Leif Erikson Day serves to honor Viking Explorer Leif Erikson and celebrate Nordic-American Heritage. Erikson is believed to have been the first European to set foot on the North American continent, having done so nearly 500 years before Christopher Columbus. He established a settlement called Vinland and although its exact location is not known, it is believed that it is near L'anse aux Meadows, in Newfoundland, Canada, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
In 1925, Leif Erikson was officially recognized by President Calvin Coolidge as the first explorer to discover the continent. It took another four decades for the day to become official when, in 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson declared October 9th as Leif Erikson Day. In 2015, President Barack Obama reproclaimed the day and called upon Americans to celebrate the day appropriately in honor of Nordic-American heritage and the explorers that embarked on the expeditions that led to the creation of the United States.
Top X Posts (formerly Tweets) for Leif Erikson Day -
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"Leif Erikson": Because today, October 9th, is Leif Erikson day. From Adnspook64
Since it isn’t talked about, today is also Leif Erikson Day! Who is Leif Erikson? Leif Erikson, a Norse explorer, discovered North America around the year 1000 AD, nearly 500 years before Christopher Columbus. Yes, that is a statue of Erikson on Minnesota Capitol Grounds (1/2)
Happy Leif Erikson's Day Leif Erikson was an Orthodox Christian who managed to land in America five centuries before Europes colonization of the New World began. His was the second on-record successful voyage to America by Orthodox Christians, after Saint Brendan (c. 577)
Happy Leif Erikson Day, bros! Since it’s on the same day as “Columbus Day” this year, here’s a meme I made back in 2020 about all the different reasons Leif Erikson is a thousand times better than Christopher Columbus. May not be entirely accurate, though.
— Simon A. (Baby Lamb Creations) (@BabyLamb5) October 9, 2023
PREPARE YOURSELF Federal Government will be SHUT DOWN beginning at EOB 11/6/23. (~3:00pm for govt workers) Shut down will be 50% longer than the last shutdown, 9/30/23-10/1/23 in remembrance of Leif Erikson Day, 10/9/23. You may experience sensations of extra freedom & liberty
Good Morning It's Monday! Happy New Week! Let's make the most of it! Have a great day! #MondayMotivation on Today: Gaza & Palestinian, Isreal, Iran, Cowboys, Chiefs, Patriots, 49ers, & Ravens, Leif Erikson, Drake, Happy Thanksgiving to our Canadian Friends!
Leif Erikson was actually born in Iceland but his family was Norwegian. He died in Greenland in the year 1020.
Histories have been written and more will be written of the Norwegians in America, but no man can tell adequately of the tearing asunder of tender ties, the hardships and dangers crossing the deep, the work and worry, the hopes and fears, the laughter and tears, of men and women who with bare hands carved out of a wilderness a new kingdom. - Rønning, N. N., from the book Fifty Years in America
On October 9, 1825, the first wave of Norwegian immigrants arrived on US soil in New York City. Between 1825 and 1925, nearly one-third of Norway's population emigrated to the US.
Erikson named his settlement Vinland or Wineland due to the many grape vines that he discovered there.
There are more than 4.5 million Americans with Norwegian ancestry living in the US today, of which 55% live in the Upper Midwest states.
In the News and Trending in the US for Leif Erikson Day
Take a trip to Iceland, Norway or Greenland and visit the homelands of Leif Erikson.
Take a trip to UNESCO site of L'Anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland, Canada. This is believed to be the site of Erikson's first New World settlement.
Purchase a Leif Ericson Millennium Commemorative Coin from the US Mint. The coins were released at the beginning of the century however you can purchase some from collectors online or even try to find them in public circulation.
Visit one of the many Leif Erikson statues in the United States. There are statues in Boston, Milwaukee, Chicago, Cleveland, Virginia, Seattle, Minnesota and North Dakota.
Watch a movie about Vikings and Leif Erikson. Some movies include: Leif Ericson (2000) and The Vikings (1958), The Viking Sagas (1995) and The 13th Warrior (1999).