#King Harald Bluetooth

[coochiequeens]

Women's history just got richer

By Mindy Weisberger, CNN

More than 1,000 years ago, carvers in what is now Denmark set their chisels to rock to etch runestones — monuments to Viking leaders naming their deeds and achievements. Two groups of runestones mention a woman named Thyra, and new analysis of the carvings suggests that the runes on both sets of stones were inscribed by the same artisan and refer to the same woman: a Viking queen of considerable power.

Researchers from Denmark and Sweden used 3D scans to analyze carvings on the runestones, finding telltale clues that marked the individual style of the person who carved them. That carver’s repeated mention of Thyra’s name — a rare occurrence for Viking-era women — suggested that Thyra was a powerful sovereign who likely played a pivotal role in the birth of the Danish realm, the scientists reported Wednesday in the journal Antiquity.

“To learn more about the rune-carver and those named on the stone is fascinating,” said Dr. Katherine Cross, a lecturer at York St. John University in the UK who researches and teaches the history of early medieval northern Europe. She was not involved in the study.

“We can only understand early medieval sources once we can think about who made them and why,” Cross told CNN in an email.

One set of runes came from a pair of monuments known as the Jelling stones, erected in the town of Jelling around 965. The larger Jelling stone is often referred to as “Denmark’s birth certificate,” as it’s the first monument to name the land as its people pivoted to Christianity, according to the National Museum of Denmark in Copenhagen.

Both Jelling runestones also named a royal figure: Queen Thyra, mother of then-reigning King Harald Bluetooth. The smaller stone was raised in her honor by her husband (and Harald’s father) King Gorm, calling her “Denmark’s strength/salvation” (or “Denmark’s adornment,” depending on the translation, the researchers noted in the study). Harald commissioned the larger stone, to honor both of his royal parents.

In another set of four Viking-era monuments, known collectively as the Bække-Læborg group, two runestones mention a woman named Thyra. Those stones are associated with a carver named Ravnunge-Tue, but experts disagreed on whether that Thyra was Harald’s mother, said lead study author Dr. Lisbeth Imer, a curator and senior researcher at the National Museum of Denmark specializing in the study of runes and ancient inscriptions.

Before the new investigation, it was unknown who had carved the Jelling stones. Confirming that their carver was Ravnunge-Tue would strengthen the connection between the Jelling and Bække-Læborg runestones, Imer told CNN in an email.

“Then it is much more reasonable to suggest that it was in fact the same Thyra,” she said.

A question of style

Some details in ancient runestones that indicate a carver’s individual style are visible to a trained expert’s eye, such as the language or the basic shape of the runes. Other details are harder to detect, Imer said.

“What you cannot see with the naked eye is the carving technique,” she said.

To get a closer look at the carvings, the researchers took scans of the stones and created 3D digital models, then measured the runes’ grooves with a software tool that weighed variables such as angle, depth and cutting rhythm. Together, these variables can create a unique profile for a carver.

“Every rune carver develops his own motor skill and holds the tools in a certain angle, strikes with a certain strength,” Imer said. “The motor skill is individual and other individuals cannot copy that.”

When the researchers compared runes from Jelling 2 (the larger of the two Jelling stones) and the Læborg stone from the Bække-Læborg group, they found striking similarities, such as height of the runes, straightness of the main staves and length and placement of rune branches.

“In the Læborg and Jelling inscriptions you can follow the cutting rhythm of Ravnunge-Tue as one deep stroke of the chisel followed by two not so deep ones: DAK, dak-dak, DAK, dak-dak,” Imer said via email. “It is ALMOST like hearing the heartbeat of a person that lived so long ago.”

Jelling 1 was more eroded, so its markings were harder to analyze. But if the Læborg runestone was Ravnunge-Tue’s handiwork, Jelling 2 was likely his as well, Imer said. It would mean that the Queen Thyra mentioned twice in the Bække-Læborg group — on Læborg and on the stone Bække 1 — was the same person commemorated on the Jelling stones, the study authors concluded.

In recent years, archaeologists have revised prior interpretations of Viking warrior burials as exclusively male, finding that Viking women were fighters, too. The new findings add to the picture of influential Viking women holding prominent roles in statecraft as well as on the battlefield.

“This research highlights how Viking-Age women wielded power through political authority and patronage, not just violence,” Cross said.

What’s more, the fact that Thyra is mentioned on four runestones offers strong evidence of her importance, Imer added. Fewer than 10 runestones in Denmark from the pre-Christian era mention women at all — and four of those are of Queen Thyra.

“Runestones in Denmark were mostly erected in honour of men, but Thyra is commemorated on more runestones than any other person in Viking Age Denmark,” Imer said. “She must have held extreme power and social position.”

