Danish Names

Family Names

Originally, children’s family names were patronyms, i.e. -søn and later -sen (son) for boys and -datter (daughter) for girls.

1828 – Free choice of the family name

In 1828, Frederik VI issued a christening decree, in which it was stated that every child should be christened “not only with a first name, but also with the family name that it should bear in the future”. The priests were to ensure that the children were not christened “inappropriate names.” It is said that this provision was caused by a case with a man who had wanted to pay tribute to the Danish equality calling his daughter Spartasina.

The Christening Ordinance gave no answer as to who should decide what the children should be named. Therefore, it was followed up by a circular that stipulated that if the family did not already have a family name, it was up to the father to determine the child’s surname. The fathers were even given a number of choices when choosing surnames for the pods:

The father’s own surname
Father’s first name followed by a -sen (patronymic)
A place name that the family was associated with

The circular also stated that all siblings should bear the same surname. For the women, this meant in practice a farewell to the custom with the father’s first name followed by -datter.

It was not without problems to introduce laws that went against centuries-old traditions. Particularly in the rural parishes, the attitude was that the authorities, with their naming rules, stuck their noses into something that did not strike them. It was edible that all children should have the same surname, and after 1828 the female patronymics disappear just as quietly. It was more so with the fixed family names and that the children would often get the father’s surname, which was actually the grandfather’s patronymic.

In many places, they chose to interpret the circular in such a way that each generation had to decide their own family name. And thus, the whole idea of the name law was lost.

1856 – Same family name for future generations

Therefore, in 1856 it was emphasized that the family name chosen according to the 1828-law was to be the family name in the future, not just for one generation. However, the implementation of these new naming rules was still hesitant in many rural parishes and the naming practice for children born in the second half of the 19th Century differed from parish to parish.

Due to the naming changes some women would eventually change the family name from -datter to -sen. A girl christened Cathrine Redersdatter could for instance be Cathrine Pedersen at her death.

If a person had more than one given name, it could vary which name(s) were used as well as the order of the names. The spelling of the names was quite inconsistent in the earlier days.

