Einar
From Vinland Saga
Einar is a main character of Vinland Saga Season 2, a farmer from northern England who loses his family and freedom to Viking raids and is bought as a slave by the same master as Thorfinn. His warmth and stubborn hope become Thorfinn's way back to life. He is voiced by Shunsuke Takeuchi in Japanese and Alejandro Saab in English (Netflix dub).
About Einar
Einar is a farmer from northern England whose village was raided, family killed and freedom sold to a Danish slave trader. Bought by the same master as Thorfinn, he becomes the broken warrior's first real friend, warm, stubborn and talkative where Thorfinn is silent. Einar's simple hope for a farm and a family gives Thorfinn something to protect, and his loyalty carries them both through the Slave Arc.
Appearance
Einar is a sturdy young man with blond hair, an open, expressive face and the build of someone raised on farm work. Unlike Thorfinn he wears his feelings plainly, grief, anger, joy and embarrassment all show at once. On Ketil's farm he dresses in a slave's rough clothes, and over the seasons of work his frame strengthens; the animators let his posture straighten as his hope returns, the opposite journey to Thorfinn's haunted slouch.
Personality
Einar is warm, talkative, stubborn and hopelessly sincere, everything the hollowed-out Thorfinn is not. He has a farmer's values: work honestly, protect your family, marry, build something that lasts. He is quick to anger at injustice and quick to apologise, hopeless in a fight but brave in the ways that matter, standing up for Arnheid and for Thorfinn when both are defenceless. His ordinary decency is the Slave Arc's argument that a good life needs no glory.
Background & Story
Einar farmed with his mother and sister in northern England until a Danish raid killed his family and a slave trader carried him to Denmark. Bought by Ketil to clear forest land, he is paired with a silent, broken slave who barely responds to anything, Thorfinn. Einar's persistence slowly cracks that shell: the two men plant wheat together, endure the farm's cruelties together, and become brothers in everything but blood. Einar falls quietly for Arnheid, the master's attendant, and her fate becomes the wound that tests both men's new beliefs when King Canute's army comes for the farm.
Key Relationships
- Thorfinn: His fellow slave and chosen brother; Einar's friendship gives Thorfinn a reason to live, and Thorfinn's vow gives Einar a future to aim at.
- Arnheid: The fellow slave he loves from a distance, kindly, hopelessly, and with complete respect for her impossible position.
- Ketil: His master, whose early generosity curdles into violence that Einar must survive without becoming a killer himself.
- Snake: The farm's head retainer, who treats the slaves with a fairness Einar learns to recognise and respect.
Quick Answers
How old is Einar?
Einar is 20 years old when he is introduced at the start of Season 2.
Who voices Einar?
Shunsuke Takeuchi voices him in Japanese. In English, Alejandro Saab voices him in the Netflix dub and Ian Sinclair in the Crunchyroll dub of Season 2.
Is Einar a fighter?
No, Einar is a farmer with almost no combat skill. His strength in the story is loyalty, endurance and heart, not fighting.
