Editing Viking Age (section)

===Economic model===
The economic model states that the Viking Age was the result of growing urbanism and trade throughout mainland Europe. As the Islamic world grew, so did its trade routes, and the wealth which moved along them was pushed further and further north.<ref>Ferguson, Robert. ''The Vikings: A History''. New York: Viking, 2009. Print., 48 {{ISBN?}}</ref> In Western Europe, proto-urban centres such as those with names ending in ''wich'', the so-called [[-wich town]]s of [[Anglo-Saxon England]], began to boom during the prosperous era known as the "Long Eighth Century".<ref>Hansen, I.L & C. Wickham. ''The Long Eighth Century: Production, Distribution, and Demand.'' Leiden: Brill, 2000. {{ISBN?}}</ref> The Scandinavians, like many other Europeans, were drawn to these wealthier "urban" centres, which soon became frequent targets of Viking raids. The connection of the Scandinavians to larger and richer trade networks lured the Vikings into Western Europe, and soon the rest of Europe and parts of the Middle East. In England, hoards of Viking silver, such as the [[Cuerdale Hoard]] and the [[Vale of York Hoard]], offer insight into this phenomenon. Barrett rejects this model, arguing that the earliest recorded Viking raids were in Western Norway and northern Britain, which were not highly economically integrated areas. He proposes a version of the economic model that points to new economic incentives stemming from a "bulge" in the population of young Scandinavian men, impelling them to engage in maritime activity due to limited economic alternatives.<ref name="Lund & Sindbæk"/>