Icelandic female names and meanings - choosing a beautiful name for a girl. What are Icelandic surnames More and more
Read also
5.6k (69 per week)
Iceland differs from most other countries in the world in that its inhabitants surnames are rarely available, and when addressing each other, they use a first and patronymic name.
The Icelandic patronymic consists of the father's name and the word "son" (son) or "daughter" (dottir). So, if Jon Einarsson had a son and was named Olafur, then his name will not be Olafur Einarsson, but Olafur Jonsson. This is how it sounds from famous people:
- the musician Haukura Thomasson father's name is Thomas;
- at the singer Bjork Gudmundsdottir dad's name is Gundmund;
- Miss World 1988 Linda Petursdottir father's name is Petur.
If you have to deal with two namesakes with the same names and patronymics, then they begin to be distinguished by the name of their grandfather. In this case, with a full appeal to the person, the patronymic for the grandfather is also added to the name and patronymic. For example, Jon Petursson Einarsson (Jon, son of Petur, son of Einar).
Previously, a similar tradition was observed in other Scandinavian countries, but was later abolished, and survived only in Iceland. However, nowadays in Norway, Sweden and Denmark it has again become fashionable to use this principle, replacing the surname with the patronymic. If a father in an Icelandic family has an unusual name (for example, if he is an immigrant), then before giving the children his name as a patronymic, you need to obtain permission from a special department - the Icelandic Commission on Names, which will decide whether this name can be used in Icelandic.
In some cases, Icelanders for their patronymic choose not the name of the father, but the name of the mother. for example, if they don't want to have anything to do with their biological father. This is how the famous Icelandic football player called himself, for example, Heydar Helguson, that is, Heydar, the son of Helga. So, for the Icelanders, the reservation of the character in Office Romance, who named its director Prokofy Lyudmilych, would not have been such.
In general, Icelanders, when referring to each other, use only names, even if it is the prime minister of the country.(Johanna Sigurdardottir was simply called Johanna). In certain cases, such a system shows its inconveniences. As elsewhere in the Icelandic phone books, the subscribers are listed in alphabetical order. But if everywhere the enumeration begins with the last name (which is always more rare and unique than the first name), then the Icelanders first sort by first name, and only then by patronymic. In addition, incidents often arise when Icelanders travel with their children. Customs officers of countries with a different education of names clearly know that children should have the same surname as their parents, but this is not the case here.
But sometimes Icelanders also have real, "European" surnames, although they are rarely used here. Most often, surnames "stick" to Icelanders who had foreign ancestors in the past. But even then they use the abbreviated form of their patronymic in addition to their surname. Examples of famous Icelanders with surnames: actress Anita Briem, director Baltazar Kormakur, football player Eidur Gudjohnsen.
Estimate!
Rate it!
Unlike generally accepted world rules, most Icelanders do not have a surname. To address a particular inhabitant of Iceland, it is customary to use only the name and patronymic.
Icelanders pronounce their identity as "father's name" + "son" (son) or "daughter" (dottir). If a man named Jon Einarsson has a son, whose name is Olafur, then Olafur's "surname" will not be Einarsson, but Jonsson (Jon's son, in Russian - Jonovich).For example:
- Haukur Tomasson (musician) - Haukur, son of Thomas (Haukur Tomasovich)
- Bjork Gudmundsdottir (full name of the singer Bjork) - Bjork Gudmundovna
- Linda Petursdottir (Miss World 1988) - Linda Peturovna (daughter of Petur)
If two Icelanders have the same name and patronymic, they are distinguished by the name of their grandfather. In this case, a full appeal to a person sounds like "name" + "patronymic for the father" + "patronymic for the grandfather." For example, Jon Einarsson Petursson - Jon, the son of Einar's son Petur.
Such a tradition in ancient times existed in other Scandinavian countries, but was later abolished and survived only in Iceland. However, now it is again in vogue - in Denmark, Norway and Sweden, you can again use your patronymic instead of a surname.
If in Iceland a father has an unusual name for the country (for example, he is an immigrant), then his children, before using their patronymic as a surname, must receive the approval of the agency called "Mannanafnanefnd" - the Icelandic Commission on Names. The main criterion for this is how easily a new patronymic-surname can be introduced into the Icelandic language.
Sometimes Icelanders take not the name of the father, but the name of the mother as a patronymic-surname. This happens when a person does not want to have anything to do with the biological father. For example, the full name of one of the most famous Icelandic footballers sounds like Heydar Helguson (Heydar, son of Helga).
In this regard, trolling of designer Artemy Lebedev with the nickname “Artemy Tatianovich” is completely unclear from the Icelandic point of view.
