Norwegian explorers

The redheaded explorer

One of Norway’s earliest and most infamous explorers is Erik Thorvaldsson, better known as ‘Erik the Red’ (or Eiríkr rauði in Norse), because of his flaming red hair and beard (not to mention his red-hot temper!). He was born around 950 A.D. in Jæren, Norway, but left Norway as a child when his father was exiled after being accused of manslaughter. The family fled to Iceland, where Erik himself was eventually exiled after killing several people over various disputes. This was what pushed him out to sea on an exploration to find land he had only heard about in tales.

Although several had seen and even tried to inhabit Greenland before him, Erik the Red holds the title of the first Norseman to inhabit the icy island. Upon returning to Iceland when his exile was over, he told exciting tales of a large country and gave it the tempting name of Grænland. His great tales resulted in groups of people migrating from both Iceland and Norway to permanently settle in Greenland.

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Photo: Dan & Zora Avila , Les Kelly and Andrea Klaussner

Some of history’s greatest explorers

Let’s skip forward several hundred years, from the Viking era to the late 1800s. No conversation about Norwegian explorers is complete without mentioning Fridtjof Nansen. He is internationally known as a pioneer polar scientist and explorer, and for venturing out on expeditions on skis, which no man had ever done before. To this day, he is one of the most internationally recognized Norwegians in our history. He even won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1922 for his humanitarian work. He was also a brave explorer.

Nansen led the first-ever crossing of Greenland in 1888, an accomplishment that earned him a place in exploration history. But that was just the beginning. He is most famous for his ventures on the ship Fram, constructed for him by Colin Archer. Nansen and his crew set sail on Fram in 1893, intending to reach the North Pole by drifting with the polar ice from Siberia. Many polar explorers viewed this technique dubiously. In the end, Nansen had to leave Fram and venture out on skis, and he ended up making it farther north than anyone had before. To this day, this expedition is considered the most vigorous and important polar expedition in history, and his scientific findings have had an immense impact on scientific research.

Another important Norwegian explorer is Nansen’s second in command on the expedition to the North Pole, Otto Sverdrup. Sverdrup was originally a polar scientist and a man of the sea. From 1898 to 1902, he led Fram’s second voyage, to discover the great sea areas west of Greenland. He discovered large and unknown parts of Ellesmere Island, as well as several islands that were later named the Sverdrup Islands. He and his crew gathered a lot of important geological knowledge during the expedition, and it was considered the greatest geographical land acquisition of its time.

Last, but not least, we have Roald Amundsen, who holds several impressive titles. Amundsen was a polar scientist turned explorer who led history’s first-known expedition to reach the South Pole. He and his crew also became the first explorers to sail through the Northwest Passage on one ship.

Like both Nansen and Sverdrup, Amundsen is associated with the Norwegian polar ship Fram, as he used it for a historic expedition that became the ship’s third voyage. In 1910, he sailed to Antarctica, and this is where his famous expedition to the South Pole began. Together with four other crew members, he was the first to reach it on December 14, 1911, five weeks before his competition, explorer Robert F. Scott.

These men had an important impact on our history. Their bravery and curiosity inspired us to name some of our finest ships after them. Join us on your own expedition and let’s explore the seas together!