Mindy Weisberger is a science writer and media producer whose work has appeared in Live Science, Scientific American and How It Works magazine.

[blueiscoool]

'Very Rare' 1,000-Year-Old Viking Coin Hoard Unearthed in Denmark

Nearly 300 silver coins believed to be more than 1,000 years old have been discovered near a Viking fortress site in northwestern Denmark, a museum said Thursday.

The rare trove -- lying in two spots not far apart -- was unearthed by a young girl who was metal detecting in a cornfield last autumn.

"A hoard like this is very rare," Lars Christian Norbach, director of the North Jutland museum where the artefacts will go on display, told AFP.

The silver coins were found about five miles from the Fyrkat Viking ringfort near the town of Hobro. Notably, because they both have cross inscriptions, they are believed to date back to the 980s, the museum said.

The trove includes Danish, Arab and Germanic coins as well as pieces of jewellery originating from Scotland or Ireland, according to archaeologists.

Norbach said the finds were from the same period as the fort, built by King Harald Bluetooth, and would offer more insight into the history of the Vikings.

"The two silver treasures in themselves represent an absolutely fantastic story, but to find them buried in a settlement just eight kilometers from Harald Bluetooth's Viking castle Fyrkat is incredibly exciting," museum archaeologist and curator Torben Trier Christiansen said in a statement.

King Harald's earlier coins did not feature a cross, so he likely introduced the cross coins as propaganda in connection with his Christianization of the Danes, the museum said.

There could be a link between the treasure -- which the Vikings would bury during wars -- and the fort which burned down during the same period, Norbach said.

Archaeologists have said they will continue digging next autumn after the harvest.

They hope to find the burial sites and homes of the troves' one-time owners.

The Vikings believed that burying their treasure allowed them to find it again after death.

The artefacts will go on public display from July at the Aalborg Historical Museum.

The girl who made the discovery is due to receive financial compensation, the amount of which has not been made public.

[facts-i-just-made-up]

Redeem yourself.

where does the name Bluetooth come from

There is no redemption for me.

The modern technology "Bluetooth" is named after Harald Bluetooth , the 10th Century Danish king who first developed short-range radio broadcast technology. King Harald was notorious for AirDropping funny pictures of cats to his royal court, as well as memes mocking King Æthelred of England, who never had his phone on and missed out, hence his name to this day, Æthelred the Oft-Offline:

[diioonysus]

my favorite historical facts

mayans believed that having crossed-eyes meant you were favored by the sun god kinich ahau, who was cross-eyed as well. in hopes that children would be, they would have objects dangled between their eyes to permanently cross their eyes.

ancient rome had a 4-story shopping mall with 150 shops and offices which was made in 113 AD

ancient egyptians invented toothpaste, they made it with rock salt, pepper, mint, and dried iris flowers

until recently (20th century) bones and mummies were used in traditional medicine, as some believed they could cure ailements by ingesting related body parts.

left-handed people were considered unlucky in ancient rome

lots of medieval barbers were also dentists and surgeons, which is why barbershops use red and white stripes because the stripes represent bandages used during bloodletting.

in medieval germany, married couples could legally settle their disputes by fighting a martial duel.

married women were not allowed to watch the ancient olympics, under penatly of death, but the vestal virigins in ancient rome were allowed to in some circumstances because their sacred building was knocked down to make a stadium

ancient greeks invented the first alarm clock in a system where pebbles would be dropped onto a gong and this would then make a loud sound

if a pirate ship approached flying a red flag with a hourglass on it then the defenders knew they were in some shit as red meant "give no quarter" and the hourglass meant essentially your time on earth was about to run out

shakespeare originated the "yo momma" joke, as in his one play titus androcius, a character says "thou has undone our mother," to which another character says "villain, i have done thy mother."

before abraham lincoln became a politician, he was a champion wrestler with more than 300 bouts under his belt, and only lost one match in his career. he was inducted into the national wrestling hall of fame in 1992

the gauls when trying to sack rome, caedicius had to get approval from the senate on the besieged capitoline. a messenger snuck through the gallic camp and scaled the unguarded cliff side of the hill to deliver the message. It was quickly decided to restore camillus to his command and to give him dictatorial powers and then the messenger snuck his way out again. the senone scouts discovered the messenger’s footprints and figured out that there was a way to scale the cliffs. they choose a night with a full moon and sent their bravest warriors up the cliff. none of the romans noticed, but the geese did. they started honking loudly and woke up the sleeping romans, the romans than pushed the gauls off the hill, and due to this fight the gauls suffered food shortages and diseases, so geese saved the day.

a pig was executed in 1386 after attacking a kid who would die from their wounds. the pig was arrested, kept in prison, and then sent to the court where it stood trial for murder, eventually being found guilty and then executed by hanging.

