Icelandic Last Names That Are Wildly Popular & Fascinating
Naming inspo for your little bumbubúi (aka “belly dweller”).
William Shakespeare had the right idea when he asked, “What’s in a name?” Ironically, Romeo Montague, the star-crossed lover who uttered those words, should have actually asked, “What’s in a last name?” as that was at the heart of his story. In fact, in most societies, a surname is the crux of a person’s identity, carrying with it traditions, origin, history, and meaning. But the passing down of surnames is oft unique. For example, the baby naming convention in Iceland is pretty fascinating if you’re not familiar with it. Unlike the way last names work generationally in the United States, Iceland (and other countries like Russia) places a different emphasis on familial ties when it comes to names. That being said, everyone in a family may not have the same surname, and that’s because of the way naming works. Let us break it down for you.
Consider this: In the U.S., oftentimes one partner takes the last name of the other partner after marriage. This becomes the family’s last name. In Iceland, this isn’t the case. When two people marry, they don’t commonly take on a different last name that becomes the family name. Rather, they keep their pre-marriage name. In the U.S. when a family brings a child into the world, patriarchal norms dictate the child takes the last name of the father. While that may not always be the case in modern society, the child still usually takes the family’s last name.
Now here’s how it works in Iceland. When a child is born, parents enjoy time with the baby before even committing to any names. We’re talking a few solid months before the baby has a name — this way the parent or parents can get to know the baby and pick out a moniker that feels fitting. They may name the baby whatever they want, but for a surname (which really isn’t a surname at all), the baby is given a name that corresponds to its father’s name — a patronym. Like in many Slavic cultures, sons and daughters have different iterations of their fathers’ names — each name has a suffix that literally means “son” or “daughter.” So if a couple by the names of Anna Kristjánsdóttir and Magnús Pétursson have a baby girl and name her Kristín, her surname (or patronym) would be Magnúsdóttir, because she is the daughter of Magnús.
It can be a little tricky to understand if you’re not familiar with the naming convention in Iceland, but it’s actually quite interesting and makes a lot of sense as far as naming goes. Surnames that mean “child of” date back millennia but many countries simply have family surnames that are taken on by the whole family tree. Icelandic names have evolved, though, too and now families are free to use matronymic (mother’s) names as well as patronymic names if they so choose.
This isn’t the only fascinating marker of Icelandic names — people who live in Iceland have to choose from a pre-approved list of first names for their babies, too. If they want to choose a name not on the list, it has to be approved by the Icelandic Naming Committee. Yes, that is a real thing. Fascinating, right? Anyway, if you want to check out some of the most popular Icelandic last names (which are really patronyms!), find a list below.
Icelandic Last Names
1. Jónsdóttir
Meaning: Daughter of Jón, God has been gracious.
Origin: Icelandic
2. Jónsson
Meaning: Son of Jón, God has been gracious.
Origin: Icelandic
3. Kristjánsdóttir
Meaning: Daughter of Kristján, follower of Christ.
Origin: Estonian, Icelandic
4. Kristjánsson
Meaning: Son of Kristján, follower of Christ.
Origin: Estonian, Icelandic
5. Ólafsdóttir
Meaning: Daughter of Olafur, ancestor’s relic.
Origin: Old Norse, Icelandic
6. Ólafsson
Meaning: Son of Olafur, ancestor’s relic.
Origin: Old Norse, Icelandic
7. Magnúsdóttir
Meaning: Daughter of Magnús, or great.
Origin: Icelandic
8. Magnússon
Meaning: Son of Magnús, or great.
Origin: Icelandic
9. Jóhannsdóttir
Meaning: Daughter of Jóhann, noble and bright.
Origin: Icelandic
10. Jóhannsson
Meaning: Son of Jóhann, noble and bright.
Origin: Icelandic
11. Björnsdóttir
Meaning: Daughter of Björn, bear.
