Which Viking settlement in Newfoundland is the earliest confirmed Norse site in North America?

L’Anse aux Meadows is the earliest confirmed Norse settlement in North America.

The site lies at the northern tip of Newfoundland, Canada, and contains remains of timber-and-turf buildings, ironworking areas, and artifacts associated with Norse activity. Radiocarbon evidence places the settlement around the late 10th or early 11th century.

Norwegian explorer Helge Ingstad and archaeologist Anne Stine Ingstad identified the site in 1960. The discovery provided physical evidence supporting the Vinland Sagas, although the sagas were written centuries after the events and mix history with literary tradition.

L’Anse aux Meadows is not generally interpreted as a large, permanent colony. It was probably a short-lived base used during voyages farther into Atlantic North America. The name “Vinland” refers to a wider region in the sagas, not specifically to this settlement.