Cool & Badass Viking Last Names and Meanings

Vikings had no fixed family names. Iceland still uses that patronymic system today. As you can see, a brother and sister can have different last names. I have hand-picked a list of Viking last names and their meanings.

List Of Badass & Cool Viking Last Names And Their Meanings:

Hjort

‘Hart.’

Thorgilsson

Thor and gísl, hostage, so Thor’s pledge.

Estridsen

Son of Estrid (ás is god, and fríðr, beautiful). Sweyn II used his mother’s title because his claim to the Danish crown came through her.

Ebbesen

Boar.

Grenske

Man from Grenland, a district in southern Norway.

Alfsson

Son of Alf, an elf, from álfr.

Hauksdottir

Hawk.

Oddsson

Point of a blade.

Heppni

Heppni is from Icelandic sagas and has a meaning that I like: lucky.

Kjartansson

Son of Kjartan, a Norse take on Irish Muirchertach, ‘mariner’.

Kleiven

Steep path.

Storrada

Strong in counsel or haughty.

MacManus

Son of Magnus, Latin for great, that Norse kings adopted.

Doyle

Irish Dubhghall, dark foreigner. Arthur Conan Doyle was knighted by King Edward VII.

Toft

homestead/plot

MacLachlan

From Lochlann, Gaelic for Norway, land of lochs and fjords. Save

Knudsen

Danish for son of Knud, which means knot. Cnut the Great ruled England and Norway at once. There is a legend that has him order waves to stop.

Wray

Nook.

Heim

Home, farmstead, and heimr in Heimskringla, circle of the world.

Skakke

Askew. Erling Skakke’s head leaned after a neck wound, as such men called him Erling Crooked.

Skjold

Shield, and a shield wall is symbolizing a crew that lives or dies as a team.

Eide

Isthmus.

Treskegg

Tree beard, a pirate’s byname in Orkneyinga saga.

Frostason

Frosti’s son, and frosti means frost.

Bluetooth

Blue tooth, maybe from a dead tooth that looked dark. Harald Blátönn united Denmark and became Christian. Wireless Bluetooth is has these roots and its logo combines his runic initials.

Asvaldsen

Ás, god, and valdr, ruler.

Herjolfsson

Army wolf. Bjarni Herjólfsson saw North America from his ship.

Booth

Búð, a booth or temporary hut. William Booth founded Salvation Army in London.

Rogne

Rowan, and in myth Thor saved himself from a flood by grabbing a rowan.

Orvar

Arrow. Örvar-Oddr lived three hundred years (or actually 360). He tripped over the skull of a horse and a snake killed him. Save

Gestsson

Gestr is meaning guest.

Thurston

English form of Þorsteinn, which is from Thor and steinn, stone.

MacSorley

Summer traveller, from Sumarliði, a raider who sailed in summer.

Blot

Sacrifice. Blot-Sveinn restored pagan sacrifices at Uppsala.

Sterki

“Strong.” Styrbjörn the Strong lost to his uncle at Fýrisvellir, near Uppsala.

Eik

Oak.

Haengr

Male salmon.

Gufa

“Steam,” a settler’s byname, and I love how strange it is.

Quarmby

It has origins in kvern, a mill or quern.

Gaitskell

Goat shieling, a hut for goats on summer pasture. Hugh Gaitskell headed Britain’s Labour Party.

Egilsson

Egil’s son. Egill probably comes from egg, edge of a blade.

Thorsen

Son of Tore, a short form of Thor names.

Langbrok

Long breeches. Hallgerd refused her husband Gunnar a lock of hair for his bowstring.

Arvidsson

Arnviðr: ǫrn, eagle, and viðr, tree.

Surt

Black, dark. Thorstein Surt added a week to summer each seventh year.

Ingleby

Farm of Englishmen, so called by Danish settlers.

Starkadsson

Starkaðr: sterkr, strong. Odin gave Starkad three lifetimes and Thor cursed him to do a villainy in each.

Ingebrigtsen

Ing and bjartr, bright. Jakob Ingebrigtsen won Olympic gold over fifteen hundred metres in Tokyo.

Berg

“Mountain.”

Vaage

Vágr, a cove or creek with calm water for boats.

Thorolfsson

Thor’s wolf. Thorolf Mostrarskegg cast his high-seat pillars into the sea.

