An unusual question you might say, but hopefully you’ll find the answer interesting. The short form of that answer is yes, of course, but the long version sheds much more insight into Ireland, its people, and its colourful history. The Emerald Isle as we all lovingly know her was populated and civilized by the Celts for at least a thousand years before the ninth century. The Celts lived peacefully on their island home at least until the year 795 when the first of a string of Viking attacks took place. The first assault took place on Lambay Island in Dublin Bay, a place that is today but a peaceful bird sanctuary.

The word "Viking" is derived from the Norse word vikingr which literally means "pirate", though some scholars dispute that the name stems from the "vicks" or inlets in which these sea raiders harboured their vessels. Pirates they were however, although ethnically they were Scandinavian merchants and farmers from Norway, Denmark and Sweden who were forced to go to sea because of over population in their countries and a lack of arable land to farm. Beginning with the plundering of a monastery at Lindisfarne, an island off of England’s north-east coast, the Vikings proceeded to terrorize Western Europe for the next 200 years or more.

Ireland was raided by both the Norwegians and the Danes, the Norwegians doing the majority of the initial plundering, though their raids were sporadic and unorganized. This all changed in the year 830 however, when large scale attacks utilizing the famous Viking long boats were begun. These masterpieces of maritime construction allowed the Vikings to navigate otherwise inaccessible rivers and lakes, helping them to penetrate far inland to pillage the monasteries and churches whose wealth they coveted. The Norwegians established the first of the permanent Viking settlements and fortifications at this time, a trading post known as Dublin. They went on to establish other settlements we know today as Wexford, Waterford, Limerick and Cork.

The Vikings continued to dominate Ireland till the mid-tenth century, at least until around 950 when the Gaelic Dal Cais began their rise to power. The Celtic warriors first took the Kingdom of Munster, and then under the command of the impassioned Brian Boru, defeated the combined Danish and Norwegian forces at the infamous Battle of Clontarf in 1014, dealing Viking rule in Ireland its final death blow.

The Vikings reign as kings may have been over, but as a people they remained, and were subsequently absorbed into Gaelic society. They adopted the Irish language and customs -religious and social -and began to intermarry with their conquerors. This unification is reflected today in Irish names such as McLaughlin and McIver, which combine a Gaelic patronymic with a Nordic first name.

So as I mentioned at the beginning, the short answer is – Yes, your Irish ancestor could have been a Viking, though I do hope you’re glad I gave you the long answer as well!