Which Scandinavian people raided Europe from the late 8th to the 11th century?

• A. The Normans
• B. The Rus
• C. The Goths
• D. The Vikings

Answer: (D)

During this period the behavior being described is the Viking Age, when Norse people from Scandinavia used fast longships to raid across large parts of Europe. These raids began in the late 700s—famously marked by the attack on Lindisfarne in 793—and continued into the early 11th century. The term Vikings captures the people behind these waves of raiding, as well as their later roles as traders and settlers who left a lasting impact on places from the British Isles and Ireland to Frankish lands and beyond. The image of swift coastal strikes, riverine incursions, and rapid retreats helps explain why this group is the best fit for “raided Europe from the late 8th to the 11th century.”

The other groups aren’t the right fit for this description and timeframe in the same way. The Normans were Norse-descended people who settled in what became Normandy and later ruled England, rather than being the overarching raiders across Europe in this period. The Rus were Norse-connected communities in Eastern Europe, more imperial traders and organizers than the broad Western European raiders. The Goths were a Germanic people who raided much earlier, in Late Antiquity, not during the Viking Age.