Vigfusson

Eager for battle. Gudbrand Vigfusson co-wrote a standard Icelandic-English dictionary with Richard Cleasby.

Ragnarsson

Ragnar’s son, and Ragnar comes from regin, counsel of gods, with herr, army.

Eysteinsson

Island stone.

Vinje

Pasture. Poet Aasmund Olavsson Vinje titled himself after a farm in Telemark.

Vik

Bay, inlet. One theory derives Viking from vík, which makes a Viking someone from a bay.

Lamont

Lǫgmaðr, lawman.

Bragason

Chief, foremost. Bragi Boddason is the earliest skald with a verse we know today.

Litilvolva

Little seeress. She’s in a Greenland saga and has a hood of lambskin and gloves of catskin.

Hov

Temple, hall. Hof might mean a heathen temple or a chieftain’s hall.

Thorvaldsen

Son of Thorvald, Thor’s ruler. Danish sculptor Bertel Thorvaldsen (1770-1844) spent forty years in Rome.

Gudbrandsen

It combines guð, god, and brandr, sword.

Ellingsen

Heir of a jarl.

Baldursson

Prince, lord. Loki tricked blind Höðr into killing Baldr with mistletoe.

Aslaksen

Son of Áslákr: ás, god, and leikr means play or sport.

Gudmundsdottir

Daughter of Gudmund, god’s protection. Singer Björk’s birth name is Björk Guðmundsdóttir.

Thambarskelfir

Thambarskelfir means bowstring shaker or belly shaker.

Thjodolfsson

People’s wolf

Austman

Easterner.

MacAulay

Gaelic Mac Amhlaibh, son of Óláfr, “ancestor’s descendant.”

Haraldsson

Son of Harald, army ruler. Saint Olaf Haraldsson is patron saint of Norway.

Gislason

Gisli’s son, and gísl is hostage or pledge.

Raven

Hrafn, ‘raven’, a bird that is symbolizing Odin’s thought and memory, Huginn and Muninn.

Vesteinsson

Holy stone.

Whitby

White farm, or Hvíti’s farm, a place Saxons had called Streoneshalh. Dracula comes ashore here in Bram Stoker’s novel.

Mani

Moon. Thorkel Moon served as lawspeaker at the Althing.

Raude

Red. Erik the Red founded first Norse settlement in Greenland.

Brand

According to Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine, Brand comes from brandr, a firebrand or sword blade.

Greycloak

Gráfeldr, grey cloak. Harald Greycloak helped an Icelander sell grey sheepskin cloaks.

Karlsefni

Makings of a man. Thorfinn Karlsefni, son Snorri was first European child born in America.

Strøm

Straumr, a current or a stream. Stromness in Orkney has origins in it.

Brekke

Steep slope.

Turpin

Norman-English form of Þórfinnr, which comes from Thor and Finnr. Highwayman Dick Turpin was hanged in York.

Sigbjornsen

Victory bear, my favourite in this batch.

Sturluson

Son of Sturla. Snorri Sturluson wrote the Prose Edda, our main guide to Norse myth.

Ironside

Járnsíða (iron side) belonged to Björn, a legendary king of Sweden.

Hardrada

Harðráði, hard ruler. Harald Hardrada fell at Stamford Bridge, and many date end of Viking Age from that battle.

Hlymrekfari

Limerick-farer.

Kveldulf

Evening wolf. In his saga, Kveldulf Bjalfason became savage after dark, similar to a werewolf.

Kvam

“Narrow valley”/“hollow”

Svarti

Black. Halfdan the Black drowned when his sleigh broke through ice.

Frodesen

‘Wise.’ King Fróði had Grótti, a mill that ground gold and peace.

Fridleifsson

Peace heir.

Holgersen

Holger comes from Holmgeirr, islet spear.

Fafnisbani

Fáfnir’s bane. Sigurd killed the dragon Fáfnir through the heart from underneath.

Snorrason

Snorri’s son, from snerra, onslaught or attack.

Vebjornsen

Holy bear, from vé, a sacred place, and björn.

Bloodaxe

Blóðøx, blood axe. Eric Bloodaxe was the last Viking king of Northumbria, at York.

Smjör

Thorolf swore that butter dripped from each blade of grass in Iceland, so men called him Thorolf Smjör: butter.

