Bjarni Herjulfsson

Viking explorer

Also known as: Bjarni Herjólfsson

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June 22, 2026

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Bjarni Herjólfsson was a Norse explorer who, around 985 CE, became the first European to sight the mainland of North America. While sailing from Iceland to Greenland, his ship was blown off course, leading him to discover an unknown land to the west. He did not explore this new territory but returned to Greenland to report his findings.12

Leif Erikson, son of Erik the Red, later organized an expedition to explore the land Bjarni had sighted. Erikson's voyages led to the naming of areas such as Helluland ("Land of Flat Rocks"), Markland ("Land of Forests"), and Vinland ("Land of Wine"), likely corresponding to parts of modern-day Canada. Archaeological evidence at L'Anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland confirms Viking presence in North America around the year 1000 CE, predating Christopher Columbus's voyages by about 500 years.31

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European exploration
Exploration of the Atlantic coastlines
About 1000 ce, one Bjarni Herjulfsson, on his way from Iceland to Greenland, was blown off course far to the southwest; he saw an unknown shore and returned to tell his tale. Leif, Erik’s son, together with some 30 others, set out in 1001 to explore. They probably reached…
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About 1000 ce, one Bjarni Herjulfsson, on his way from Iceland to Greenland, was blown off course far to the southwest; he saw an unknown shore and returned to tell his tale. Leif, Erik’s son, together with some 30 others, set out in 1001 to explore. They probably reached…
Read More

Viking
The western seas, Vinland, and Ireland
…sight mainland North America was Bjarni Herjólfsson, whose Greenland-bound ship was blown westward off course about 985 and apparently skirted the coastline of eastern Canada before returning to Greenland. This tradition contends that about 1000 a crew of 35 men led by Leif Eriksson, son of Erik the Red, went…
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…sight mainland North America was Bjarni Herjólfsson, whose Greenland-bound ship was blown westward off course about 985 and apparently skirted the coastline of eastern Canada before returning to Greenland. This tradition contends that about 1000 a crew of 35 men led by Leif Eriksson, son of Erik the Red, went…
Read More