Throughout history, human interference has affected plant diversity. The Viking age is of particular interest. Plants, animals and people moved across vast distances during the Viking age. However, we have little knowledge about plant use during this period.
Written sources – a door opener
Plants have influenced how humans eat, dress and build their homes. In this project, we search through different written sources, such as plant names, archaeobotanical reports, iconographical sources and textual descriptions. We examine cookbooks, black books, floras and fairy tales. Is there a common usage in different sources? This might give us a clue to plant use in periods with no other data.
When did plants arrive, what were they used for and how were they prepared?
We want to understand how humans have affected plant diversity in the past, through use, cultivation, transport and trade. Today’s weeds were yesterday’s valuables. We believe that increased plant knowledge among people in general is key to safeguard our Nordic plant traditions. Perhaps a Viking “weed” will form the basis of a staple food in the future.
Cultural evolution
We want to trace the cultural evolution of plant use from before the Viking age to today. How do we do this? We collected and systematized information from written and iconographic sources. This information constitutes the basis for a plant-use-database. This database enables further analyses, such as phylogenetics. In this case, the phylogeny is based on cultural traits (as opposed to genetics), such as words, plant names and uses, calibrated using plant knowledge.
Human – plant interactions
People depend on plants for food, fodder, medicine and materials. Plant use has influenced biodiversity and sometimes caused plant extinctions. A current worldwide decrease in plant diversity threatens ecosystems, and human health. Scandinavia has a limited number of threatened plants compared to other areas. People living here maintain a close relationship with nature and plants. Scandinavia is therefore an ideal place for studying past and current people-plant-dynamics. As a part of the project, a master student has looked at the effect and sustainability of harvesting edible plants.
Citizen science
Parts of the project have relied on interaction with nonprofessionals. With a citizen science approach, we aim to increase plant knowledge among people in general. Furthermore, the project is a collaboration between the humanities and natural sciences. This cooperation is necessary for a comprehensive understanding of human relationships with plants.
Funding and collaborators
Nordic People and Plants is a research project funded by the SAMKUL program of the Research Council of Norway. The project is run by Natural History Museum in collaboration with the Historical museum (2018-2026). Other collaborators are the Max Planck Institute, the University of Bristol, Maemo Restaurant and the Norwegian Association for Mycology and Foraging (Norges Sopp- og nyttevekstforbund, NSNS).
Read more (mostly in Norwegian):
Svartebøker og gammel folketro inspirerer moderne medisin, Forskning.no (2023)
Frø - Nordic seed heros (2023)
Veileder for bærekraftig sanking (2023)
Rasende vikingkrigere kan ha vært i urte-rus, forskning.no (27. september 2019)
Forskere tror vikingene spiste mer planter enn kjøtt og fisk, aftenposten.no (7. september 2019)
Kartlegger bruk av planter fra vikingtiden til i dag, forskningsdagene.no (7. september 2019)
Vikingenes urtehager blir gjenåpnet av forskere, forskning.no (19. februar 2019)
Forskarar skal spore plantebruk tilbake til vikingtida, nationen.no (20. februar 2019)
Learn more: (in English)
Teixidor-Toneu, Rediscovering and Safeguarding Nordic Ethnobotanical Heritage, 1h Lecture at Studium Generale, Wageningen University (28. january 2020)