Osgood

Ásgautr, god Geat.

Barefoot

Berfœttr, barefoot. Magnus Barefoot wore Gaelic dress with bare legs.

Nygaard

‘New farm.’

Haakonsen

Son of Haakon, from há, high, and konr is meaning son or kin.

Skallagrimsson

Son of Skalla-Grímr, “bald Grim.” Egil Skallagrimsson composed his first verse at age three.

Hamre

Crag, and hamarr also means hammer.

Sverresen

It is rooted in Sverrir, wild or swinging. King Sverre brought Birkebeiner rebels to the throne.

Løkken

It comes from lykkja, an enclosed loop of field.

Arnkelsson

It is made of ǫrn, eagle, and ketill, cauldron.

Cotter

‘Dread army’.

Heljarskinn

Hell-skin. Geirmund and his twin brother was born with unusually dark skin.

Kolbrunarskald

Poet of Kolbrún, coal-brow. Tormod Kolbrunarskald is important in the Saga of St. Olaf.

MacIver

Mac Ìomhair, son of Ívarr. MacGyver is one of its anglicized variants.

Veidimadr

Hunter, from veiðr, hunting, and maðr, man.

Hjaltason

Sword hilt.

Thwaite

Þveit, a clearing, and Braithwaite in Cumbria is a broad one.

Torf

Turf, peat. Orkneyinga saga explains that Earl Einar was the first to cut peat for fuel in Scotland.

Fjeld

Mountain, fell.

Adalsteinsfostri

Athelstan’s ward. Haakon the Good spent his boyhood at King Athelstan’s court in England.

Eilifsson

From Eilífr, ever living.

Einarsdottir

Daughter of Einar, einn, one, and herr, army.

Sigmundsson

Son of Sigmund: sigr, victory, and mundr, protection.

Atlason

Little father.

Skjalgsson

Son of Skjalg, “squint-eyed.” Erling Skjalgsson ruled western Norway from his farm at Sola.

Vidforli

Far-travelled. Thorvald the Far-Travelled preached Christianity in Iceland with a Saxon bishop.

McKittrick

Mac Shitrig, son of Sigtryggr, victory and true.

Hroarsson

Famous spear.

Hedinsson

Héðinn, a fur coat or skin cloak.

Njalsson

Son of Njáll, from Irish Niall, champion. In his saga, enemies burn Njál inside his farmhouse.

Thorlaksson

Thor’s play. Saint Þorlákur is patron of Iceland. Icelanders eat fermented skate on his feast day.

MacAskill

Gaelic for son of Ásketill, ‘god’s cauldron.’ Angus MacAskill (1825-1863) was a giant from Cape Breton and seven feet nine inches tall.

Gill

Ravine.

Gunnbjornsson

Battle bear. Gunnbjørn Fjeld, the highest peak in the Arctic, after Gunnbjörn.

Saemundsson

Sæmundr is meaning sea protection.

Hella

Flat rock.

Hjorvardsson

Sword guardian, from hjǫrr and varðr.

Latham

‘At the barns’.

Haldane

Hálfdan, ‘half Dane.’ Geneticist J. B. S. Haldane (1892-1964) found population genetics.

MacLeod

It is pronounced mə-KLOWD, comes from Ljótr, “ugly”. It is also spelled McLeod. Dunvegan Castle on Skye was the home of MacLeods for over eight hundred years.

Dahl

valley/dale

Eriksson

Son of Erik, ‘ever ruler’. Leif Eriksson visited North America about five centuries before Columbus.

Rolfsen

Rolf is meaning famous wolf.

Magri

Lean. Helgi the Lean believed in Christ but prayed to Thor at sea.

Fridtjofsen

Friðþjófr, peace thief. Friðþjófr is also hero of Friðþjófs saga.

Kyrre

Calm. Olaf Kyrre founded Bergen, and his reign gave Norway twenty-six years of peace.

Isleifsson

Ice heir.

Freysgodi

Freyr’s priest. Hrafnkell killed a shepherd for riding his horse Freyfaxi.

Lund

Grove.

Slack

It comes from slakki, a shallow valley.

Carlsen

Karl, free man. Magnus Carlsen was world chess champion for ten years.

Havi

Hávi, tall, and Hávamál is the speech of the High One.

Dring

‘Young warrior’.

