Er·ic·son also Er·ics·son  (ěr'ĭk-sən)  Norwegian navigator who, according to Norse sagas, was blown off course when voyaging to Greenland and thereby discovered and named Vinland, probably in Nova Scotia or New England. |
A Norwegian explorer of about the year 1000. He is said to have discovered a place in North America called Vinland. Several locations are possible for Vinland, including the Canadian province of Newfoundland and New England.
Note: Ericson, rather than Christopher Columbus, is sometimes called the European discoverer of America. His discovery, however, is not indisputably documented, as the discovery of Columbus is. Also, Ericson's voyages, unlike the voyages of Columbus, did not result in continuous colonization.