Vikings refer to a nation or ethnic group living in northern Europe from the 8th century to the 11th century AD, that is, today’s Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. The word Viking, in ancient English, means people living in the bay. The Vikings were particularly good at seafaring, and were very ferocious. Many engaged in pirates. Their looting routes from the North Sea to the Mediterranean Sea scared the whole of Europe from the 8th to the 11th century, so the Vikings almost became synonymous with pirates.