Tag Archives: Swedish Names

Tone

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Gender: Feminine
Origin: Norwegian
Meaning: “new Thor; young Thor.”
(TOH-neh).

The name is a more modern Norwegian form of then Old Norse female name Torný, which is composed of the elements Tor (Thor, which means “thunder” but in this case the name was most likely created in reference to the god) and ný meaning “new; young.” Other Norwegian forms include Todne, Todni, Torny, Tønni (a Norwegian dialectal form from Numedal in Buskerud) and Tonni. Swedish forms are Tona, Toni and Tony. Faroese forms are Tóna and Torný and the Icelandic form is Þórný.

The designated name-day in Norway is November 2.

Ingalill

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Gender: Feminine
Origin: Swedish/Norwegian
(IN-ga-LIL)

The name is a smush of the Old Norse female name Inga and Lill which can either be in reference to the Swedish word lille meaning “little; small” or Lilly which is a Swedish form of Lily and a diminutive form of Elisabeth. The name was quite common in the 1940-50s, but is now considered rather dated in Scandinavia. The name is borne by Norwegian Politician Ingalill Olsen (b.1955) and its designated name-day in Sweden is October 25.

Ursula

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ursulaBritishMuseumGender: Feminine
Origin: Latin
Meaning: “little she-bear; she-cub; little female bear.”
Eng (ERS-uh-LAH)

The name is of Latin origin but is suggested that is may be a latinization of the old Germanic female name Yrsa meaning “bear” and was popularized by a medieval Christian saint said to be martyred in Cologne. Not much is known about the saint, other that she was martyred under Huns along with 11,000 other virgins, which is now believed to be a misprint from the written source of the legend. What is known for sure is that there was a basilica built in honour of a virgin Christian martyr in Cologne and from this arose several different legends referring to a St. Ursula and St. Cordula. According to the legend, St. Ursula was a British princess who was sent by her father to Germany to marry a prince, along with her, were sent 11,000 maidens, however,  her ship was taken off course due to a storm and instead ended up in France where she then decided to do a pan-European Christian pilgramage before meeting her future husband. She made a pilgramage to Rome where she tried to pursuade the pope to do a pilgramage with her and her 11,ooo companions. When she reached cologne she and her companions were massacred by the Huns.

The legend is based off of a 4th century inscription written in the Basilica which was built in the saint’s honour. It is believed that the 11,ooo handmaidens was confused with a female martyr named Undecimilia, Undecimila or Xemilia and that the abbreviation XI.M.V was misread as a number. The same saint has also been referred to under the names Pinnosa or Vinnosa. The name was quite prevalent in Great Britain before the Reformation and went out of usage afterwards. The name is also borne by Swiss actress Ursula Andress (b. 1936). It has also appeared in popular culture as the name of the evil sea-witch in Disney’s the Little Mermaid and as the name of the wife of Nigellus Phineas Black in the Harry Potter Series.

In Poland, the name is associated with a great piece of Polish Literature written by Jan Kochanowski. Known as Laments (Treny) 1580, they are a series of 19 elegies which talk about the author’s grief after the death of his two and half year old daughter Orszola (Urzula) which he refers to as the Slavic Sappho.

Other forms of the name are (divided alphabetically by nationality):

  • Orsula (Corsican)
  • Uršula (Croatian/Czech/Slovakian/Slovenian)
  • Yrsa (Danish/Faroese/Icelandic/Norwegian/Swedish)
  • Orsel (Dutch)
  • Ursule/Ursuline (French)
  • Ursula/Ursel (German/Dutch/Estonian/Finnish/Spanish: German diminutive forms are Ulla, Uli and Uschi)
  • Orsolya (Hungarian: or-SHOH-lah was the 56th most popular female name in Hungary in 2006)
  • Úrsúla (Icelandic)
  • Orsina/Orsola/Orsolina (Italian)
  • Ursa (Latin)
  • Urzula (Latvian)
  • Uršulė (Lithuanian)
  • Urszula/Orszola/Warszula (Polish: Latter two forms are older forms and are rarely used. Diminutive form is Ula and Urszulka. Older diminutive forms are Ulicha and Ulita)
  • Úrsula (Portuguese)
  • Ursetta/Ursina/Urschla (Romansch)
  • Urška (Slovenian: originally a diminutive now used as an independent given name, it was the 51st most popular female name in Slovenia in 2005)
  • Orscheli (Swiss-German: ORSH-lee)

There are a few male equivalents which include:

  • Orso/Orsino/Ursio/Ursino (Italian)
  • Urs (German)
  • Ursinus/Ursus (Latin)
  • Ursyn/Ursycjusz (Polish: very rare)
  • Ursin/Urosin (Romansch)

Viking

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vikingGender: Masculine
Origin: Old Norse/Swedish/Norwegian
Meaning: “sea fearer; sea expedition.”
Scan (VEE-king); Eng (VYE-king).

You must be wondering why I’d post a name like this, just last week, we were barraged in the news by a little boy named Falcon who seemingly took flight on a hot air balloon. Viking has a similar  feel, and yet, you must be asking, is this really legit?

