How did Viking last names work?

Vikings used patronymics instead of family names: the father’s name plus -son for a son or -dottir for a daughter. So the children of Erik were Eriksson and Eriksdottir, and the next generation got a different last name again. Famous people often had a nickname too, like Harald Fairhair or Ivar the Boneless.

What are some strong Viking names for boys?

Bjorn (bear), Ulf (wolf), Gunnar (battle warrior), Ragnar (warrior of the gods), Sigurd (victory guardian), Torbjorn (Thor’s bear) and Ivar are all real Old Norse names that still sound strong today.

What are some beautiful Viking names for girls?

Astrid (divinely beautiful), Freydis, Ingrid, Sigrid (beautiful victory), Solveig (strength of the sun), Liv (life) and Ylva (she-wolf) are popular real Norse names. Many of them are still common in Scandinavia.

Is this name generator free?

Yes. It runs in your browser with no account and no limit. Click a name to copy it, or star it to keep it in a saved list in this browser.

Can I use these names in my book, game or D&D campaign?

Yes. Made-up names come from syllable lists we wrote ourselves and real historical names belong to nobody, so use them for characters, NPCs, pets, usernames or stories. For a commercial product, do a quick search to check a name is not already someone’s trademark.

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Viking Names and Viking Name Generator

Find a Viking name for a character, a baby, a pet or a game: real Old Norse names like Bjorn, Astrid or Ragnhild, with a last name built the Norse way from the father’s name, such as Eriksson or Eriksdottir.

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Viking names

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How do Viking names work?

Vikings did not have family names. A person was known by their own name plus their father’s name: Leif, son of Erik, was Leif Eriksson, and his sister Freydis was Freydis Eiriksdottir. Some people used their mother’s name instead, and the system still works this way in Iceland today.

Many Norse names are built from two parts. Thor (the god), Ás (a god), Sig (victory), Gunn (battle) or Ulf (wolf) at the front, and -bjorn (bear), -mund (protection), -steinn (stone) for men or -hild (battle), -dis (goddess) and -run (secret) for women at the end. Mix the parts and you get names like Thorbjorn, Asmund or Gunnhild.

Viking name list

Ready-made Viking names to browse or copy. Use the generator above for a fresh batch, or mix a first name from one list with a last name from another.

Male Viking names

Njal
Sigrim
Torbjorn
Arne
Hallvard
Ulfvard
Harald
Brand
Halar
Sveinbjorn
Ingmund
Ragnar
Sveinleif
Magnus
Dag
Asmund
Thorgrim
Hemming
Rurik
Gunnulf
Thorstein
Gunnstein
Ketilmund
Ulfvald
Halgeir
Asfrid
Gudmund
Snorri
Vidar
Thrand
Gorm
Thorvald
Hakon
Ivar
Gunnar
Sten
Kari
Ketilbjorn
Ketil
Ingar

Female Viking names

Thordis
Hervor
Ragnfrid
Thorunn
Inglaug
Hallveig
Brynhild
Thorny
Alfrun
Gudborg
Oddny
Sigey
Sigrid
Sigrun
Freyhild
Ranhild
Bruny
Brununn
Hilda
Hallhild
Thora
Estrid
Halla
Sigfrid
Ylfdis
Vigdis
Runa
Gunnhild
Jorunn
Gyda
Gerd
Ylfhild
Solveig
Asdis
Svangerd
Aslaug
Ragnhild
Kolfinna
Aud
Gudey

Viking last names

Hakonsson
Ivarsdottir
Ivarsson
Gudmundsdottir
Ruriksson
Njalsdottir
Leifsson
Ingvarsdottir
Njalsson
Thorvaldsdottir
Ragnarsson
Snorrisdottir
Gormsson
Arnesdottir
Eriksson
Thorsteinsson
Ulfsdottir
Tokesson
Einarsdottir
Dagsson
Starkadsson
Hauksdottir
Sigurdsdottir
Thorsteinsdottir

Full Viking names

Vigmund Hrafnsson
Thorvald Ormsson
Gunny Asgersdottir
Svangerd Hemmingsdottir
Svanhild Hemmingsdottir
Alfhild Torbjornsdottir
Freydis Thorvaldsdottir
Asfrid Thorvaldsson
Hemming Asmundsson
Bodil Magnusdottir
Ulf Hemmingsson
Gudrun Ormsdottir
Erik Hakonsson
Hallveig Ormsdottir
Starkad Njalsson
Rolf Stensson

