Hundred Swedish Family Names or Surnames

In the rich tapestry of Swedish history, the origins of surnames offer a captivating glimpse into the country's past. Here are some intriguing stories behind the names that have been passed down through generations.

The name Nystrom, meaning 'new river', is a topographic name derived from the elements by and strom. Orn, meaning 'eagle', is another name with a straightforward meaning, while Pehrson, a patronymic name, is derived from Par or Pe(h)r, or Peter, which in Latin means 'rock'.

Lagman, a name with roots in Old Norse, is composed of log 'laws' and maor 'man'. Nordwall, meaning 'north bank', is a combination of nord 'north' and vall 'bank'. Rapp, meaning 'quick', was one of the soldier's names in the 17th century before surnames came into use.

Sandholm, formed by combining sand and holm, means 'sand island'. Yngvi is a variant of Freyr, who was regarded as the ancestor of the Swedish royal family. Malmquist is composed of malm 'ore' and quist, meaning 'twig'. Lagerstrom is composed of lager 'laurel' and strom 'river'.

Palmberg, meaning 'palm mountain', is composed of palm 'palm tree' and berg 'mountain'. In German, it is a habitational name. Ranstrom, derived from a place name formed by combining Ran, which means 'raven', and strom, meaning 'river', is another interesting name.

Kindberg is composed of place-name element kind, which means 'family' or 'tribe' with berg, which is 'mountain'. Kilburg means 'wedge mountain'. Safstrom is derived from Swedish saf or sav, meaning 'rush', and strom, which means 'river'.

Oden, the Head God in Norse mythology, is another name with a significant historical background. The name Karlin is a combination of Karl and -in, which means 'descendant of'. There is no public record or official publication identifying any person or group who created a list of the 100 best Swedish surnames.

Quint, a variant of Quist, is derived from Kvist, meaning 'twig'. It is widely used with other words to denote natural features like Blomquist. In Latin, Quint means 'fifth'. Uggla, meaning 'owl', originated from soldiers' nicknames.

Setterberg is composed of the place-name element sater 'mountain pasture' with berg 'mountain'. Wikstrom is composed of vik 'bay', and strom 'river'. Kask, a soldier's name, means 'helmet'. Ylva is a derivative of the Old Norse ulfr, meaning 'wolf' or 'female wolf'.

Ohlsson is a patronymic form of the personal name Olaf. It means 'son of Ola'. The name Karlstad refers to a place in western Sweden. Osbeck is a topographic name formed by combining os, which means 'river mouth' or 'ridge' with beck, which is 'brook'.

Kjellberg is composed of the elements källa, which means 'spring' or 'source' and berg, meaning 'mountain'. Zetterberg is a Swedish surname composed of sater, meaning 'mountain pasture', and berg, meaning 'mountain'. Quarnstrom is composed of the elements kvarn 'mill', and strom, meaning 'stream'.

Lagergren is composed of the elements lager 'laurel' and gren 'branch'. Sanderlin is composed of the personal name Sander, derived from Alexander, and the suffix '-lin'. Reierson is a patronymic name. In Old Norse, Reier is a variant of Reid, which means 'house' and arr, representing harjar, meaning 'warrior'.

Kielman comes from the place name kil 'wedge' and man 'man'. Olander refers to someone from the island of Olan or Aland. Mahlberg is composed of Mahl or Mal, meaning 'gravel', and berg, meaning 'mountain'. Pihl is derived from pil, which means 'arrow' in Scandanavian.

Noreen is a variant of Naureen or Noirin, a diminutive of Anglicised Nora. In Arabic, it means 'luminous', and in Greek means 'light'. Lagerman is composed of the elements lager 'laurel', and man, which stands for 'man'.

Markus is derived from Latin, and it means 'hammer' or 'defender'. Ogren is formed by combining o, as in 'island', and gren, meaning 'branch'. Renstrom is composed of the elements ren, which means 'reindeer', and strom, meaning 'river'.

Malmberg means 'iron mountain'. Marken means 'forest pasture'. Naslund is composed of the elements of nas 'narrow neck of land' with lund 'grove'. Oquist is composed of the elements O, meaning 'island', and quist, meaning 'twig'.

Trana means 'crane' in Swedish. Saam is an ethnic name that is derived from Same, meaning 'Saami'. It refers to a member of the tribes of northern Scandanavia. Sahlberg is formed by combining the elements sal or sahl, meaning 'hall', and berg, which means 'hill'.

Tjader is a Swedish surname derived from nicknames used by soldiers. Saam, an ethnic name, is derived from Same, meaning 'Saami'. It refers to a member of the tribes of northern Scandanavia. Sahlberg is formed by combining the elements sal or sahl, meaning 'hall', and berg, which means 'hill'.