Many scholars state that Viking hygiene was better than the hygiene of their contemporaries, especially in Britain. The Vikings washed their faces and combed their hair and beards daily. They also bathed once a week. However, there are those, who call into question the idea of hygienic Vikings. What sparked this legend and how true is it?
John of Wallingford
In the early 1200s, Chronicler John of Wallingford (d. 1258) wrote about the St. Brice’s Massacre of the Danes in 1002a.d. and why it was appropriate to slaughter the Vikings in such a fashion:
The Danes made themselves too acceptable to English women by their elegant manners and their care of their person. They combed their hair every day, bathed every Saturday, and even changed their garments often. They set off their persons by many such frivolous devices. In this manner, they laid siege to the virtue of the married women and persuaded the daughters, even of the nobles, to be their concubines.
The Danes deserved their fate because they were defiling English women. Killing them was the best way to stop them.
However, Wallingford’s account, which is so often quoted as proof of Viking hygiene, is not without its detractors. In 1854, Translator Joseph Stevenson said that the chronicles attributed to Wallingford should be read carefully and the “facts” therein should only be accepted with corroborating evidence. Biographer William Hunt took the criticism one step further, saying the chronicler exaggerates and inserts so many misconceptions that the work is “historically worthless.” Historians even question whether Wallingford was the author of the work. Still, the idea of Viking hygiene presented in this account is widespread today.
Scholar Alcuin and Viking Hygiene
Alcuin gave the English their best account of the attack on Lindisfarne. In letters to English kings after the Viking attack, Alcuin pointed out that the nobility was following the ways of the Vikings. He said God’s punishment was to send more Viking raiders against the English, and he chastised the English for wanting to look like the pagans. “Consider the dress, the way of wearing the hair, the luxurious habits of the princes and people. Look at your trimming of the beard and hair, in which you have wished to resemble the pagans.”
Viking Literature and Afterlife Beliefs
Both the Hávamál and Reginsmál emphasize the importance of beginning the day “combed and washed.” The Hávamál says traveling to a place clean and fed will allow to arrive without shame no matter what you have or do not have.
Vikings never knew when death would overtake them and they believed their appearance in the afterlife would be the same as on the day they died. They would arrive in Valhalla or elsewhere with their clothes and weapons. They would have to meet gods and legends after death and they wanted to look their best.
Ragnarok can only take place when the ship “Naglfar” is finished. Naglfar is made of dead man’s nails. Vikings kept their nails trimmed to ensure that it would take as long as possible to complete the boat.
Archaeological Evidence
The archaeological evidence seems to support much of the accounts of good Viking hygiene. Graves often include combs. Archaeologists have also found earwax scoops, toothpicks, wash bowls, and tweezers for personal hygiene.
Ibn Fadland and Viking Hygiene
The Arab Ibn Fadland had a different account of Viking hygiene. In his interactions with the Vikings he made detailed note of their habits, including the morning ritual of washing the face and combing hair and beard:
“Every day, early in the morning, one of the slave girls brings in a large dish of water and gives it to her master, who washes his hands, face and hair in it. Then he combs his hair over the dish with a comb, blows his nose and spits in it. No dirt is removed from the water. When the first has finished, the slave girl carries it to the next, who does the same, after which she carries it from one to another until it has been all the way round. Every one of them blows his nose and spits in it and washes his face and hair in it.” (Ibn Fadlan. Translated and sourced from the Vikingeskibs Museet).
Author Elisabeth Wheatley’s Research
Author Elisabeth Wheatley researched the Vikings for her fantasy romance book series, Wrath and Weeping. As part of her marketing, she explored myths that people believe about the Vikings, including about how hygienic they were. Her conclusion was it’s complicated. The Vikings bathed in public, and the English women noticed. So, yes, the Vikings bathed, but that doesn’t mean the British didn’t. Wheatley cites Gabby Bell’s video as a starting point for her opinion about the Vikings and their bathing. Gabby’s video does state the Vikings would bathe more regularly than other Europeans, but that wasn’t the main reason women were attracted to them.
Viking Hygiene Habits
If you listen to the explanation in Gabby’s video, the question you have to answer is: Is bathing in a river or tub more hygienic than washing with a cloth? From the evidence we’ve found, it seems that the Vikings had habits that would be more hygienic, even if some of those habits were poorly practiced. What do you think?
Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_of_Wallingford_(d._1258)
https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1840/viking-hygiene-clothing–jewelry
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcuin
https://www.museumnord.no/en/stories/hygiene-in-the-viking-age/
https://www.facebook.com/reel/599291926373527
