October 9: Leif Erikson Day
Prayer Idea
Pray for people who are seeking to honor their ancestors.
History Note
Leif Erikson (which is also spelled Eriksson, Ericson, or Erickson) was a Viking explorer from Iceland. On one of Erikson’s explorations around the year 1000 A.D., he came upon an unknown land abundant with wheat and grapes. Erikson called it Vinland. In the 1960s, archeologists found evidence of Viking settlement at the L'Anse aux Meadows National Historic Site in Newfoundland, Canada.
Many immigrants from Norway eventually settled in the United States and Canada. Rasmus B. Anderson, a Norwegian-American, published a book in 1874 called America Not Discovered by Columbus. Anderson described his understanding of the Viking exploration of North America.
Over the next several decades, people with Norwegian heritage began pushing for a holiday to recognize their ancestors and their culture. Several U.S. states and one Canadian province gave official recognition to a Leif Erikson Day. In 1964 the U.S. Congress authorized recognition of Leif Erikson Day on October 9. President Lyndon Johnson issued a proclamation:
Whereas Leif Erikson, Norseman, son of Erik the Red and great seafarer, in the year 1000 valiantly explored the shores of the American Continent; and
Whereas the intrepid exploits of the Vikings of Erikson’s time strike a responsive chord in the hearts of all the American people, who as a nation are today embarked upon an adventurous exploration of the unfathomed realms of space; and
Whereas many of our citizens of Scandinavian descent take inspiration from and annually celebrate Leif Erikson’s momentous voyage . . .
I invite the people of the United States to honor on that day the memory of Leif Erikson by holding appropriate exercises and ceremonies in schools and churches, or other suitable places.
Though it is not an official federal holiday, the U.S. president issues a similar proclamation each year. (Proposals to recognize Leif Erikson Day across Canada have failed to get sufficient support.)
The date October 9 is not directly connected to Leif Erikson. It goes back to an event in 1825. A group of 52 immigrants left Norway in July of 1825 in the Restauration, a ship even smaller than the Mayflower. When the ship arrived in New York on October 9, 53 people got off because a Mrs. Larson had given birth to a baby on board! This event marked the beginning of organized immigration from Norway to the United States.
The Sons of Norway is a fraternal benefit society founded in Minnesota in 1895 that had lodges across the United States and Canada. These lodges sponsor cultural and educational programs. Many communities also have Nordic heritage festivals on Leif Erikson Day and at other times of the year.
In 1949 the Leif Erikson Monument Association unveiled this statue of the explorer by John Karl Daniels on the grounds of the Minnesota State Capitol. Photo by Mulad / Wikimedia Commons.
Learn More
This biography of Leif Erikson was produced by Viking Cruises. Torstein Hagen, the founder of that company, is a native of Norway.
Find more resources at Homeschool History.
