Vikings

Vikings and the Indian Maiden:

So you're a viking, and you go out to take a look to see what's out west. Naturally, you're going to want to bring back a souvenir.

This actually makes very good sense, as many point to the end of the slave trade as bringing about the end of the Viking Age.

One of the primary sources of profit for the Vikings had been slave-taking. The medieval Church took the position that Christians should not own fellow Christians as slaves, so chattel slavery diminished as a practice throughout northern Europe. This took much of the economic incentive out of raiding, though sporadic slaving activity continued in the 11th century. Eventually, outright slavery was outlawed[.]

Of course, we don't have any evidence that she wasn't strong-willed and eager to explore the wild east. Perhaps she was a famous traveler among the skrælingi, and hopped the boat of her own accord.

As documented William H. Babcock in "Certain Pre-Columbian Notices of American Aborigines", the word skræling may have been the name of one of the North American tribes encountered by Norse during initial contact. The story was that Norseman Bjorn the Bonde saved two Skræling siblings from the sea. As was their custom, in gratitude the Skrælings decided to become the Norseman's life-long servants. During this service, the Skrælings indicated that the word skræling was how their peoples' name was pronounced in Norse. Eventually, "The brother and sister killed themselves and threw themselves down the cliffs into the sea when they were prohibited from following along with Bjorn Bonde..." on his return to Iceland.

I'm afraid I'm not familiar with Babcock's sources, so I can't comment on the likelihood of that.

For those interested in the history, Sir Magnús Magnússon's introduction remains valuable.