Geirsdottir

Spear.

Jorsalfare

Jerusalem-farer. Sigurd I was first European king to go on crusade.

Thrall

Þræll, a slave or serf.

Boneless

Beinlausi, boneless. Ivar the Boneless commanded the Great Heathen Army in England.

Bodvarsson

‘Battle warrior’s son’. Bödvar Bjarki had a fight as a giant bear in his lord’s last battle.

Aagesen

Danish for Áki’s son, and Áki means ancestor or forefather.

Gjerde

“Fence”/“enclosure”

Danby

Danby is meaning farm of Danes, and there is a Danby in North Yorkshire.

Thorvardsson

Þorvarðr is Thor’s guardian.

Tretelgja

Tree-cutter. Olof cleared forests in Värmland for new farmland.

Hjalmarsson

Son of Hjalmar, from hjálmr, helmet, and herr, army.

Voll

Meadow or grass field, vǫllr, same word as -vellir in Thingvellir.

Beck

“Stream.”

Amundsen

Son of Amund, from ag, awe, and mundr, protection. Roald Amundsen was #1 to reach the South Pole.

Bardsson

Battle peace, from Bǫðfriðr.

Myklebust

It combines mikill, big, and bólstaðr, homestead.

MacCrimmon

Hróðmundr, fame protector. MacCrimmons was a hereditary pipers to chiefs on Skye.

Sigvaldason

Son of Sigvaldi: sigr, victory, and valdr, ruler.

Illrade

Ill-ruler. Ingjald burned six kings alive at a feast in his hall.

Rurikovich

‘Descendants of Rurik.’

Tryggvason

Son of Tryggvi, ‘true, trusty’. King Olaf Tryggvason founded Trondheim as a trading post.

Eldjarn

Fire iron. Kristján Eldjárn served as third president of Iceland.

Ingemarsson

Ing’s fame.

Haugen

Haugen (HOW-gen) – Means hill or mound

Hvitserk

Hvítserkr: hvítr, white, and serkr is symbolizing shirt.

Jarlaskald

Earls’ poet. Arnórr composed praise poems for Orkney earls.

Hallkelsson

Rock cauldron.

Lie

side of a valley

Rigg

Hryggr, ridge. Actress Diana Rigg came from Doncaster in Yorkshire.

Hallfredsson

Hallfreðr’s son: hallr, rock, with friðr, peace..

Osmond

‘God protection.’

Tangen

tongue of land

Gunnarsson

Gunnar’s son: gunnr is battle, herr is army.

Harefoot

Hare foot. Harold Harefoot earned it for his speed as a hunter.

Dagsson

Day.

Sigurdsson

It combines sigr, victory, and varðr, guardian.

Kraki

Pole. Hrólfr Kraki appears in Beowulf as Hrothulf, a Danish prince at Heorot.

Snake-in-the-Eye

Ormr í auga. Legend gives Sigurd a snake image in one eye from birth.

Silkbeard

Silk beard. Sigtrygg Silkbeard minted Ireland’s first coins.

Sletten

Slétta, a level field.

Brynjolfsson

Son of Brynjólfr, armor wolf. Erik Brynjolfsson is a well-known economist of technology.

Herdebrei

Broad-shouldered, for Haakon II of Norway.

Kolbeinsson

Coal leg.

Crellin

Manx, from Rögnvaldr, ‘counsel ruler’.

Helgadottir

Daughter of Helgi, holy, and is also a common Icelandic surname today.

Teigen

Strip of field.

Eyvindsson

Son of Eyvindr: ey, island, with vindr, wind.

Ingolfsson

Son of Ingolf, Ing’s wolf, after a fertility god.

Kettle

Ketill, ‘cauldron’ or ‘helmet’.

Sigsaeli

Sigrsæll, victory-blessed.

Finnbogadottir

Daughter of Finnbogi (Finn’s bow). Vigdís Finnbogadóttir became the world’s first democratically elected female president.

Lyng

Heather.

Skarthi

Hare-lip. In Kormáks saga, Thorgils Skarthi founds Scarborough on Yorkshire’s coast.

Moen

meadow/heath

Konungamodir

Mother of kings. Gunnhild’s sons ruled Norway after her husband died.

Lothbrok

Hairy breeches. Ragnar wore tarred, furry trousers to fight a serpent, legend say.