Boy's names

Name	Earliest occurence in Denmark	Connected to	Origin	Meaning
Abraham	11th century		Hebrew	Father of multitude
Absalon	11th century		Hebrew	Father of peace
Adam	11th century		Hebrew	Earth, human
Adolf	11th century		German	Nobility, wolf
Adolph	See ADOLF
Aksel	14th century	Developed by Absalon	Hebrew	Absalon means "Father of Peace"
Albert	12th century	By Adelbert	German
Aleksander	See ALEXANDER
Alexander	13th century		Greek	Helper, male
Alfred	12th century		English	Elf, advice
Allan	19th century		English	Harmony
Anchor	See ANKER
Anders	13th century	By Andreas
André	20th century	By Andreas	French
Andreas	12th century		Greek	Masculine
Andrew	20th century	English form of Andreas	English
Anker, Ancher	14th century		Nordic	Eagle, fierce
Ansgar	12th century		German	God, spear
Anthon	See ANTON
Anton	14th century		Greek, Latin, Italian	Flowering
Arne	The Viking Age		Nordic	Eagle
Arthur		New Danish	English
Artur	See Arthur
Asger	The Middle Ages		Nordic	God, spear
Asmund	Legendary historic		Nordic	God, protect
Asmus	15th century	By Rasmus	Schleswigian
August		New Danish	Latin	Exalted
Benjamin		New Danish	Hebrew	Son of the right hand, happiness
Benny		New Danish - English short form of Benjamin	English
Bernard	20th century	English and French form of Bernhard	English, French
Bernhard	10th century		German	Bear, hard
Bertram	13th century		German	Shining, raven
Birger	10th century		Nordic	Guardian
Bjarne	13th century		Nordic	Bear, hard
Bjørn	Legendary historic			Bear
Bo	Legendary historic		Nordic	The settled
Boje	12th century		Frisian	Resident
Brian	20th century		Irish	Small hill
Broder	See BROR
Bror	15th century		Nordic
Bryde	14th century		Nordic	Manager
Buster	20th century		American
Bøje	See BOJE
Børge	15th century	By Birger
Baard	13th century		Nordic	Strife, peace, guardian
Cai	See KAJ
Carl			Italian
Carsten	15th century	Low German form of Christian	German
Casper	15th century		German	Bailiff
Chresten	See KRESTEN
Christer	15th century	By Christian
Christian	11th century		Greek	Christian
Christoffer	12th century		Greek	Christ, bearer
Christopher	See CHRISTOFFER
Claus	13th century	German short form of Nicolaus	German
Clement	13th century		Latin	Gentle
Conrad	12th century		German	Bold, advice
Cornelius	15th century		Latin	Horn
Dan	Legendary historic		Nordic	Dane
Daniel	12th century		Hebrew	The Lord, judge
David	12th century		Hebrew	Love
Dennis	20th century	English form of Dionysius	English
Detlev	See DITLEV
Didrik	Legendary historic		German	People, mighty
Dieter	20th century		German	People, hard
Dirch	17th century	By Didrik
Dirk	See DIRCH
Ditlev	15th century
Ditmar	11th century		German	People, famous
Ditmer	See DITMAR		German	People, famous
Ebbe	Legendary historic	Norse short form of Esbjørn	Nordic	God, bear
Edgar	11th century		English	Wealth, spear
Edger	See EDGAR
Edvard	11th century		English	Wealth, protector
Edvin	The Viking Age		English	Wealth, friend
Eggert	11th century		German	Discipline, sword-egg, hard
Egil	11th century		Nordic	Discipline, sword-egg
Eigil	SEE EGIL
Ejler	14th century		German	Discipline, sword-egg, hard, warrior
Ejnar		New Danish side form for Enar	Nordic	One, warrior, spear
Ejner	See EJNAR
Ejvind	Legendary historic		West Nordic	Twisted, twisted, giant
Elias	12th century		Hebrew	God
Elmer	20th century		English	Early, famous
Emil		New Danish - French form of Greco-Latin æmilius (friendly)	French	Friendly
Erhard	15th century		German	Honor, hard
Erik	Legendary historic		Nordic	One, mighty
Erling		New Danish
Ernst	13th century		German	Serious, fierce
Esben	15th century		Nordic
Esge	See ESKE
Esger	See ESKE
Eske	The Viking Age		Nordic	God, spear
Eskil	Legendary historic		Nordic	God, kettle hat
Evald	14th century		German	Law, power
Felix	13th century		Latin	Happy
Ferdinand		New Danish	German	Peace, bold
Filip	12th century		Greek	Love, horses
Finn	Legendary historic		Nordic
Flemming	13th century			Flemish
Folke	Legendary historic		Nordic
Folmar	See FOLMER
Folmer	12th century
Frank	15th century		German	Frank, free
Frans	See FRANTZ
Frants	See FRANTZ
Franz		By Franciscus
Frede	13th century		Nordic
Frederik	12th century		German	Peace, mighty
Fridlev	Legendary historic		Nordic	Peace, abandoned
Fridolf		New Danish	Nordic	Peace, wolf
Fridtjof		New Danish	Nordic	Peace, thief
