History glossary
Norman
a member of the French-speaking elite that developed in Normandy from Scandinavian settler roots.
- Category
- People and culture
- Region
- Normandy and wider Europe
- Date range
- tenth-twelfth centuries
What it means
Norman describes the people and culture that developed in Normandy after Scandinavian settlers became integrated into Frankish, Christian, and French-speaking society. By the eleventh century, Norman rulers and knights were a powerful military elite whose influence reached England, southern Italy, Sicily, and the eastern Mediterranean.
Related terms
Stories using this term
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