• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
Zippy Facts Logo

Zippy Facts

Interesting Random Facts

  • Animals
  • Culture
  • Firsts
  • Food
  • Geography
  • Health
  • History
  • Inventions
  • Language
  • Mythology
  • Odds
  • People
  • Religion
  • Science
  • Space
  • Universe
  • World
You are here: Home / Geography / When Did the First Europeans Settle In North America and What Is the Oldest European Settlement In Canada?

When Did the First Europeans Settle In North America and What Is the Oldest European Settlement In Canada?

April 25, 2020 by Karen Hill

Archaeologists believe that the 1,000-year-old Viking settlement at L’Anse aux Meadows, Newfoundland, a province of Canada, is the oldest in North America.

Led by Leif Eriksson, the Vikings who settled there nearly 500 years before Christopher Columbus reached America called it Vinland.

L’Anse aux Meadows is the only known Norse site in North America outside of Greenland, and represents the farthest known extent of European exploration and settlement of the New World.

The main sources of information about the Norse voyages to Vinland are two Icelandic sagas, The Saga of Eric the Red and the Saga of the Greenlanders.

These stories were preserved by oral tradition until they were written down some 250 years after the events they describe.

The continent of North America technically includes Central America and the islands of the West Indies.

Related Facts

  • What was the European Age of Exploration?
  • Who Were the First Explorers of Ancient Civilization?
  • Where was the first European colony in North America and when?
  • Which Highway Runs From North America Through Central America and Into South America?
  • Top 25 Inventions That Changed the World
  • How did the first European explorers cross North America and reach the Pacific Ocean?

Filed Under: Geography

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

Previous Post: « How Many Provinces Does Canada Have and What Are the Names of Canada’s 10 Provinces?
Next Post: Where Was the Tallest Iceberg In the World Spotted and What Does the Word Iceberg Mean In Dutch? »

Footer

Follow

  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • GitHub
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Medium
  • Pinterest
  • StumbleUpon
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Categories

Accomplishments Animals Culture Firsts Food Geography Health History Inventions Language Mythology Odds People Religion Science Space Universe World Your Body

About

Zippy Facts empowers the world by serving educational content that is accessible to everyone.

A tribute to growing up, zippyfacts.com showcases interesting and unusual facts about the world.

Our mission is to use technology to facilitate knowledge transfer and sharing.

Copyright © 2020 Zippy Facts

  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy