Iran. Further north, the Bjarmians traded with the Sami. It seems that the Scandinavians made some use of the Dvina trade route, in addition to the Volga trade route and Dnieper trade route. In 1217, two Norwegian traders arrived in Bjarmaland to buy pelts; one of the traders continued further south to pass to Russia in order to arrive in the Holy Land, where he intended to take part in the Crusades. The second trader who remained was killed by the Bjarmians. This caused Norwegian officials to undertake a campaign of retribution into Bjarmaland which they pillaged in 1222. The 13th century seems to have seen the decline of the Bjarmians, who became tributaries of the Novgorod Republic. While many Slavs fled the Mongol invasion northward, to Beloozero and Bjarmaland, the displaced Bjarmians sought refuge in Norway, where they were given land around the Malangen fjord by Haakon IV of Norway in 1240. More important for the decline was probably that, with the onset of the Crusades, the trade routes had found a more westerly orientation or shifted considerably to the south. When the Novgorodians founded Velikiy Ustiug, in the beginning of the 13th century, the Bjarmians had a serious competitor for the trade. More and more Pomors arrived in the area during the 14th and 15th centuries, which led to the final assimilation of the Bjarmians by the Slavs. Later use The collaborationist Quisling regime planned to build Norwegian colonies in Northern Russia, following a future success of Operation Barbarossa, and which were to be named Bjarmaland; but these plans never came to be. See also Ohthere of Hålogaland Kvenland Gardariki Miklagard Vinland Serkland SkrælingPanurus biarmicus and Biarmosuchus tener, species whose scientific names were created after the region Notes References Steinsland, G. & Meulengracht Sørensen, P. (1998): Människor och makter i vikingarnas värld. Тиандер К.Ф. Поездки скандинавов в Белое море. [Voyages of the Norsemen to the White Sea'']. Saint Petersburg, 1906. Scandinavian history Medieval Russia Historical regions in Russia Scandinavian folklore Novgorod Republic White Sea Saga locations Viking Age populated places Exonyms Old Norse