Viking

Borrowed from Old Norse víkingr (“Viking”). Already in Old English as wīċing and Old Frisian wītsing, but assumed extinct in Middle English and borrowed anew in the 19th century; any survivals in dialect through the Middle Ages are unknown.

Old Norse víkingr itself is from Old Norse vík (“inlet, cove, fjord”) + -ingr (“one belonging to, one who frequents”) (the -r is the nominative desinence). Thus, “one from or who frequents the sea’s inlets”.

The Old English and Anglo-Frisian form, existing since at least the eighth century, could also have been derived from or influenced by Old English wīc (“camp”), on account of the temporary encampments which were often a prominent feature of the Vikings’ raids.^[1]

Others proposals were made, like e.g. deriving víkingr from the root related to the verb víkja ^[2] or deriving both English and Old Norse words to *wīkingaz related to víkja or wīc.

• IPA^(key): /ˈvaɪkɪŋ/^[1]

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aɪkɪŋ

Viking (plural Vikings)

1. (historical) Scandinavian/Northern European seafarers, most familiarly raiders and pirates during the Viking age.
   • 1961, Norma Lorre Goodrich, “Beowulf”, in The Medieval Myths, New York: The New American Library, page 33:

     Henchmen had placed, as was their habit, each warrior's gear and trappings above his pile of skins. Thus you could see the burnished helmet of each warrior set in readiness above his head. It was the Viking habit.

2. (by extension, fantasy) A stock character common in the fantasy genre, namely a barbarian, generally equipped with an axe or sword and a helmet adorned with horns.
3. (colloquial) A Norseman (medieval Scandinavian).
4. (colloquial, humorous, mildly offensive) An ethnic Swede, Norwegian, Dane, Icelander or Faroe Islander.
5. (American football) A player on the Minnesota Vikings NFL team.
6. (Japan) buffet; smorgasbord

Viking

1. A sea area between Scotland and Norway
2. A town in Alberta, Canada.
3. A city in Minnesota.

• Kinvig

• viking

Borrowed from Old Norse víkingr.

• IPA^(key): [ˈvɪkɪŋk]

• Audio:

  (file)

Viking m anim

1. Viking

• Wiking (dated, superseded)

From Old Norse víkingr. This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term.

• IPA^(key): /ˈvi.kɪŋ/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: Vi‧king

Viking m (plural Vikingen)

1. a Viking

Borrowed from Old Norse víkingr (“Viking”).

• IPA^(key): /vi.kiŋ/

• Audio (Belgium):

  (file)

Viking m or f by sense (plural Vikings)

1. (historical) Viking

• maladie des Vikings

• “Viking”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

From Old Norse Víkingr, from víkingr (“Viking”).

• IPA^(key): /²viːçɪŋ/, /²viːkɪŋ/
• Homophone: viking

Viking m (definite Vikingen)

1. a male given name from Old Norse, meaning “Viking”

• Eivind Vågslid (1988) “Viking”, in Norderlendske fyrenamn (in Norwegian Nynorsk), →ISBN

Derived from Old Norse víkingr.

• IPA^(key): /ˈvikiŋɡ/

Viking m pers (genitive singular Vikinga, nominative plural Vikingovia, genitive plural Vikingov, declension pattern of chlap)

1. Viking

• “Viking”, in Slovníkový portál Jazykovedného ústavu Ľ. Štúra SAV [Dictionary portal of the Ľ. Štúr Institute of Linguistics, Slovak Academy of Science] (in Slovak), https://slovnik.juls.savba.sk, 2003–2025

Originally a nickname, appearing in runestones, from Old Norse víkingr (“a Viking”). Revived as a given name since 1829.

Viking c (genitive Vikings)

1. a male given name from Old Norse

• knivig