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Traditional Viking games?

Posted: 2015-04-11 08:30pm
by spaceviking
So I am running an option course at a middle school called world history-Vikings and I thought it might be a fun activity to do a viking games unit. So far finding material has been difficult, does anyone know any resources on traditional Scandinavian games? (Most of what I have found is wrestling, Kubb, and this drowning people games.)

Re: Traditional Viking games?

Posted: 2015-04-11 11:49pm
by Thanas

Re: Traditional Viking games?

Posted: 2015-04-12 05:18am
by madd0ct0r
there's a few variants of tafl, but agreed, it's a good game: https://medium.com/war-is-boring/you-ha ... f088ae4e2d

Re: Traditional Viking games?

Posted: 2015-04-12 09:33am
by LaCroix
Apart from drunk poem reciting and throwing bones at each other until someone is hurt, hnefatafl is certainly the most prominent thing, skill at it was highly valued.
There is also a kind of rugby game, which also included bats (Knattleikr), of which the rules are forgotten, but it was so rough that people still seen fit for warfare were sometimes being excluded because they weren't fit enough for that game. :roll:

Or some game with pot scrapers, which was even more lethal... :shock:

Nordic games were nothing for pussies, it seems...

Re: Traditional Viking games?

Posted: 2015-04-12 10:28am
by Purple

Re: Traditional Viking games?

Posted: 2015-04-12 02:52pm
by madd0ct0r
Rugby with sticks sounds a little like shinti. Played that at school. One broken arm and one split skull in 3 years.