In Iceland, only his name is used to refer to a person. For example, former Icelandic Prime Minister Johanna Sigurdardottir was not addressed as "Miss Sigurdardottir", but simply "Johanna". It is thanks to this that the singer Bjork Gudmundsdottir is known all over the world, simply as "Bjork".
Such a system is somewhat inconvenient. In Iceland's phone books, people are listed alphabetically by name. First there are names with "A", then - with "B", and so on. And already among them you have to look for a person by patronymic-surname. It’s just as if the Russian phone books first listed all subscribers with the name “Alexey”, then “Andrey”, and so on.
Icelanders traveling with children are having trouble at the airport. Customs officers in non-Scandinavian countries reasonably believe that the child's “surname” should correspond to the parent's “surname”.
Iceland was inhabited by Norwegians at a time when the Scandinavian languages were still almost indistinguishable from each other. The common Scandinavian language was called "Danish" at the time. In modern times, it is called Old Norse. Iceland, developing somewhat differently than mainland Scandinavia, in modern times speaks a language that is closer to Old Norse than any other language.
Icelandic names are one single word or one composed of several, a word in Old Norse. The most common theme in names is nature or battle, as you can see by reading the lists. Icelanders are often named after the characters of Old Norse mythology.
What do they pay attention to when choosing?
It is worth talking about the structure of the names of Icelanders. As a rule, Icelanders have a first name, a second name (rarely called. The analogue is the middle name for the English) and a middle name. Only a small number of Icelanders have surnames (immigrants and those Icelanders who wanted to register their surname, as well as Icelanders who married a person from another country and took his surname).
In general, when choosing a name, Icelanders are guided by the same traditions as throughout Europe. The first name is chosen either by sound, or by meaning, or given in honor of a relative or some significant person for them (for example, a friend). The middle name is usually given in honor of someone (relative or friend). Due to the proximity of Icelandic and Old Icelandic languages, Icelanders understand the meaning of most names.
The word "Asy" is often found in the names. Translated means the highest gods in Scandinavian mythology, living in Asgard.
Popular options
Mens
- Adalbert- "noble + light". The name is of ancient Germanic origin. Adalbert is a noble man who knows what honor is.
- Adalric- "noble, noble + rich, powerful." Adalrik is a somewhat proud man who knows how to handle his money. It has the features of a king.
- Adalstein- "the main, noble + stone." Adalstein is a persistent, unflappable person who knows how to hold on well. If he needs to demonstrate calmness in a stressful situation, he copes with this task.
- Asgeir- "ace + spear". Asgeir is wise, warlike. He is a very interesting person, not devoid of talent.
- Asvid- "ace + tree, forest". Asvid has a wide soul and the ability to learn.
Buggy- "bag, bag, bundle". Buggy is cheerful and open, he has pure thoughts. He is simple and naive, capable of good deeds.- Bally- "dangerous, risky, terrible." Bally cannot live without risk. He is constantly "running up". Bally is fierce and ruthless towards his enemies, but can be a good friend and a strong defender.
- Berg- "to protect, store". Berg is a real guardian. For his friends, he becomes the strongest support, those on whom you can always rely.
- Bergstein- "to protect, store + stone". The meaning is the same as the name Berg.
- Bercy- "teddy bear, teddy bear." Bercy is strong and resourceful, and also has a cheerful spirit and a bright soul.
- Billing- "twin". Billing is smart, calm and judicious.
- Brignolve- "armor + wolf". Brignolves is cunning, capable of meanness, but if he knows that you are a good person, you will never become his victim. With everyone who deserves it, he turns out to be warm and honest.
- Björn- "bear". Björn is calm, but sometimes becomes furious. He is ready by any means to protect what is dear to him.
- Bjart- "light". As is clear from the etymology, Bjart is a bright soul, he is open and sincere, does not recognize deception and lies as an acceptable means to achieve his goals. He prefers to play fair.
- Loon- "dog, dog". Gagar knows how to find an approach to people, he is an interesting conversationalist and a loyal friend, ready to stand up for a person dear to him.
- Gapi- "yawn, open your mouth wide." Gapi is lazy and lethargic, sedentary and lack of initiative, however, he can change for the better.
- Guard- “fence, strengthening, protection”. Gard is firm, if he is sure of something, usually insists on his own, but after the conversation he always checks the information and accepts the point of view of the interlocutor if he finds confirmation of his words.
- Gautar- "gout, goth". Gautar is wild, not social, but this does not prevent him from living a normal life. He only gets along well with one or two friends.
