one of the Scandinavian peoples who invaded and settled parts of Russia and Ukraine from the 8th to the 11th centuries, and who formed the bodyguard of the Byzantine emperor (Varangian Guard) in the late 10th and 11th centuries
adjective
2.
of or relating to the Varangians
Word origin
C18: from Medieval Latin Varangus, from Medieval Greek Barangos, from Old Norse Væringi, probably from vār pledge
Varangian in American English
(vəˈrændʒiən)
noun
a member of a Scandinavian people that settled in Russia in the 9th cent. and, under Rurik, founded the first Russian dynasty