Historic and Vintage Names
By Sophie Kihm · Updated September 2026
Across 17 pages
of 17
Short form of Jalmari, Finnish
"helmet protector"
Sleek modern short form of a classic Scandinavian name .
German
"comrade in arms; battle enclosure, battle ground"
Hildegard is an ancient name that sounds it, but it does have sweet short forms Hildie and Hilda to recommend it, as well as several illustrious historical bearers. Strong and striking, it would make…
Old Norse
"tuft of hair, tangle; dark cloud"
Lovers of Loki who don't appreciate the overt mythological reference might like this unusual Icelandic name. Traditionally spelled as Flóki, it appears in the TV show Vikings .
Norse
"Finn of Thor"
An ancient Norse name that is still in regular use in the Orkney Islands in Scotland. A famous historical bearer is Thorfinn Sigurdsson (or Thorfinn the Mighty), an 11th century Earl of Orkney.
Swedish, Norwegian, Danish
"eagle-tree"
Arvid, a Scandinavian name that's virtually unknown in the US, is one of the top baby names in Sweden . It might make a handsome, unusual choice for a parent in search of an original yet traditional…
Vana is a feminine name with multiple cultural origins. In Sanskrit, it means 'forest' or 'woodland,' connecting the bearer to nature. In Persian, it relates to 'fair' or 'beautiful.' The name also…
Eirik is a masculine name of Old Norse origin and is a traditional Scandinavian variant of Erik or Eric. The name derives from the elements 'ei' (ever, always) and 'ríkr' (ruler, king, mighty), thus…
Hilde is a feminine name of Germanic origin, functioning as both a standalone name and a diminutive of names containing the element "hild" meaning "battle" or "strife." Popular in Scandinavian…
Russian
"holy"
This common Russian name has a somewhat effete pencil-thin-moustached image here.
Old Danish, Faroese
"raven"
This ancient Viking-era name is a fresh alternative to Raven.
Latin form of Rolf
"wolf"
Rollo is a livelier, roly-poly, o-ending version of Roland. Although it sounds modern, Rollo actually was seen regularly on Latin documents in the Middle Ages, though not heard in everyday speech.…
Ginna is a feminine name with multiple possible origins. It may be a diminutive of names containing 'gin' like Virginia or Regina, a variant spelling of Jenna (meaning 'white wave' or 'fair…
"guarded by Ing"
Ing was a powerful Norse god whose name inspired several modern variations -- though Inga has become a caricatured Scandinavian choice.
Dutch and Scandinavian variation of Arnold
"ruler; strong as an eagle"
Works better as a full name than Arnie does as a nickname.
Norwegian
"gift or winner"
Even is a popular boys' name in Norway, derived from the Old Norse Eivindr. Another popular variation is Eivind, which is pronounced like Ivan.
"lord"
Freyr is the Norse god of fertility, sunlight, and peace. He features prominently in the Icelandic mythology collections the Poetic Edda and the Prose Edda , and is considered an ancestor of the…
Henning is a masculine name with Scandinavian and Germanic origins, particularly popular in Denmark, Norway, and northern Germany. It likely developed as a diminutive of Heinrich (Henry), derived…
Beyla is a feminine name with multiple possible origins. It may be a variation of Bella (meaning 'beautiful' in Italian), a form of the Hebrew name Bilhah, or connected to Beyla, a goddess in Norse…
"poetry"
This Old Norse girl name has a lovely meaning and a familiar yet distinctive sound.
"victorious protection"
The connection to Freud is a strong one, but this German name has a strong and interesting sound and great nickname potential: Ziggy, Iggy, Sim, Sid...
