skill to attract customers.

Merchant

While Vikings are often associated with raiding, they were also extensive traders. Vikings used their swift longboats not just for raids but to travel long distances for trade. Viking merchants traded furs, tusks, sealskins, fish, salt, timber, slaves, and more. They exported goods from Scandinavia and Russia to markets as far as Byzantium and Baghdad. Vikings brought back spices, silk, silver, wine, and other valuables. Trading networks were important to the Viking economy. Some Vikings served as professional merchants while others traded part-time.

Warrior

Though everyday Vikings had many prosaic jobs, the warrior class still existed. Members of the nobility trained from childhood as career warriors. Young men unable to inherit family farms sometimes became mercenaries. The prospect of winning riches and glory through raiding and warfare beckoned. Warriors needed combat skills, weapons and armour, ships, and followers. Being a Viking warrior could lead to wealth and status but also danger and death in foreign lands. For the lower classes, the military offered a way to improve their lot in life.

Domestic Service

In noble and wealthy households, domestic servants carried out essential tasks like cooking, cleaning, laundering, and childcare. The Viking housewife oversaw female servants who helped run the household. Male slaves took care of activities like tending livestock and working in the fields. Servitude resulted from debt, captivity in war, or birth into slavery. It offered security but at the cost of freedom and rights. However, slaves could sometimes earn their freedom if their master permitted. Domestic service was hard work yet ever-present in Viking society.

Government and Administration

Even Viking communities needed some form of governance to function. At the village level, local chieftains and councils provided leadership. On a larger scale, tribes and territories were ruled by kings and jarls who settled disputes and maintained order. Advisers helped administer justice and manage taxation. There were also religious leaders like gothis who oversaw temples and sacrifices. While everyday Vikings had mundane jobs, those in governing positions held more prestige and authority. Administration was a complex job in itself.

So while we have an image of Vikings as transfixing warriors and explorers, most had ordinary jobs in fields like farming, fishing, and craftwork. The roles discussed here allowed Viking society to thrive and showed the Vikings to be more than just raiders and pillagers. When not raiding, Vikings worked, traded, and lived in family units much like people today. Their grit and ingenuity in their daily occupations allowed the Vikings to survive and prosper in a harsh climate.