Origin: Icelandic, Danish, German, Dutch
12. Björnsson
Meaning: Son of Björn, bear.
Origin: Icelandic, Danish, German, Dutch
13. Gunnarsdóttir
Meaning: Daughter of Gunnars, brave warrior.
Origin: Swedish, Icelandic
14. Gunnarsson
Meaning: Son of Gunnars, brave warrior.
Origin: Swedish, Icelandic
15. Helgadóttir
Meaning: Daughter of Helgi, holy.
Origin: Old Norse, Icelandic
16. Helgason
Meaning: Son of Helgi, holy.
Origin: Old Norse, Icelandic
17. Karlsdóttir
Meaning: Daughter of Karl, free.
Origin: German, Icelandic
18. Karlsson
Meaning: Son of Karl, free.
Origin: German, Icelandic
19. Pétursdóttir
Meaning: Daughter of Peturs, strong.
Origin: Latin, Greek, Icelandic
20. Pétursson
Meaning: Son of Peturs, strong.
Origin: Latin, Greek, Icelandic
21. Ragnarsdóttir
Meaning: Daughter of Ragnar, warrior of God.
Origin: Icelandic
22. Ragnarsson
Meaning: Son of Ragnar, warrior of God.
Origin: Icelandic
23. Árnason
Meaning: Son of Árna.
Origin: Anglo-Saxon
24. Árnadóttir
Meaning: Daughter of Árna.
Origin: Icelandic
25. Ásgeirsdóttir
Meaning: The last name of the daughter of Ásgeirs.
Origin: Icelandic
26. Gísladóttir
Meaning: This means the daughter of Gisli.
Origin: Icelandic
27. Gíslason
Meaning: Son of Gísla.
Origin: Icelandic
28. Guðjónsdóttir
Meaning: It means daughter of Guðjóns.
Origin: Icelandic
29. Guðmundsdóttir
Meaning: The daughter of Guðmunds.
Origin: Icelandic
30. Guðmundsson
Meaning: Son of Guðmunds.
Origin: Icelandic
31. Guðjónsson
Meaning: Guðjóns.
Origin: Icelandic
32. Waage
Meaning: It refers to weights, or a machine used to weigh items.
Origin: Icelandic, Norwegian
33. Blöndal
Meaning: Blonde hair person.
Origin: Russian, Icelandic
34. Möller
Meaning: Mill operator or miller.
Origin: Norwegian, Scandinavian
35. Briem
Meaning: Psuedo foreign.
Origin: Germanic
36. Hall
Meaning: Big rock or stone.
Origin: Old Norse, Icelandic
37. Schram
Meaning: Cleft in a rock or someone who lives near a rock.
Origin: Icelandic
38. Beck
Meaning: Refers to a brook or stream.
Origin: Germanic
39. Gröndal
Meaning: A green dale.
Origin: Swedish
40. Gray
Meaning: It doesn’t have a specific meaning.
Origin: Scandinavian
41. Strom
Meaning: Related to the Nordic god of thunder and lightning, Thor.
Origin: Nordic
42. Bui
Meaning: Dweller.
Origin: Nordic
43. Almr
Meaning: Elm tree.
Origin: Scandinavian
44. Araujo
Meaning: A type of climbing plant, with white, fragrant flowers.
Origin: Portuguese, Galician
45. Agnarsson
Meaning: Son of Agnar, son of a warrior, terror or edge of the sword.
Origin: Norse
46. Albertsson
Meaning: Albert’s son, noble or bright.
Origin: German
47. Alexandersdóttir
Meaning: Daughter of Alexander or defender of men.
Origin: Greek
48. Andersen
Meaning: Manly or son of Anders.
Origin: English
49. Annadóttir
Meaning: Daughter of Anna or grace.
Origin: Hebrew
50. Aradóttir
Meaning: Sky’s platform or female offspring of Ara.
Origin: Icelandic
51. Arason
Meaning: Son of Ara or altar of the sky.
Origin: Latin
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