Frits	15th century	German short form of Fredidrich	German
Fritz	See FRITS
Frode	Legendary historic		Nordic	Wise, wise, knowledgeable
Gabriel	12th century		Hebrew	God's man
Georg	12th century	By Georgius	Greek	Farmer
Gerhard	12th century		German	Spear, hard
Gerner	20th century
Gert	14th century	Gerhard
Gilbert	12th century		Nordic	Spear, shining
Godfred	9th century		German	God, peace
Gorm	Legendary historic	By Guttorm	Nordic	God, worm
Gotfred	See GODFRED		German	God, peace
Gothard	14th century		German	God, hard
Gotlieb		New Danish	German	God, dear
Gregers	14th century		Greek	Alert
Gudmund	The Viking Age		Nordic	God, protection
Gunnar	See GUNNER		Nordic
Gunner	The Viking Age		Nordic
Gustav	14th century		Swedish	Staff
Gynter	Legendary historic		German	Battle, warrior
Hakon	See HAAKON		Nordic	Horse, offspring, son
Haldor	15th century		Nordic	Stone, Thor
Halfdan	Legendary historic		Nordic	Half Dane
Hans	14th century	German short form of Johannes	German
Harald	Legendary historic		Nordic	Army, ruler
Hartvig	Legendary historic		German	Hard, battle
Heine	14th century	German short form of Heinrich	German
Heinrich	11th century		German	Home, mighty
Hektor	12th century		Greek	Maintains
Helge	Legendary historic		Nordic	Holy
Helmer	15th century		German	Helmet, warrior
Helmuth		New Danish	German	Whole, unharmed, courage
Hendrik	13th century	By Henrik
Henning	12th century	German derivation of Hans	German
Henri	See HENRY
Henrik	11th century		German	Home, mighty
Henry		New Danish - English form of Henrik	English
Herbert	11th century		German	Army, bright, shining
Herluf	15th century	By Herlev	Nordic	Army, bath
Herman	Legendary historic		German	Army, man
Hieronymus	15th century		Greek	Holy, name
Hilmer	15th century		German	Battle, famous
Hjalmar	Legendary historic		Nordic	Helmet, warrior
Hjalte	Legendary historic		Nordic	Sword hilt
Holger	Legendary historic			Island, islet, spear
Hubert	15th century		German	Mind, brilliant
Hubert	15th century		German	Mind, brilliant
Hugo	12th century			Thoughts, memory
Haagen	14th century	Developed by Hakon	Nordic
Haakon	Legendary historic		Nordic	Horse, offspring, son
Ib	15th century	Contraction of Jep
Ingeman	13th century	By Ingemund	Nordic
Ingolf	12th century		Nordic	Wolf
Isak	12th century		Hebrew	Laughter
Ivan	13th century	Loaned form of Johannes
Ivar	Legendary historic		Nordic	Yew, warrior
Iver	Legendary historic	By Ivar	Nordic	Yew, warrior
Jack		Danish - English diminutive of Johan	English
Jacob	The Viking Age		Hebrew	The one who grasps the heel
Jakob	See JACOB		Hebrew	The one who grasps the heel
Jan	13th century	Dutch and Frisian form of Johannes	Dutch
Jean		New Danish - French and American form of Johannes	French, American
Jens	14th century	By Johannes
Jeppe	15th century	Petit form of Jakob
Jesper	13th century	Danish development of German Jasper	Danish
Joakim	15th century		Hebrew	God has established
Johan	14th century	German short form of Johannes	German
Johannes	12th century		Hebrew	God has acted graciously
John	19th century	English form of Johannes	English
Jokum	15th century	By Joakim
Jon	13th century	Norse short form of Johannes	Nordic
Jonas	12th century	Hebrew contraction of Johannes	Hebrew
Jonatan	19th century		Hebrew	God has given
Josef	12th century		Hebrew	God will increase
Julius		New Danish	Latin	Young
Jørgen	15th century		German
Jørn	See JØRGEN
Kai	See KAJ
Kaj	14th century		Frisian
Kalle	The Viking Age	Norse petit form of Karl	Nordic
Karl	Legendary historic		Nordic	Young man
Karsten	See CARSTEN
Kasper	See CASPER
Keld	14th century		Nordic	Kettle hat, sacrificial cauldron
Kim	20th century	English short form of Kimball	English
Kjeld	15th century	Jutlandish form of Keld
Klaus	See CLAUS
Knud	Legendary historic		Nordic	Knot
Konrad	See CONRAD
Kresten	14th century	By Christian
Kresten	See KRESTEN
Kristian	See CHRISTIAN
Lage	12th century		Nordic	Fellow
Lars	After The Middle Ages	Contraction of Laurentius
Las	14th century	Short form of Laurentius
Lasse	14th century	Petit form of Laurentius
Lau	15th century	Developed by Lage
Lauge	13th century	By Lage	Nordic	Fellow
Laurens	13th century	By Laurentius
Laurids	See LAURITZ
Laurits	See LAURITZ
Lauritz	14th century	Danish form of Laurentius	Danish
Laurs	15th century	Developed by Laurids
Laust		New Danish (Jutland) - ff Laurit	Danish
Lavrids	See LAURITZ
