This article is part of our series “German Immigrants.” Click here for a full listing of all articles in the series.
If German immigrants came to America in their thousands over hundreds of years, it’s interesting to ask: who was the very first German immigrant? Is this even possible to figure out? Does it even matter?
Although this question may seem trivial, it can be fun and interesting to investigate, especially when it’s possible that the very first German in North America hitched a ride with the Vikings.
The Vikings in North America
We know today beyond a reasonable doubt that the first Europeans arrived in North America about five centuries before Columbus. These people, known as the Norse or the Vikings, sailed from Greenland and reached Newfoundland around the year 1000. There are two Norse sagas that tell us this story, and they correspond with solid physical evidence of a Viking settlement at L’Anse aux Meadows in what is today Canada.
One of these Norse stories, “The Saga of the Greenlanders,” details the travels of Leif Erikson from Greenland to North America. While in Newfoundland, he sent out search parties on a regular basis to explore this new and unfamiliar territory. One day, a member of a search party failed to return. Leif became worried, and immediately went looking for this man, known only as Tyrker the German. It’s best to let the Vikings tell us this story in their own words.
An Excerpt from “The Saga of Greenland”
"It was discovered one evening that one of their company, Tyrker, the German, was missing. Leif was troubled by this, because Tyrker had lived with Leif and his father for a long time, and had been very devoted to Leif when he was a child. Leif severely reprimanded his companions and prepared to go in search of him, taking twelve men with him.
They had only proceeded a short distance from the house, when they were met by Tyrker, and he was welcomed with great joy. Leif observed at once that his foster-father was in lively spirits. Tyrker had a prominent forehead, restless eyes, small features, was short in stature, and a frail-looking man, but he was a most skilled craftsman.
Leif asked him: ‘Why are you so late, foster-father, and separated from the others?’ At first, Tyrker spoke for some time in German, rolling his eyes, and grinning, and they could not understand him; but after a time he addressed them in Norse: ‘I did not go much further [than you] but I have news to relate. I have found vines and grapes.’
‘Is this true, foster-father?’ said Leif. ‘I’m certain,’ he said, ‘because I was born where there is no lack of either grapes or vines.’
They slept through the night and the next day, Leif said to his shipmates: ‘We will now divide our labors, and each day we’ll either gather grapes or cut vines and fell trees, in order to obtain a cargo of these for my ship.’ They acted upon this advice, and it is said that the boat they dragged behind the ship was filled with grapes. A cargo sufficient for the ship was cut, and when the spring came, they made their ship ready and sailed away; and from its products Leif gave the land a name, and called it Vinland [Wineland]" [1].
Truth or Legend?
Other than the Viking sagas, there is no other mention of Tyrker in the historical record. Although we can say with certainty that the Vikings were the first Europeans in North America, we cannot confirm Tyrker’s existence or ancestry with the same degree of confidence. Historians continue to debate whether he was German, Turkish, Hungarian, if the term "foster-father" indicates he was a monk, or that he even existed at all [2].
Even so, is it possible that there is an element of truth to this story? And that Tyrker did in fact exist, and that he arrived at L’Anse aux Meadows with Leif Erikson as the first German immigrant? Perhaps, let's explore this!
What follows is pure speculation on my part, but let’s assume for a moment that the Saga is true, and that Tyrker was from a German wine-producing region. If so, then he was very likely from somewhere along the Rhine River in south-western Germany. Still to this day, the region is well-known for the high quality of its grapes, vineyards, and wines, and the vast majority of German wine stems from this area.
If we then look at a map of where the Vikings traveled and raided in Europe (below), we see that their movements closely followed coastlines and rivers as opposed to venturing further inland. This is no surprise, since as a seafaring culture, the Vikings excelled at conducting hit-and-run raids via oceans and rivers. Using their famed longships, they could appear without warning, plunder a town's stores, capture its people as slaves, and then disappear just as quickly.
Of particular interest to us is the Rhine River (indicated by the green arrow on the map). Using this river, the Vikings penetrated directly into the heart of Germany's wine producing region! Even more interesting, this area was raided before the year 1000 (the year Leif Eriksson was in Newfoundland), perhaps in the final decade of the 9th century [3].
So is it possible that the Vikings raided a German village in a wine-producing region where Tyrker lived, took him back to Scandinavia, and afterwards Tyrker joined them on the trip to North America? It does seem a bit far-fetched, but it also offers a hypothetical explanation as to how a man the Vikings specifically mentioned in their sagas as a German wine connoisseur ended up with them on the other side of the world around the year 1000. If true, this means the first German immigrant to America played a role in naming the province Wineland, after one of his favorite beverages 🍷.
But unless further proof is discovered, the legend of Tyrker will have to remain just that, and we can only say that he was possibly the first German immigrant to set foot in America. Until then, what we do know with certainty is that some of the first documented proof of German immigrants in America can be found at the Jamestown settlement in Virginia, which will be the topic of the next article in our series on German immigrants.
Do you think the legend of Tyrker is true? Do you believe the Viking Sagas? Or is he simply a historical myth? Tell us your thoughts in the comments section below!
Achtung! Land in Sicht!
Stay tuned for our next article in the German Immigrants series, where we will explore the Germans that immigrated to the Jamestown Colony in Virginia.
Sources & Remarks
[1] The Viking Sagas are widely available online. I used translated copies from the Icelandic Saga Database.
[2] Tolzmann, Don Heinrich. The German-American Experience. Humanity Books, Amherst, NY. 2000. 21-23.
[3] Annemarieke Willemsen. Wikinger am Rhein. 800-1000. Utrecht, 2004. 119.
[4] Cover image is Leif Eriksson Discovers America by Hans Dahl.
Amazing research Patrick! As a wine lover, I found this very interesting. Thank you for a great article.