Happy Leaf Ericson Day.

[Roc]

<CENTER></CENTER><CENTER></CENTER><CENTER></CENTER><CENTER>Happy Leaf Ericson Day</CENTER><CENTER>In 1964, United States president Lyndon B. Johnson declared the 9th of October to be "Leif Ericson Day" in commemoration of the first arrival of a European ...


</CENTER><CENTER>[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The first European to arrive in America[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]It is commonly believed that Christopher Columbus was the first European to arrive in the New World in 1492. Indeed, Columbus marks the starting point of the mass migration of Europeans to America. However, he was not the first European to set foot in the New World. That happened during the Viking age, 500 years earlier, when Leif Ericson explored new lands west of Greenland in the year 1000 AD.[/FONT]

Leaf Ericson on 1968 stamp.
</CENTER>

 

[vergilius]

Happy Leif Erikson day !!!!
now this is something historically correct!

 

[GARD9]

Leif's brother.

Leaf was his brother, the druid.
G9

 

[Diegoff]

HAPPY LEAF ERICSON DAY!!!

Just in time.... ;D

 

[bonehead]

Leif Ericson, Euro-poser

Columbus day stems from an ego invested, Euro-centric view of history. Columbus did not discover anything. He just accidentally stumbled onto something a lot of people, including Leif Ericson, already knew.

But Leif Ericson is a poser too! Sorry, the Indians (Native Americans) discovered it first. All they had to do was look around, and there it was! Wow, things look so different once you get past that Euro-centric viewpoint!

Columbus Day is a day of mourning for native Americans.

Cheers!!

Mike

 

[Diegoff]

Hello Mike.
Of course other people traveled to America since prehistoric times but it is a fact that the Modern Age in History begins with the discovery of America. I know it as a former History student ;D.
It is then when a real contact is made between civilizations mutually unknown, be it for good or bad.
I´m not sure that "all" native americans thought that it was a day of mourning. Maybe was a good day for some of them when the spaniards stoped the ritual killing in Tenochtitlan .

Diego

 

[bonehead]

Yes, but the Spaniards did plenty of killing themselves. And they didn't trouble themselves with rituals. That could hardly have been "good" for the natives. Besides, the natives have been paying for this "goodwill" ever since.

 

[neill]

...poser too!

Mike is right. Columbus, Leif, "Native Americans" (which there are none of, as we all came from somewhere. First humans we are aware of on this Continent were probably Asians following the coastline or crossing the land bridge that was the the Bearing Straits in the last Major Ice Age. So therock aretehonly natives and geo;ogist might argue that too!) all our posers in that contexts...

It's called the History of Mankind. Funny how one man's hero is another man villan. AH I love History!!!

Happy Lief Ericson Day!!!

Neill

 

[Bad91Fellow]

have you heared of Prince Madoc? He was from Wales and I just read yesterday in a novel that he probably travelled to america between 1166 - 1183. The native american tribe of the "Mandan" might have been a combination between the childs of his men and native american women.
I don't know if it's true, do you know it?

Yours
Lennart

 

[Johan]

About prince Madoc, look here :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madoc

There seems to exist no contemporary proof, but it is well known in my own country (Belgium) that the medieval Flemish writer of the "Reynaert" story (about the devilish fox, Reynaert) called himself "Willem, die Madoc maecte" - William, who wrote (the story of) Madoc, and lived in the 12th century. Nobody overhere ever found a trace of that book with the story of Madoc, it is a lost legend. But so it seems that my fellow countryman Willem may have been the author of a (fiction ?) story of which Madoc was the principal personality... he may just have invented a good fiction story about an explorer/traveler who went to a fantastic land, and later authors may have picked it up and may have considered it to be true, and they may have placed the story in the then recently discovered new world ...

Last, I'd also like to mention Saint Brendan and maybe other Irish monks, who may have been there even before Leif Ericson. So that would justify the many festivities on St Patricks day in many places in the USA

cheers,

Johan

 

[vergilius]

Well I've hear the story of Brendan too, but one day all mistery will be revealed when we'll find proove that it was a Belgian who discovered America.
Besides johan why do you have the norwegian symbol under your fine Belgian name? Don't tell me there's another country you love more?

 

[Johan]

Besides johan why do you have the norwegian symbol under your fine Belgian name? Don't tell me there's another country you love more?

Well Johan, since there are no Norwegians here, I thought I might as well represent their beautiful country on this forum. ;-)
Also, being a chronic rebel at heart, I don't have any real chauvinist feelings.

.... Though I must admit that, whenever I return to Belgium from a foreign country, the sight of a familiar landscape or skyline never fails to make me suddenly feel at "home" ....

 

[vergilius]

You're definitly a Belgian

 

[quang]

one day all mistery will be revealed when we'll find proove that it was a Belgian who discovered America.

Well, EDDY WALLY discovered America ... in 1972!

Quang

 

[Johan]

Yep, I am.


Do they still drink De Coninck beer where you live ? In that case I'll come over to the next AMSS show, we might meet up there and have a couple of Bollekes.

 

[Johan]

Well, EDDY WALLY discovered America ... in 1972!

Quang

Quite the contrary - America discovered Eddy Wally, I'm afraid !!! I think it was by accident, by the way.

 

[vergilius]

He was on his way to China and got lost
Chééééééllllllie !!!!
Johan, you're obliged to come to our AMSS show. There 're special awards for Scandinavians!