The Legacy of the Vikings: Colonization and Social Trust in Contemporary England

This article examines the long-run effects of Viking colonization in medieval Eng-<br/>land on contemporary levels of social trust. We contend that cultural clashes between<br/>Anglo-Saxons and Vikings fostered an environment of mistrust—a dynamic that set in<br/>motion a self-reinforcing cycle of low social trust persisting into the modern era. Em-<br/>ploying a geographic regression discontinuity design, we compare areas within the<br/>Danelaw, where Viking settlements were concentrated, to adjacent areas that experi-<br/>enced little to no Viking influence. Our findings indicate that communities historically<br/>exposed to Viking colonization exhibit significantly lower levels of social trust today.<br/>We provide additional evidence that Viking colonization led to heightened levels of<br/>violence and crime, reinforcing the long-term erosion of social trust.