Was there a Long-Lost Viking Settlement in Canada ?

RAnDOOm · March 13, 2018

Was the settlement of Hop in New Brunswick ?

Known as Hop, the settlement has been spoken of in Norse sagas passed down over hundreds of years.

Archaeologists have long known that the Vikings founded a settlement in North America around 1,000 years ago, several centuries before famed explorer Christopher Columbus - who is frequently credited with discovering the continent - had even been born.

One site known to have been used by these ancient Scandinavian seafarers was L'Anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland, which today is classed as a United Nations World Heritage site.

The whereabouts of Hop, however - a legendary North American Viking settlement famed for its grapes, salmon and canoes made from animal skins - has long remained a mystery.

Now though, by studying Norse texts and archaeological finds on America's east coast, archaeologist and Viking expert Birgitta Wallace believes that she may have finally found the answer.

Hop, she argues, was likely located in the Miramichi-Chaleur Bay area of New Brunswick, Canada.

This particular location fits perfectly, both with historic descriptions of Hop and with the availability of the wild resources, such as grapes and salmon, that the settlement was known for.

The idea that Hop was only a single site however may be incorrect, as Wallace believes that the name may have referred to several short-term settlements in the area that changed each year.

Given that most of these potential settlement sites are now paved over however, it may be very difficult to prove once and for all that Hop really did exist at this location.