Gedda- "Pike". Gedda is resourceful and resourceful, smart. He knows how to turn the situation in his favor.- Doug- "day". Doug is open to new beginnings, knows how to enjoy the little things.
- Dadi- the meaning is unclear. From the outside, Dadi seems funny, a little awkward. He is cheerful and frank, very straightforward.
- Duva- "pigeon". Duva is easy to climb, it is easy to persuade him to do something. As a rule, he does not have an established opinion of his own, but he tries to find it.
- Ivar- "yew + warrior or defender". Ivar is sharp on the tongue, witty. He is strong in spirit and, if he develops in this way, he will become strong in body.
- Isolve- "ice + wolf". Isolve is cold, secretive, he is a loner, and socialization is given to him with great difficulty. We can say that he does not need the company of people. Sometimes, however, even Isolve feels the need for communication, and then it is very difficult for him to find an interlocutor. If someone "opens" Isolve, can gain his trust, it is impossible to say for sure what he will find. A young man may turn out to be an empty person, or he may open up as an extremely interesting and multifaceted person.
- Iuli- "sea urchin". Iuli, as its name implies, is caustic, "poisonous". Sometimes he even hurts those people whom he would not want to hurt. In the process of life and communication with people, this feature of it can "smooth out", disappear.
- Campi- "mustache". Campi is not serious, maybe even a little childish. This is often not to the liking of the people around him. In the process of life, he can change a lot for the better.
- Ketil- "helmet". Ketil is wise and prudent. He never does something before thinking about the possible scenarios and consequences. When it comes to choosing between reason and feelings - he definitely prefers the side of reason.
- Whip- "node". Whip is a tough, even slightly cruel person. It is impossible to say for sure whether he is capable of meanness, but one cannot always expect good from him.
- Lave- "heir, descendant". Lave is smart, pleasant to talk to. He has a lot of knowledge and many interesting stories, he loves to read.
Magnus- "great". The name is of Latin origin. Magnus is majestic, even somewhat proud. It can be annoying to some people. However, if you dig deeper, it turns out that Magnus simply prefers to communicate on an equal basis with people equal to him. Prove to him your intelligence and ability to think critically - and immediately you will become his friend.- Nest- "next, close." Nest has a habit of getting attached to people so tightly that parting, especially painful, is difficult for him and can, because of him, withdraw into himself for a long time. However, if he comes across a faithful person, a wonderful pair of friends is formed.
- Ragnar- "higher powers or council + warrior or protector." Ragnar is a born leader, an excellent ruler. He is a warlike man.
- Ulv- "Wolf". Ulv is restrained, proud, somewhat aristocratic. He does not like all sorts of nonsense, despises infantile and weak people.
- Fadir- "father". Fadir is a mentor. He knows how to teach, knows how to guide.
Vitalina, Volodar, Diaz, Arnold and Ophelia ... How many fantasy, historical and simply beautiful names would be lost, how many unusual characters and destinies would not have been acquired if there was a committee on personal names in our country - such as in Iceland ...
Your name is in the hands of six people
Saying the word “committee”, you, of course, imagine a large crowd of people in a representative building, sitting at tables heaped with papers, long lists of names, and thinking hard: “Masha or Dasha? Or maybe Glasha? "
But no, the committee in Iceland is only six people: three are appointed by the Minister of Justice to serve for a period of 4 years, and three more - by the country's higher educational institutions. Just imagine, in the hands of six people is a whole country, with its names, patronymics and surnames (after all, from Iceland, the names of parents can also be included in the surnames)! And while these honorable six husbands do not give the go-ahead for the name you have chosen to your own child, you will have to call the baby "bunny" or "sun".
Why?
You may ask why and who needs it and why shouldn't parents be allowed to decide for themselves how to name their own son or daughter? It's simple, Iceland, in the fight against foreign borrowings (most of all with borrowings from Denmark), first of all defends its language. If you recall history, then in 1918 Iceland became an independent country, but the influence of Denmark remained.
Since the 1960s, Icelandic universities have taken up the eradication of foreign elements, the Register of Icelandic Names was gradually created, and in 1991, the Committee on Personal Names. The criteria for selecting a name were: adherence to the traditions of the Icelandic language, the euphony of the name, compliance with Icelandic grammar, the coincidence of the genus of the name with the gender of the child. In other words, in our country the committee would definitely be in favor of Ivan, Peter and Agafya. But the names for the girl Yaroslava and the boy Valera could not be missed.
Agent 007 or Maria Louise Victoria?
