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Nortmanni. Norman, member of those Vikings, or Norsemen, who settled in northern France (or the Frankish kingdom), together with their descendants.
Normandy takes its name from the Viking invaders who menaced large parts of Europe towards the end of the 1st millennium in two phases (790–930, then 980–1030). Medieval Latin documents referred to them as Nortmanni, which means "men of the North". This name provides the etymological basis for the modern words "Norman" and "Normandy", with -ia (Normandia, like Neustria, Francia, etc.). After 911, this name replaced the term Neustria, which had formerly been used to describe the region that included Normandy. The other parts of Neustria became known as France (now Île-de-France), Anjou and Champagne. The rate of Scandinavian colonization can be seen in the Norman toponymy and in the changes in popular family names. Today, nordmann (pron. norman) in the Norwegian language denotes a Norwegian person.
Birth of Normandy - "Duke of Normandy" was the title given to the rulers of the Duchy of Normandy in northwestern France, which has its origins as the County of Rouen, a fief created in 911 by King Charles II "the Simple" of France for Rollo, a Norwegian nobleman and Viking leader of Northmen. The first being Rollo.
Rollo /"'Rolf" Ganger (The Walker) Ragnvaldsson, Jarl of More, 1st Duke of Normandy (Ganger, was a nickname given to him because he was such a large man that no horse could bear him and he was mostly forced to walk.) Rolf is a contraction of Hrodwulf (Rudolf) which is a conjunction of the stem words hrod (renown) + wulf (wolf), and is written in Old Norse as Hrólfr'.
According to Dudo of Saint-Quentin, Rollo arrived in northern France in 876, although there is some debate about 900AD being a more likely date. William of Jumièges records that Rollo was chosen by lot to be leader of the Viking colonists. Viking raids intensified in northern France. Although they were defeated after raiding Chartres, Charles III "le Simple" King of the West Franks, granted the Normans land around Rouen in which to settle. The uncertain nature of the demise was the source of future problems between the French crown, which claimed that it was an enfeoffment for which the ruler owed allegiance, and the later Dukes of Normandy who claimed it was an unconditional allod for which no allegiance was owed. A charter dated 14 Mar 918 which granted land to the monastery of Saint-Germain-des-Prés "except that part…which we have granted to the Normans of the Seine, namely to Rollo and his companions". He was later known as ROBERT I Comte [de Normandie].
(Glen Poland - according to Geni and other sources, Rollo is my direct blood 29th great grandfather)
...More to come, as I will also include the Ireland connection to Normandy by family migrations, although there were Viking settlements in both Ireland and France toward the end of the Viking era.