Viking has been used as a male first name on and off in Scandinavia since the middle ages. It even boasts its own name-day in the Swedish-Finnish name-day calendar: October 19. In modern society, the term is used in reference to a particular culture and group of people who existed in Scandinavia in the early Middle Ages, however, this is a modern term and the Vikings themselves never referred to themselves as “Vikings” in a cultural sense or in reference to a distinct group of individuals. In Old Norse víkingr is a verb used to describe a sea-fearing expedition while víking is a noun that refers to someone who takes part in these expeditions. The term is found on several rune stones throughout Scandinavia. In Anglo-Saxon the word was wicing and appears in the 9th-century Anglo-Saxon poem Widsith in which it is used to refer to a pirate. Adam of Bremen also uses it to describe a pirate in his writings. The term disappeared from the English lexicon by the end of the Middle Ages and was revived in the 18th century as Viking, this time referring to a distinct group of people, culture and period in history. In modern Scandinavian languages, the term Viking is used more as a term to describe specific people within the Norse culture who went out on sea expeditions, and not necessarily a term to describe a particular culture or group of people.

Other forms of the name include the Icelandic Vikingur.

Wendel, Wendelin

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401px-Pfärrenbach_Wandmalerei_Hl_WendelinGender: Masculine
Origin: German/Dutch
Meaning: “vandal.”
Eng (WEN-dle); Germ (VEHN-del)
Eng (WEN-deh-LIN); Germ (VEHN-deh-LEEN)

Wendel is derived from an Old Germanic element wendal meaning “a Vandal” someone who is a member of a Germanic tribe of the same name. It is the name of a municipality in northeastern Saarland Germany, which was named for St. Wendelin of Trier. St. Wendelin of Trier (577-617) was a German hermit and abbot known for his piety. He is a popular saint among German-speaking Catholics and is regarded as the patron saint of herdsmen and country people. The designated name-day is October 20 and October 22, depending on the country. Wendelin was originally a diminutive form of Wendel. Other forms of the name include:

  • Vendelin (Croatian)
  • Vendelín (Czech/Slovak)
  • Wendell (English)
  • Vendel (Danish/Hungarian/Norwegian/Swedish)
  • Vandalius (Lithuanian)
  • Wandal/Wandalin (Old High German)

Feminine forms are:

  • Vendelina (Croatian)
  • Vendelína (Czech/Slovak)
  • Vendele (Danish)
  • Wendy (English)
  • Wendela/Wendeltsje/Wendeline (Dutch)
  • Wendelina (German)
  • Venla (Finnish)
  • Vendella (Latvian)
  • Vendela (Swedish: was the 93rd most popular female name in Sweden in 2006)

Fionnghall, Fingal

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800px-Staffa_Fingal's_Cave_14712Gender: Masculine
Origin: Irish/Scottish/Swedish
Meaning: “white stranger, fair stranger.”

The name is from the Gaelic fionn meaning “white; fair” and gall meaning “stranger.” In Ireland, it is the name of an area in county Dublin, it was settled by Vikings in the early middle ages, and the name Fingal was given in reference to the fair-haired inhabitants. A language known as Fingalian, (now extinct) was spoken by the inhabitants till the mid-1800s. It was a mix of Old Norse, Anglo-Saxon and Gaelic. It was also the name of the hero in the English prose epic written by James Macpherson known as the Poems of Ossian and was the middle name of Oscar Wilde. In the Inner Hebrides of Scotland, it is the name of a cave on the uninhabited Isle of Staffa. It was popularized as a tourist destination after Felix Mendelsohn composed an overture in 1829, entitled Die Hebriden, which were inspired by the echoes he heard in the cave. In Sweden, its designated name-day is October 17.

Flemming

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solitude-in-brugesGender: Masculine
Origin: Danish/Norwegian
Meaning: “from Flanders.”
(FLEM-ming).

He has a modern surname appeal but is actually derived from the Old Norse male name Flaemingr meaning “from Flanders.” In recent years, it has remained a staple in Denmark and is occasionally used in the other Scandinavia countries, though rather sparsely. Other forms of the name include Fleming and the Icelandic Flemmingur. Its designated name-day is October 16. The name is borne by Danish news journalist Flemming Rose (b. 1958) who sparked controversy in 2005 when he commissioned drawings of the prophet Muhammad in the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten.

Jarl

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Gender: Masculine
Origin: Swedish/Norwegian/Icelandic
Meaning: “chief, nobleman, earl.”
(YAHRL)

The name comes from the Old Norse word for chief, it shares an etymological relation with the English word and given name Earl. In Norse mythology, it is borne by the son of the god Ríg and Modir. His father taught him how to read, magic and to understand the language of birds. Jarl is considered the progenitor of the warrior race. Its designated name-day is October 11.

Bror

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Bror_Gender: Masculine
Origin: Swedish/Norwegian
Meaning: “brother.”

The name, which in modern Swedish and Norwegian still means brother, is from an Old Nordic name, Bróðir meaning “brother.” It was originally bestowed on a second son. It was very common in the 19th-century, and is now considered rather dated in Scandinavia. There is a more unusual Latinized Danish form, Broderus. Its designated name-day is October 5. The name was borne by Bror von Blixen-Finecke (b.1886-1946) a key subject in the novel, (written by his wife Karen Von Blixen) Out of Africa. Other forms of the name include the Dutch Broder, German Bruder, the East Frisian Broer; the diminutive is Brörke (Credit goes to Capucine for suggesting the latter four variants).

Erling

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wh_1st_earl_of_clarendonGender: Masculine
Origin: Swedish/Norwegian
Meaning: “descendant of the Chief.”
(AIR-ling)

He has a surnamey appeal and not a bad ring. This popular Scandinavian male name is a derivative of the Old Norse word jarl meaning “chief” in modern English this would correspond with the word earl. Its designated name-day is October 11. An Icelandic form is Erlingur.