| dc.description.abstract | Slavery in the Viking Age was a common practice throughout Scandinavia and the Scandinavian diaspora with the use of slaves socially, culturally, and economically, depending on the region in which they existed. Their different functions and roles—such as concubines, domestic and agricultural labourers, captives, rebels, and sacrificial victims—addressed different societal demands. In this thesis, such functions and roles are analyzed through the examination of the evidence from three related regions, namely Northwestern Europe, Eastern Europe, and Scandinavia. These regional examinations rely on Viking Age written texts and archaeological evidence, as well as other sources that pertain to the period, such as the saga materials. Textual sources from Northwestern Europe, such as the Annals of Ulster and the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles, provide a Christian perspective on the Scandinavian raids and settlements in the region. The Arab writers, such as Ibn Fadlān and Ibn Rusta, provide information about the Eastern Vikings known as Rūs and their interactions with slaves. Finally, saga materials, such as Rígsþula, Laxdœla saga, and Landnámabók, along with the law codes from the end of the Viking Age—Grágás and Gulathing and Frostathing laws—provide information on Scandinavian slave practices. Previously, general studies of slaves in the Viking Age have been shaped by written evidence however by incorporating archaeological evidence, this thesis will allow for a more nuanced analysis of the social functions and roles of slaves in this period. The archaeological sites of Ballateare, on the Isle of Man, Lejre in Denmark, and Birka within Sweden are a few of the sites that are discussed and compared to the contemporary literary texts written by non-Scandinavian authors as well as later Scandinavian texts: I also compare the evidence of slaves and the social functions and roles of slavery inside Scandinavia with those within Scandinavian communities in other regions. The inclusion of archaeological materials, specifically the so-called “master and slave” burials, assists in further defining the function of slaves in the Viking Age. Such comparative analysis of different types of evidence and throughout different regions of Viking Age Europe provides an understanding that the discussion of slaves in the Viking Age cannot be limited to one specific social role or function defined by slavery as a social institution, but rather should be focused on a more nuanced relationship between this social class and the region and time periods to which they existed in. | eng |