forks used to be considered blasphemous. when forks arrived in 11th century italy, it alarmed religious leaders because eating with artifical hands offended god.

the bluetooth design and name was named after the viking king harald bluetooth, based on an analogy that the technology would unite devices the way harald bluetooth united the tribes of denmark into a single kingdom. his intials in runes is the design of the logo

throwing an apple at somebody in ancient greece was considered flirting because the apple was sacred to aphrodite, so throwing it was declaring ones love

king george v of england was euthanized as his staff wanted his death to make the morning papers rather than the evenings ones, so they put him to death early without his consent

robert liston, a surgeon preformed an operation with a 300% mortality rate; he killed the patient and two other people

[ivanseledkin]

Bluetooth technology was named after Harald Bluetooth, a Viking king who died over 1,000 years ago. He unified factions of Denmark with those in Norway, similar to how today's technology unifies different electronic devices. The Bluetooth logo combines Nordic runes for his initials - H.B. The origin of his nickname is debated; some sources suggest he loved blueberries, staining his teeth, while others speculate a dead tooth caused a dark blue/grey hue.

[enbycrip]

In the 900s, when King Harald Bluetooth converted to Christianity, he was met with by a bunch of his jarls, who spent time convincing him that this Christ wasn’t that powerful and their gods were much more powerful, describing miraculous acts by Odin, Freyr and other gods as evidence.

In return, Bluetooth deployed a Christian priest who countered that no other gods existed than Christ. But rather than the standard “all other gods are actually demons” argument, he just told them that all other miraculous acts were actually all committed by trolls.

I would *really* love to have better records of this conversation. The jarls were, reportedly, unconvinced.

[random-potato-mil]

Heyyy you wanna infodump me about denmark? Id never heard of that country outside of aroace colonization memes (and you, ofc)

I wanna know more about the den of marks! Could be anything, cultural quirks, typical parties you enjoy, typical foods...

Sure!

I'm probably the most Danish person you could ask about Denmark! (Danmark in Danish). My mom and dad is both Danish as long back as we know. And from my dad side we can look faaaaaaaar back. That's right I'm a descendant of Harald Blåtand. King of Denmark! (And Norway) and the name behind Bluetooth. Blue=blå tooth=tand.

We have food! Like rugbrød! (I don't like rugbrød so people don't believe I'm Danish:<) looks like this!

And we put other food on it! And call it smørrebrød! Which is like buttered bread directly translated. Can look like this:

If it wasent because I was forced to eat this everyday of my childhood I might still like it. Oh well.

Laungage! We have one! We have the same letters as the English but with the addition of æ, ø and å! (Both ø and å is also a word. Island and small river)

Instead of the we put our a behind. So specify the potato it would be potatoa. A for us is en/et. Which one do you use? It's a vibe thing. You just need to know. Just like Germans die/der/das. Expect ours don't have gender. It just need to sound right. (Every kid learn Danish and English in school. And the they need to choose if they will learn German or French. My first school only provided German so that's the one I tried to learn.)

Her er en sætning på dansk! Wow. Rimelig cool.

We study alot in Denmark. And it's free to study! When you turn 18 we are actually going to pay you to study! We still have student loans but thouse are not a requirement. You can get by by also having a side job or parents to live with. What do we make money on you might ask?

Medecin and windmills!

Wow! Thouse things are noisy and produce alot of green energy.

Now what cool Danish peopel and things exists?

We have lego! Which is short for leg godt meaning play well.

We have HC Andersen. He was gay and wrote alot of stories.

We have Natasja! Danish rapper that died in a car accident. Very sad. She is good through.

I think that conclude what is expected of me to tell you about Denmark. Now the things I like about Denmark!

Natureeeeeee!

Potato's!!!

And now i am out of pictures I can add to the post.

Parties I enjoy? Not the Danish party type. Peopel drink alot of alcohol (legal to buy from 16 years of age and strong stuff from 18) and kiss each other. Really boring. Peopel think it's to awkward to dance. Very sad.

My type of party is with my nerdy friends in the forest around a bonfire. Or harassing someone with my current interest for hours when they get to drunk to stop me. I will drag you out to look at the stars if the night sky is clear.

We celebrate Christian holidays in Denmark despite most of us beeing atheist. And then we have some other. Where we burn witches or eat duck or eat grains. Or smth.

Feel free to ask me more!

[i-have-no-enemies]

So, I love history and I love Vinland saga, so let’s piece some of it together, shall we??

In the beginning of Vinland saga Leif tells Thorfinn about the king of Norway, who was the reason that so many had to flee to Iceland, well, that King was Harold Bluetooth.

