srklant on the Tillinge Runestone raised in memory of a Varangian who did not return from Serkland, at the church of Tillinge in Uppland, Sweden.
In Old Norse sources, such as sagas and runestones, Serkland (also Særkland, Srklant, Sirklant, Serklat, etc.) was the "land of the Serkir", usually identified with the Saracens.
The exact etymology is disputed. Serk- may derive from "Saracen"; from sericum, Latin for "silk", implying a connection with the Silk Road; from the Khazar fortress of Sarkel; or from serkr, shirt or gown, i.e., "land of the gown-wearers". In all cases it refers to a land in the East. Originally, it referred to the land south of the Caspian Sea, but it gradually expanded to cover all Islamic lands, including parts of Africa (and possibly even Muslim Sicily).[1][2]
Notably one of the Ingvar runestones, the Sö 179, raised circa 1040 at Gripsholm Castle, commemorates a Varangian loss during an ill-fated raid in Serkland. The other remaining runestones that talk of Serkland are Sö 131, Sö 279, Sö 281, the Tillinge Runestone and probably the lost runestone U 439. For a detailed account of such raids, see Caspian expeditions of the Rus'.
Several sagas mention Serkland: Ynglinga saga, Sörla saga sterka, Sörla þáttr, Saga Sigurðar Jórsalafara, Jökulsþáttur Búasonar[3] and Hjálmþés saga ok Ölvis. It is also mentioned by the 11th century skald Þórgils Fiskimaðr,[4] and the 12th century skald Þórarinn Stuttfeldr.[5]
^Judith Jesch, Ships and Men in the Late Viking Age: The Vocabulary of Runic Inscriptions and Skaldic Verse (Boydell, 2001), p. 104ff.
^Stefan Brink, "People and land in Early Scandinavia", in Ildar H. Garipzanov, Patrick Geary and Przemyslaw Urbanczyk (eds.), Franks, Northmen, and Slavs: Identities and State Formation in Early Medieval Europe (Brepols, 2008) p. 98.
In Old Norse sources, such as sagas and runestones, Serkland (also Særkland, Srklant, Sirklant, Serklat, etc.) was the "land of the Serkir", usually identified...
appears to have been the ill-fated expedition of Ingvar the Far-Travelled to Serkland, the region south-east of the Caspian Sea. Its members are commemorated...
Ingvar Runestones are the only remaining runic inscriptions that mention Serkland. Below follows a presentation of the runestones, but additional runestones...
route, which connected Northern Russia (Gardariki) with the Middle East (Serkland). As the Volga route declined by the end of the century, the Trade route...
Ishmaelites Magarites Muhajirun Arab–Byzantine wars Early Muslim conquests Serkland Böszörmény Moors Farang Daniel 1979, p. 53. Retsö 2003, p. 505. Retsö 2003...
emperors were known as the Varangian Guard. The Rus' initially appeared in Serkland in the 9th century, travelling as merchants along the Volga trade route...
route, which connected Northern Rus (Garðaríki) with the Middle East (Serkland). The Volga route declined by the end of the century, and the Dnieper and...
the Far-Travelled. Serkland Runestones – six or seven runestones which are Varangian Runestones that mention voyages to Serkland, the Old Norse name...
(Griklands haf) they sailed along the coast of the land of the Saracens (Serkland) to the Balearic Islands. The Balearics were at the time perceived by Christians...
came to be. Ohthere of Hålogaland Kvenland Gardariki Miklagard Vinland Serkland Skræling Panurus biarmicus and Biarmosuchus tener, species whose scientific...
of the Caspian expeditions of the Rus'. Initially, the Rus' appeared in Serkland in the 9th century traveling as merchants along the Volga trade route,...
(North Dakota) "John Christian Serkland". Roorsweb Person Sheet. 22 Mar 2011. Retrieved October 31, 2015. J.C. Serkland’s Medical Office (Pinterest) Underwood...
Tillinge Runestone was raised by a man in memory of his brother who died in Serkland, and ends in a prayer for the brother's soul. It may be one of the Ingvar...
Ingvar Runestones which tell of Ingvar the Far-Travelled's expedition to Serkland, i.e., the Muslim world. It ended in tragedy as none of the more than 25...
(Apec-2003, Evrensel 2004, Evrensel-2007) Kurdên Swêdê (Serkland-2006) Kurderna- Fyrtio år i Sverige (Serkland-2007) Ronahîya Dîrokê (Aran-2008) Dünyanın En Yaşlı...
Swedish Viking warriors who travelled east with Ingvar on his expedition to Serkland, or the Saracen lands. The expedition started in the second half of the...
Guard. Other runestones that deal with Varangian expeditions include the Serkland Runestones (dealing with expeditions to the Middle East) and the Ingvar...
Central Sweden. Judging from the inscriptions the enterprise ended up in Serkland (the Muslim lands to the southeast of Russia), apparently under disastrous...
Machine (pp. ix–xi). Thunberg, Carl L. Särkland och dess källmaterial [Serkland and its Source Material]. (Göteborgs universitet. CLTS, 2011). pp 67–68...
of two Gotlanders to Greece, Jerusalem, Iceland and the Muslim world (Serkland). The inscription created a sensation as it mentions four distant countries...
appears to have been the ill-fated expedition of Ingvar the Far-Travelled to Serkland, the region south-east of the Caspian Sea. Its members are commemorated...
of the Caspian expeditions of the Rus'. Initially, the Rus' appeared in Serkland in the 9th century traveling as merchants along the Volga trade route,...
fallen Viking adventurers. Several of these refer to men who died in "Serkland". Meanwhile, in the Eastern Mediterranean the Norse (referred to as Rus')...
i Sverige (1965-2005) [The Kurds: forty years in Sweden (1965-2005)]. Serkland. ISBN 978-91-976363-1-5. OCLC 637638581. "Irakkriget och de mänskliga rättigheterna"...
for the country," than "you [Sigurd] killing bluemen for the devil in Serkland." Eystein was particularly active in Bergen, and his role in the development...
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