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> Alright, cool, but suggest something better, then? The way this time period is taught in Swedish schools is that we talk about the "viking age", and people g
by xg15 4y ago
> Alright, cool, but suggest something better, then?
The way this time period is taught in Swedish schools is that we talk about the "viking age", and people generally know that referring to everyone living in Scandinavia at this time as "vikings" is wrong and sloppy, and a better term is "northmen".
I think the author's point is that exactly this lumping-together into a single time period and culture is problematic and gives way to racism.
> The final development, the ‘ethnicisation’ of the word that allows the use of terms such as ‘Viking farms’, ‘Viking towns’ and ‘Viking women and children’, is much more recent and has gradually crept up since the Second World War. This is insidious; by linking military prowess and savagery to an entire ethnic group, it encourages its appropriation by racial supremacists.
> The issue with the term is not merely semantic. This conception of ‘the Vikings’ seriously distorts our understanding of European history. We have tended to group almost all Scandinavian activity between the 790s and the mid-11th century together under the ‘Viking’ label, creating a distinct ‘Viking Age’ and an imagined ‘Viking’ culture and identity. The evidence, however, does not support this analysis.
- bavell 4y agoI have no idea where you or the author are getting this racism idea from. Is it because the Vikings were mostly white and known for violence? And somehow this magically "gives rise to racism"? Either I'm not understanding or this is an incredibly lazy argument.
- pyrale 4y ago> And somehow this magically "gives rise to racism"? No, the point is that some current day groups tend to like very much the idea of a militaristic society with a fetish for strength and disregarding death. Therefore, this historically inaccurate characterization tends to be coopted and used to prop up their political agenda. Racist groups were already there, and them using history to build their credibility is nothing new.
- bavell 4y agoSo historically inaccurate characterizations give rise to racism, except it doesn't because the racism was already there? I still don't understand.
- pyrale 4y agoI would say that the original claim is that they feed each other.
- bavell 4y agoI agree with that claim. However I think there are much more prominent feedback loops at play such as socio-economic status. Historical mischaracterizations play a negligible role IMO when compared with other factors.