Harold Bluetooth is also the man who created the Jomsvikings.

Harold Bluetooth had a brother named Strut-Harald.

Strut-Harald had three children, two of which are… Sagvaldi, and Thorkell.

And as we know, Sigvaldi had children, one of which was Helga, who later gave birth to Ylva, and then Thorfinn.

We already knew that Thorfinn was some kind of royalty, we knew as much because he is Thorkell’s grand nephew, and he is a Jarl, but I just find this family tree incredible, especially because that story made Thorfinn so angry, and at the time he had no idea that he was not the defendant of those that fled, but the descendant of the one who made others flee.

[spidermanifested]

thought everybody should know that the second-latest revision on the wikipedia page for king gorm the old, father of famous wireless technology namesake harald bluetooth, is currently from an anonymous editor listing his moms name as "Shmunsler Oncler"

and at time of posting its still there 👍

[zenobiaseptimia]

yoo..... harald bluetooth, king of denmark, is apparently my ancestor from 34 generations ago. BOW DOWN.

[whencyclopedia]

The North Sea Empire of Cnut the Great, 1016 - 1035

A map illustrating the rise and extent of the North Sea Empire under the rule of Cnut the Great (aka Canute, Cnut Cyning, or Knútr Inn Ríki) as a personal union of England, Denmark, and Norway between 1016 and 1035 CE. One of only two English kings to bear the title of “Great,” Cnut was the son of King Sven, the Dane, Forkbeard, and grandson of Harald Bluetooth. During his short reign, King Cnut ruled England as the center of a North Sea Empire that included most of Scandinavia and Ireland and claimed vassalage from as far away as Scotland and Pomerania. After more than two centuries of Viking raids and Cnut’s early years of aggressive conquest, his rule is considered one of the most stable and prosperous of the early medieval period. After his death at 40 from an unknown illness (both his sons died without leaving heirs in just a few years,) a period of messy political instability disintegrated Cnut’s North Sea Empire and, in 1066, made England a target for another foreign appetite - this time from Normandy across the English Channel.

Image by Simeon Netchev

[midydoof]

Thoughts on chapter 1134???

Ange is a qt, and I'm very stoked that the prev king sounds like he'll be a reference to Harald Bluetooth!.. well, in potential flashbacks at least.

[initial-lime]

In case anyone was wondering todays topic of Nordic mythology is brought on by the fact I’m doing an assignment for history on the Viking age and trough out the entirety of this ACADEMIC text, Harald Bluetooth, the guy credited with converting Denmark to Christianity is hailed as some kind of hero for saving those poor poor barbarians from their own culture and introducing the divine word of Christianity. And it is absolutely pissing me off.

He wasn’t a hero he was some fuck ass king who got impressed by a guy touching hot metal.

Congratulations idiot!!! Everyone remembers you for wireless device pairing now!!! Just like how you wirelessly paired your brain to treachery.

[dreamconsumer]

King Harald Bluetooth (d. 985/986).

[wyrm-in-a-closet]

fun fact there was a real person named harald Bluetooth and while he is what the technology is named after he wasn't like some modern guy no rather he was a 900s viking King who united and christianized the danes

[docpiplup]

The Bastard Kings and their families

This is series of posts are complementary to this historical parallels post from the JON SNOW FORTNIGHT EVENT, and it's purpouse to discover the lives of medieval bastard kings, and the following posts are meant to collect portraits of those kings and their close relatives.

In many cases it's difficult to find contemporary art of their period, so some of the portrayals are subsequent.

1) Harold I of England (?- 1040), son of Knut the Great and his wife Ælfgifu of Northampton

2) Knut the Great (c. 990 – 1035), son of Sweyn Forkbeard and his wife Świętosława of Poland

3) Sweyn Forkbeard (963 – 1014), son Knut Danaást or Harald Bluetooth and his wife Tove or Gunhild

4) Emma of Normandy (c. 984 –1052), daughter of Richard I of Normandy and his wife Gunnor

5) Harthacnut/ Knut III of Denmark (c. 1018 – 1042), son of Knut the Great and his wife Emma of Normandy

6) Gunhilda of Denmark (c. 1020 – 1038), daughter of Knut the Great and his wife Emma of Normandy

7) Holy Roman Emperor Henry III (1016 -1056), son of Holy Roman Emperor Conrad II and his wife Gisela of Swabia

8) Beatrice of Franconia (1037 – 13 July 1061), daughter of Holy Roman Emperor Henry III and his wife Gunhilda of Denmark

9) Edward the Confessor (c. 1003 – 1066), son of Æthelred II of England and his wife Emma of Normandy

10) Ælfred Æþeling (c. 1012–1036), son of Æthelred II of England and his wife Emma of Normandy