Of course, people who decide for everyone should definitely have a delicate taste and impeccable names. This is Johannes Bjarni Sigtriggsson, doctor of Icelandic grammar, writer. He is very proud of his ancestry. After all, not only does he have one of the most beautiful, consonant and, most importantly, truly Icelandic names, his children are correctly and tastefully named: daughter Zhora, sons Gudmundur, Sigtriggur and Eystein (the boys are named after two grandfathers and one Icelandic poet 14 century). In Russia, only some Matveev Vsevolod Radomirovich or Ivanov Ivan Ivanovich would be a match for Johannes. Johannes himself and other representatives of the committee consider their work very responsible and without modesty declare that without them, children would be called either a combination of numbers or names of seventeen words. That is, Agent 007 or Maria-Louise-Victoria is quite an expected reality if there is no committee.
Name fighters
“Sorry, but the Greek name Andrej does not fit the rules of Icelandic grammar. Name the child Andrean or Andreas, or maybe Ande or Andres. After all, Icelandic has the beautiful name Andri, ”such refusals are not uncommon in Iceland. Usually, from half to two-thirds of the names are approved, the rest of the options are cut off.
There are also cases when they try to challenge the decision of the Committee. So, in 2005, Jon Gunnar Kristinsson, an actor and politician, tried to change his name to Jon Gnarr, that is, change the middle name and remove the third. The committee satisfied the request by half - now he is Jon Gnarr Kristinsson, and his daughter Camilla is so named only unofficially, the committee did not miss the name, since it does not contain the Icelandic letter "C".
At home - Blair, and officially "Stúlka", which translates simply as "Girl". With such names, Blair Bjarkadottir Runarsdottir lived for sixteen years. The thing is that her parents named her after the heroine of Halldoror Laxnessom's novel "A Fish Can Sing" Blair, they managed to christen her under this name, but the Committee did not officially accept it - in Icelandic this name was listed as a man's, which means that the girl does not fit. It remained either to change the gender of the name, or the gender of the victim herself. For sixteen years she remained a "Girl", and then challenged the decision of the Committee in court, thereby proving that his word was not the last, and the fish can really sing.
More and more
Now in the Icelandic register of names, the female name Blair has appeared, which differs from the male one by the declension system. In general, the registry is growing rapidly: in 2012 it numbered a little more than 3,500 names, this year there are already 3,600, and in January the list was replenished with five new ones: male Geimar and Brimtour, female Goodna, Iselin and Ljouney. Perhaps the time is not far off when Andrej and Camilla will approve of the Greek, but, in general, the Committee is doing a useful job - strengthening Icelandic roots and developing its own, native in the country. We can only envy, or maybe rejoice - nothing interferes with our imagination. The main thing is not to overdo it - after all, since 2017, a law has already been in effect in our country that prohibits calling children offensive or ridiculous names, which means that registry offices have the right to refuse to register a child with a too unusual name.
select a country and click on it - a page with lists of popular names will open
Thingvellir Valley by Hansueli KrapfA state located on the island of Iceland and small islands around it in the north of the Atlantic Ocean. The capital is Reykjavik. Population - 317 630 (2010). Over 95% are Icelanders (descendants of the Scandinavians who speak Icelandic). Danes, Norwegians and others also live. The official language is Icelandic. According to 2006 data, 82.1% of the population belongs to the Evangelical Lutheran Church. There are also followers of the Roman Catholic Church (2.4%), the Reykjavik Free Church (2.3%), the Habnarfjordur Free Church (1.6%), and other Christian churches (2.8%). 0.9% of the population belongs to other religions, 2.6% do not identify themselves with any religion, 5.5% - other or undecided.
Iceland is the only country in Europe where most of the inhabitants do not have surnames. The latter are found in only a few. For example, former Prime Minister Geir Haarde, Nobel laureate Halldór Laxness. In 1925, a law was passed prohibiting Icelanders from taking surnames. This norm was confirmed in 1991 and 1997. However, the descendants of foreigners and those Icelanders who took the surname before 1925 were granted the right to inherit the surname.
In public life, personal names are mainly used, on the basis of which all alphabetical lists (including telephone directories) are compiled.
The second part of the naming of Icelanders is the patronym or, less commonly, the matronym. The patronymic is formed on behalf of the father + identifier son(son) or dóttir(daughter): Jón Stefánsson, Katrín Jónsdóttir, etc. In more rare cases, not the father's name is used, but the mother's name, to which the same son or dóttir. The population of Iceland is small, so problems with distinguishing namesakes usually arise. But if this happens, then an indication of the profession is added to the lists. In everyday life, to distinguish between full namesakes, they can sometimes use the name of a detail on the paternal side, for example: Jón Þórsson Bjarnarsonar.
If one company has namesakes, for example, Jón Stefánsson and Jón Þorláksson, then the former will be contacted by Jón Stefáns, and the latter by Jón Þorláks. I.e. formant son can be omitted.