Viking last names: -son and -dottir

A Viking took their last name from their father. Here is how the same father’s name becomes a son’s and a daughter’s last name:

Father	Son	Daughter
Erik	Eriksson	Eriksdottir
Bjorn	Bjornsson	Bjornsdottir
Ragnar	Ragnarsson	Ragnarsdottir
Olaf	Olafsson	Olafsdottir
Harald	Haraldsson	Haraldsdottir
Gunnar	Gunnarsson	Gunnarsdottir
Leif	Leifsson	Leifsdottir
Sigurd	Sigurdsson	Sigurdsdottir
Ulf	Ulfsson	Ulfsdottir
Thorstein	Thorsteinsson	Thorsteinsdottir
Halfdan	Halfdansson	Halfdansdottir
Ivar	Ivarsson	Ivarsdottir

Famous Viking nicknames

Well-known Vikings were often called by a nickname (a byname) as well as their name. A nickname can be the best part of a Viking name for a character.

Name	Who they were
Ivar the Boneless	A leader of the Great Heathen Army that invaded England in 865.
Harald Fairhair	The first king of all Norway, said to have sworn not to cut his hair until he ruled it.
Erik Bloodaxe	King of Norway and later of York, named for killing his brothers.
Sweyn Forkbeard	King of Denmark who conquered England in 1013.
Harald Bluetooth	King of Denmark. Bluetooth wireless is named after him.
Erik the Red	Founded the first Norse settlement in Greenland, named for his red hair.
Bjorn Ironside	A son of Ragnar, said to have raided as far as the Mediterranean.
Aud the Deep-Minded	A wise and powerful settler of Iceland.
Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye	A son of Ragnar, said to have a snake-like mark in his eye.
Ketil Flatnose	A Norse chieftain in the Hebrides, father of Aud the Deep-Minded.
Harald Hardrada	“Hard ruler”. King of Norway, killed at Stamford Bridge in 1066.
Magnus Barefoot	King of Norway who wore Scottish-style bare legs.

Norse god names

Names of the Norse gods, often used for characters, pets and Viking-inspired brands.

God	Known for
Odin	Chief of the gods, god of wisdom, war and poetry
Thor	God of thunder, protector of people
Freyja	Goddess of love, beauty and battle
Frigg	Odin’s wife, goddess of the home and foresight
Loki	The trickster, father of monsters
Tyr	God of war and justice, who lost a hand to the wolf Fenrir
Baldr	The shining god whose death leads toward Ragnarok
Heimdall	Watchman of the gods who guards the rainbow bridge
Freyr	God of harvest, sun and peace
Njord	God of the sea and wind
Hel	Ruler of the realm of the dead
Skadi	Goddess of winter, mountains and the hunt

Norse names in short lists

Short Viking names for boys

Ulf
Orm
Dag
Leif
Sten
Geir
Grim
Knut
Toke
Rolf

Short Viking names for girls

Liv
Sif
Asa
Eir
Unn
Aud
Gyda
Tove
Yrsa
Inga

More name lists

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Infernal names with a title from the pit

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Salty first names with a nickname earned at sea

Medieval Names

Real names from the Middle Ages with trade and place last names

Fantasy Name Generator

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D&D Name Generator

Names for every D&D race and class

Need a different kind of name? Try the Japanese name generator or the random word generator.

Frequently asked questions

: Vikings used patronymics instead of family names: the father’s name plus -son for a son or -dottir for a daughter. So the children of Erik were Eriksson and Eriksdottir, and the next generation got a different last name again. Famous people often had a nickname too, like Harald Fairhair or Ivar the Boneless.
: Bjorn (bear), Ulf (wolf), Gunnar (battle warrior), Ragnar (warrior of the gods), Sigurd (victory guardian), Torbjorn (Thor’s bear) and Ivar are all real Old Norse names that still sound strong today.
: Astrid (divinely beautiful), Freydis, Ingrid, Sigrid (beautiful victory), Solveig (strength of the sun), Liv (life) and Ylva (she-wolf) are popular real Norse names. Many of them are still common in Scandinavia.
: Yes. It runs in your browser with no account and no limit. Click a name to copy it, or star it to keep it in a saved list in this browser.
: Yes. Made-up names come from syllable lists we wrote ourselves and real historical names belong to nobody, so use them for characters, NPCs, pets, usernames or stories. For a commercial product, do a quick search to check a name is not already someone’s trademark.