Vikings in the Arctic

What to do if you get time travelled to the Middle Ages

Oh no! You've become unstuck in time and now you're in 15th century England with no idea what to do or how to avoid a miserable life as a social pariah who speaks an unrecognisable language and is ignorant to the rules and structure of the world around you! There has to be a better way! Or is there? Join Olivia and Aran as they journey back to medieval times to figure out the best way to get by. Should you become a monk or a nun? Have a go at blacksmithing? Or try to wow the village rubes with modern technology and ideas? All these options and more will be discussed in the search for a decent medieval life.

For more on some of what we discuss, check out:

• Database of England's immigrants 1330-1550
  • https://www.englandsimmigrants.com/
• Some case studies of individual immigrants in medieval England, including so-called "Prince of Inde" John Balbat and fake Jerseyman Giles Morvyle
  • https://www.englandsimmigrants.com/page/individual-studies
• William Lee and his frame knitting machine
  • https://alumni.christs.cam.ac.uk/william-lee
• The prologue to the Canterbury Tales, read in Middle English
  • https://archive.org/details/lp_prologue-to-the-canterbury-tales-read-in-m_geoffrey-chaucer-nevill-coghill-norman-dav

Vikings in the Arctic

It's grim up north...

Why did a five-hundred-year-old Viking colony in Greenland suddenly disappear, with no trace or record? In this episode, Olivia, Aran, and local archaeologist Joe Mason assemble to try and solve one of the most enduring mysteries in medieval history. It's a quest that will take them out of the libertarian "paradise" of 11th century, to the freezing walrus-infested shores of Greenland, and beyond - to the promised land of Vinland. Along the way they'll encounter Native American ghosts, Inuit revenge epics, and the Vikings' love of pointless, cyclical violence.

Sources:

The Saga of the Greenlanders: https://vidforul.wordpress.com/the-saga-of-the-greenlanders/

The Saga of Erik the Red: https://sagadb.org/eiriks_saga_rauda.en

"Tales and Traditions of the Eskimo" by Hinrich Johannes Rink: https://sacred-texts.com/nam/inu/tte/index.htm

Music used:

Peta, Etulu & Susan - This Land is Your Land (Inuktitut) - https://citizenfreak.com/titles/319453-peta-etulu-susan-songs-by-etulu-susan-peta

Olafur reid med Bjorgum fram - https://www.loc.gov/item/2017701460/

Why the Middle Ages ended in 19th century Japan

Yes, you heard us right!! Join Olivia and Aran as they defend their most dubious claim to date, which is definitely not just an excuse to step beyond our usual remit and talk about the wild, delightful world that was Edo Period Japan! We explore why Edo Japan was so cut off from the world and the effects this had on its society, plus some of the cultural developments that took place along the way. Also discussed are

• The legend of the tanuki and the train
  • https://www.proquest.com/docview/1036926966?sourcetype=Scholarly%20Journals
• Kume Kunitake's diaries of travel in Europle and the United States
  • https://archive.org/details/japanrisingiwaku0000kume/
• An overview of the Satsuma rebellion
  • https://www.jstor.org/stable/2383560
• The decline of the Japanese warrior class
  • https://www.jstor.org/stable/25790888

The song used in this episode is sōran bushi, a Japanese folk song traditionally sung by fishers.

Medieval Welsh bards

Journey across space and time with Olivia and Aran this week as we head to medieval Wales, home of one of history's finest bardic traditions. But what was a bard, what did they do, and why did Wales have so darn many of them? Give the episode a listen to learn all this and more! Also discussed are sand worms, long houses, and why foxes are better than babes.

For more on some of what we discuss, check out:

• English translations of Dafydd ap Gwilym's poetry
  • https://dafyddapgwilym.net/eng/3win.php
• Y Goddodin
  • https://www.jstor.org/stable/48578318
• The Court Poets of the Welsh Princes
  • https://www.jstor.org/stable/459824
• Performance and Literacy in Medieval Welsh Poetry
  • https://www.jstor.org/stable/3737807

Music sources for this episode:

• Intro: https://archive.org/details/78_bugeilior-gwenith-gwyn-idle-days-in-summer-time_gwilym-williams-frances-williams_gbia0015181a
• Breaks: https://archive.org/details/78_evanss-jigg_the-folk-dance-orchestra-w-s-gwynn-williams-p-green-philip-green_gbia0511441b
• Bard rap battle (track 3): https://archive.org/details/lp_spanish-medieval-music_new-york-pro-musica-alfonso-x-el-sabio/disc1/01.03.+Cantigua+XXV%3B+Cantigua+CXXXIX.mp3

Weird medieval animal facts

Something tells me it's all happening at the zoo...

Spring is just around the corner in the northern hemisphere, so it's time to learn some animal facts! Turns out, medieval people had all sorts of strange beliefs about wildlife both real and imagined. So, join Olivia, Aran, and beloved naturalist Sir David Attenborough* as they take you to meet fruit-rustling hedgehogs, homicidal pelicans, immortal eagles, and the most tender lovers in the animal kingdom: bears.

Also discussed: the existential terror of Animorphs, CS Lewis' creative process, and which animals are Jesus.

• An excellent English translation of a Latin bestiary https://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/PVFA6XOOSG2448C
• The Ashmole Bestiary https://digital.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/objects/faeff7fb-f8a7-44b5-95ed-cff9a9ffd198/
• The Northumberland Bestiary https://www.getty.edu/art/collection/object/109AX3

*Not really.