There are certain legal restrictions on choosing a name for a child in Iceland. If a name has never been used in the country before, then it must be approved by the Names Committee (Mannanafnanefnd), which has existed since 1991. In this case, the main criteria are the use of only the letters of the Icelandic alphabet and the possibility of integrating the name into the Icelandic language, the possibility of its declension.
In Iceland, information on the choice of names is provided by Statistics Iceland, the country's official statistics center. On his website, you can find data on the statistics of the names of the entire population of Iceland (the first hundred), according to the most frequent names of newborns (at the moment for 2004-2007 and 2009). Separate tables show the frequency of double names (both in the general population and in newborns).
The leader of the men's birthday list in 2009 was the name Alexander, which received 49 people. The most common middle name for boys is Þór (100 adverbs). In the women's list of newborns in 2009, the leader was the name Anna with 36 adverbs. The most common middle names for girls are María and Ósk(70 nouns each). Among the entire population of the country, the most common combination of male names is Jón Þór(as of 01.01.2010 in 213 people), female - Anna maría(at 352).
For more information, see the Statistics Iceland website (see the link at the bottom of the page).
The 20 most common names of Icelanders as of 01/01/2010
(1. In brackets - data as of January 1, 2005). 2. This statistic does not take into account middle names in the case of a double name of a person; 3.f is the absolute number of name carriers.)
Mens Womens № Name f % Name f % 1 Jón (1) 5,442 3.40 Guðrún (1) 5,053 3.20 2 Sigurður (2) 4,385 2.74 Anna (2) 4,474 2.84 3 Guðmundur (3) 4,137 2.59 Sigríður (3) 3,693 2.34 4 Gunnar (4) 3,232 2.02 Kristín (4) 3,655 2.32 5 Ólafur / Olav (5) 2,883 1.80 Margrét / Margrjet / Margret (5) 3,011 1.91 6 Einar (6) 2,530 1.58 Helga (6) 2,842 1.80 7 Kristján / Kristian / Christian (8) 2,383 1.49 Sigrún (7) 2,609 1.65 8 Magnús (7) 2,378 1.49 Ingibjörg (8) 2,334 1.48 9 Stefán / Stefan (9) 2,207 1.38 Jóhanna (9) 1,994 1.26 10 Jóhann (10) 1,979 1.24 María (10) 1,920 1.22 11 Björn (11) 1,741 1.09 Elín (11) 1,634 1.04 12 Árni (12) 1,643 1.03 Katrín (14) 1,423 0.90 13 Bjarni (13) 1,562 0.98 Hildur (17) 1,362 0.86 14 Helgi (14) 1,525 0.95 Ragnheiður (15) 1,332 0.84 15 Arnar (17) 1,519 0.95 Guðbjörg (12) 1,316 0.83 16 Halldór (15) 1,480 0.93 Ásta (13) 1,312 0.83 17 Pétur / Pjetur (16) 1,412 0.88 Erla (16) 1,294 0.82 18 Kristinn (18) 1,333 0.83 Lilja (20) 1,242 0.79 19 Gísli (19) 1,295 0.81 Guðný (18) 1,217 0.77 20 Ragnar (20) 1,277 0.80 Ólöf (19) 1,174 0.74 The most frequent names of newborns, 2009
(in brackets - the place of the name in the previous year)
Mens Womens A place Name A place Name 1 Alexander (6-7) 1 Anna (1) 2 Daníel (9) 2 Rakel (6) 3 Jón (2) 3 Emilía / Emelía (2-3) 4 Sigurður (16-19) 4 Katrín (2-3) 5 Viktor / Victor (1) 5–6 Kristín (11-12) 6 Arnar (4-5) 5–6 Viktoría (17-19) 7 Kristján / Kristian / Christian (4-5) 7–8 Aníta / Anita (9-10) 8–9 Gunnar (6-7) 7–8 Ísabella / Ísabel / Isabella / Isabel (17-19) 8–9 Kristófer (16-19) 9 Margrét / Margrjet / Margret (25-27) 10 Stefán / Stefan (12-14) 10–11 Eva (11-12) 11 Guðmundur (10-11) 10–11 Sara (4) 12 Aron (3) 12–14 Elísabet / Elísabeth (7) 13 Gabríel (12-14) 12–14 Embla (15) 14–16 Einar (22-24) 12–14 Íris (37–41) 14–16 Matthías / Mattías / Mathías (16-19) 15–16 Guðrún (5) 14–16 Mikael / Mikkael / Mikkel (20-21) 15–16 Katla (37–41)