<P> Leif Erikson or Leif Ericson ( c. 970 -- c. 1020 ) was a Norse explorer from Iceland . He was the first known European to have set foot on continental North America ( excluding Greenland ) , before Christopher Columbus . According to the Sagas of Icelanders , he established a Norse settlement at Vinland , tentatively identified with the Norse L'Anse aux Meadows on the northern tip of Newfoundland in modern - day Canada . Later archaeological evidence suggests that Vinland may have been the areas around the Gulf of St. Lawrence and that the L'Anse aux Meadows site was a ship repair station . </P>
<P> Leif Erikson or Leif Ericson ( c. 970 -- c. 1020 ) was a Norse explorer from Iceland . He was the first known European to have set foot on continental North America ( excluding Greenland ) , before Christopher Columbus . According to the Sagas of Icelanders , he established a Norse settlement at Vinland , tentatively identified with the Norse L'Anse aux Meadows on the northern tip of Newfoundland in modern - day Canada . Later archaeological evidence suggests that Vinland may have been the areas around the Gulf of St. Lawrence and that the L'Anse aux Meadows site was a ship repair station . </P>
who was the first european to set foot on north america
who was the first european to set foot on north america
Leif Erikson or Leif Ericson
Leif Erikson or Leif Ericson