Norse Names

An ancient name that's been used by the Norwegian royal family; still popular there but not likely to appeal to many American parents.

Found as a first name primarily in baseball books giving the stats on the late New York Yankee Thurman Munson.

An unknown, strong Scandinavian name related to Tor/Thor, the Norse god of thunder, that would fit in perfectly here.

Older form of Helge, and a masculine form of Helga.

Virtually never heard in this country, with a quirky quality.

Heidrun, which is occasionally used in modern Europe, was the name of a mythological goat who nibbled from the tree of life, transforming her milk into mead. You might think of Heidrun as a cross between Heidi and Gudrun, but there's a good reason this one's never caught on in the US: It's still stuck on that mythical Norse hillside.

A literary surname that's short, to the point, and very rare. It combines several origins: Scandinavian meaning "high ground", Scottish meaning "stranger", and English meaning "wild boar" (hello, secret animal name!).

This royal but common Scandinavian name is, in the US, linked to a single figure -- Notre Dame football coach Knute Rockne. Could easily be confused with Newt.

Ingmar is known here almost solely through Swedish director Ingmar Bergman. Ing was the powerful Norse god of fertility and peace, who lent his name to several mortal variations, more notably to English-speakers the female Ingrid.

The Old Norse and modern Norwegian word name Fjord, which refers to a passage in the sea, could work for children of both genders.

Tate would be much more user-friendly in this country.

Torvald, not to be confused with Torvill of skating fame, is a Norse name which might be of interest to parents looking for Thor-related options. Torvald is most familiar in the English-speaking world as the infuriatingly sexist husband of Nora in Ibsen's play A Doll's House, which may account for its low usage. However, Linus Torvalds, inventor of Linux , might put the name into a more positive light, especially in Silicon Valley.

One of the Valkyries, still clad in heavy armor.

A strong, powerful choice, ancestor of the modern Superboy Names. Knut is the name of the patron saint of Denmark; Knute Rockne was a legendary Notre Dame football coach. Knute is the middle name of Jessica Simpson's son Ace, in honor of his paternal great-grandfather.

This mythological name of the Norse god of winter sounds, uh, ill.

One of the few K names that sounds middle-aged.

At the very least, shorten it to Hilda.