Before they became Christian, how did the various Viking chiefdoms and kingdoms track years?

by atomicsub927

Did the Vikings have a 'year 0' or an equivalent that they might use. I'm writing something set from the perspective of a Viking from before many converted to Christianity, I.E. when they were still heavily Pagan Norse and trying to find any information on the web has yet to yield any results. So was there a Norse calendar of some sort with a set year? Or was it one of those facts that just didn't really matter. Or perhaps did it vary from region to region?

If they did, how would this compare to our Christian calendar? (For example, the year 900)

Algernon_Asimov

Check out the 'Calendar' section of the FAQ: https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/wiki/language#wiki_calendars

The FAQ includes my previous answer explaining how various peoples counted years prior to the invention and adoption of the Anno Domini year-counting system. The Norse people were one of many cultures that used a regnal year-counting system.

Plus, there's this fine podcast by the handsomest historian that ever there was. :)