Between Frankish and Viking: Frisia and Frisians in the Viking Age

In the Viking Age, Frisia was located geographically and culturally between the expanding Frankish and Viking worlds. The study of Viking Age Frisia and the relations between Frisians and Scandinavians in this period have traditionally been coloured by the perspective of Christian Frankish sources. In this article, other sources for Viking Age Frisia are investigated in order to shed light on the position of Frisians and their contacts with Scandinavia in the Viking Age. It will be argued that compared with the Frankish framework, a more nuanced picture emerges of Frisian-Viking relations, with Frisia as an intermediary between the Frankish and Viking spheres.