Scandinavian Names
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About this list
Scandinavian names are a hot group, attracting new interest from parents beyond the Scandinavian countries. The Scandinavian names here include names with origins in Sweden, Norway, and Denmark, but not Finland, since Finnish is not a Scandinavian language. We also include Norse names here, many of them from Nordic mythology.
Scandinavian names that have found favor in the wider world include, for girls, the royal Astrid, the botanical Dahlia, the mythological Freya, and the short form Mia. For boys, popular Scandinavian names include the hard rock Axel, the gentle Anderson, and the expansive Magnus.
Scandinavian names trending now include Leif, Signe, and Sunniva. Names from Norse mythology such as Thor and Odin will also become more popular.
This list includes Swedish baby names, Norwegian baby names, and Danish baby names, ordered by their current popularity on Nameberry.
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The names
Mia
Italian word name or Scandinavian short form of Maria
"drop of the sea"
Mia is an appealingly unfussy multicultural name that has enjoyed a meteoric rise up the charts and is now firmly among the ten top girl names . Mia has surpassed its mother name Maria as the Number…
Axel
Scandinavian variation of Absalom
"father of peace"
A classic in its native Scandinavia, Axel has a cool rock 'n' roll flavor in the US, thanks to Guns N' Roses' Axl Rose (born William). With its distinctive letter 'x', it has an effortlessly cool…
Hallie
English
"dweller at the meadow by the manor"
Hallie -- it rhymes with alley and is not to be confused with Halle or Hailey or Holly -- is one of those comfy nicknamish names that are in favor in these complicated times. Hallie's popularity has…
Freya
Norse
"a noble woman"
Freya has long been popular in the U.K. but has only taken off in the US in the last decade, along with the entire category of mythological names. Derived from the Old Norse name Freyja, meaning…
Kaia
Latin, Scandinavian, or Hawaiian
"to rejoice or sea"
The new Maia, the next Kayla, Kaia has been on the charts since the year 2000. You might see it as a female form of the also-rising Kai, which means sea in Hawaiian and is sometimes used for girls as…
Tate
English from Norse
"cheerful"
A strong single-syllable surname with a joyful meaning, Tate is finding a place on more and more birth certificates. Former Spice Girl Emma Bunton named her second son Tate Lee. Tate also has a…
Dahlia
Flower name, from Swedish surname
"Dahl's flower"
One of the flower names, used occasionally in Britain (where it's pronounced DAY-lee-a). It seems to have recovered from what was perceived as a slightly affected la-di-dah air. The flower was named…
Andrea
Feminine variation of Andrew, Greek
"strong and manly"
Andrea — a feminine form of Andrew (and a male name in several European cultures) — comes with a good selection of pronunciations — ANN-dree-a, AHN-dree-a, or ahn-DRAY-a — each with a slightly…
Eric
Old Norse
"eternal ruler"
Eric is derived from the Old Norse name Eiríkr, from the components ei , meaning "ever," and ríkr , "rule." It was adopted by English speakers in the mid-nineteenth century, who were already familiar…
Anderson
English from Scandinavian
"son of Anders"
Rugged and tough, Anderson shot up quite a bit on the pop list in the 2000's, no doubt in large part due to the prominence of white-haired cable newsman Anderson Coopers, more recently, it has…
Astrid
Scandinavian
"divinely beautiful"
Astrid has been a Scandinavian royal name since the tenth century, and many people associated it with the Swedish author of the Pippi Longstocking stories, Astrid Lindgren. Astrid is derived from the…
Bo
Norse nickname
"to live"
A popular name in Denmark, in this country Bo has some cowboy swagger and a lot of substance in its minimal two letters. In Mandarin Chinese, Bo means "wave".
Odin
Variation of Óðinn, Old Norse
"god of frenzy; poetic fury"
Odin is the name of the supreme Norse god of art, culture, wisdom, and law — who was handsome, charming, and eloquent into the bargain. The name projects a good measure of strength and power and has…
Gunner
Scandinavian variation of Gunther
"bold warrior"
The kind of nouveau macho name favored by NRA-leaning parents, Gunner could appeal to those who like other more military or gun inspired names, such as Hunter, Remington, and Cannon. It got a boost…
Erik
Spelling variation of Eric, Old Norse
"eternal ruler"
While substituting a C for a K is a modern trend, Erik is in fact the traditional spelling of the name, derived from the Old Norse Eiríkr and introduced to the English speaking world in the…
Emanuel
Spelling variation of Emmanuel, Hebrew
"God is with us"
Fewer letters does not always mean easier—the traditional spelling is the one most people will recognize.
Halle
Modern invented name or diminutive of Harald, English or Norse
"Thor's stone"
Until the beautiful actress Halle Berry inspired hundreds of parents to emulate her name, it was the diminutive Swedish families used for their sons christened Harald. Now, in a complete turnaround,…
Gunnar
Scandinavian variation of Gunther
"bold warrior"
A key figure in Norse legend and a traditional Scandinavian favorite making inroads here.
Ronald
Scottish, Norse
"ruler's counselor"
A strong, if slightly dated sounding choice, Ronald made the US Top 10 in the late 1930s through into the mid-1940s, before it became heavily associated with President Reagan, as well as with the…
Valentin
French, German, Russian, Czech, Scandinavian variation of Valentine
"strength, health"
Romantic name used throughout Europe, though sure to lead to pronunciation problems here. Though it's never been too widely used in the US, it's quite popular in Switzerland, France, Austria, and…