Lavst	See LAUST
Leif	Legendary historic		West Nordic
Leo		New Danish	Latin	Lion
Louis		New Danish - French form of Ludvig	French
Ludvig	14th century		German	Famous
Mads	15th century	By Matthias
Magnus	Legendary historic		Latin	Great
Maks	See MAX
Marcus	12th century		Latin
Marinus	14th century		Latin	Sea
Marius	After The Middle Ages		Latin	Sea
Marius
Martin	12th century		Latin
Mathias	15th century		Greek	The Lord's gift
Mathies	See MATHIAS
Max		New Danish - of Maximilian	Danish
Melchior	15th century		Hebrew	King of light
Melkior	See MELCHIOR
Michael	12th century		Hebrew	Who is like God
Mikael	See MICHAEL
Mikkel	14th century		Hebrew	Who is as God
Mogens	14th century
Morten	14th century	By Martin
Mourids	See MOURITZ
Mouritz	14th century	By Maurits
Nicolai	17th century		Latin
Nicolaus	11th century		Greek	Victory, people
Niels	14th century	By Nicolaus
Nikolai	See NICOLAI
Nils	13th century	Side form for Niels
Norman	Legendary historic		Nordic	Norse
Olaf	Legendary historic		Nordic	Ancestor, abandoned
Olav	See OLAF
Ole	The Late Middle Ages	By Olaf
Olfert	After The Middle Ages		German, Frisian	Wolf, hard
Oliver	13th century		French
Oluf	15th century	Side form for Olaf
Orla	19th century		Celtic
Orla
Oscar	See OSKAR
Oskar	9th century	Conversion of Asger	Scottish
Osvald		New Danish	English	God, power
Otte	Legendary historic	Danish form of Otto	Danish
Otto	10th century		Latin
Ove	14th century
Palle	9th century		Nordic
Patrick		New Danish	Irish	Nobleman
Paul	14th century	By Paulus	Latin
Paulus	12th century		Latin	Small
Peder	13th century	By Peter
Peiter	16th century		Frisian
Pelle	14th century
Per	14th century	Contraction of Peder
Peter	13th century	By Petrus
Petrus	11th century		Latin	Rock
Philip	See FILIP
Poul	14th century	By Paulus
Povl	See POUL
Preben	After The Middle Ages		Vendic	Forrest, battle
Rasmus	15th century	By Erasmus
Reimar	13th century		German	Ruling power, famous
Reimer	See REIMAR
Reinhard	13th century		German	Ruling power, hard
René		New Danish	French	Reborn
Richard	12th century		English, German	Mighty, hard
Rikard	See RICHARD
Robert	12th century		English, German	Fame, brilliant
Rolf	Legendary historic	By Rodulf	Nordic	Fame, wolf
Rudolf	13th century		German	Fame, wolf
Sebastian	15th century		Greek	Venerable
Severin	14th century		Latin	Serious, strict
Sigmund	Legendary historic		Nordic	Victory, protect
Sigurd	Legendary historic	Form of Sigvard	West Nordic
Sigvard	Legendary historic		Nordic	Victory, protective
Simeon	12th century		Hebrew	The one who is heard
Simon	Legendary historic	Greek form of Simeon	Greek
Skjalm	The Viking Age		Nordic
Skjold	Legendary historic		Nordic
Sofus	See SOPHUS
Sophus		New Danish	Latin	Wise
Stefan	12th century		Greek	Wreath, crown
Steffen	15th century		Greek	Wreath, crown
Sten	11th century		Nordic	Stone
Stephen	13th century	By Stefan
Stig	12th century		Nordic	Wanderer
Sven	See SVEND
Svend	Legendary historic		Nordic	Young man
Svenning	13th century		Nordic	Sven's descendant
Sylvester	12th century		Latin	Resident in the forest
Søren	15th century	By Severin
Søwren	14th century	By Severin
Tage	14th century		Nordic	The one who guarantees
Terkel	15th century	By Therkil
Theodor	15th century		Greek	God, gift
Thomas	12th century		Hebrew	Gemini
Thor	14th century		Nordic
Thorben	15th century		Nordic	Thor, protection
Thorbjørn	The Viking Age		Nordic	Thor, bear
Thorsten	The Viking Age		Nordic	Thor, stone
Thøger	13th century	By German Theodgar	German	People, spear
Tobias	12th century		Greek	God is good
Toke	Legendary historic	Short form of Thorkil	Nordic
Tommy		New Danish - English petit form of Thomas	English
Torben	See THORBEN
Torsten	See THORSTEN
Troels	14th century
Tue	13th century	By Tuve
Tyge	Legendary historic	Norse mutation of Toke	Nordic
Tøger	See THØGER
Uffe	Legendary historic	Short form of Ulf
Ulf	The Viking Age		Nordic	Wolf
Ulrik	13th century		Nordic German	Mighty
Urban	15th century		Latin	Free the city
Vagn	The Viking Age		Nordic	Chariot
Valdemar	Legendary historic		German	Might, famous
Valentin	15th century		Latin	Healthy
Valter	12th century		German	Might, warrior
Verner	13th century		German	Affiliate tribe Varnene, warrior
Victor	18th century		Latin	Victory lord
Viggo	Legendary historic		West Nordic	The one with a rocking gait
Viktor	See VICTOR
Vilhelm	10th century		German	Will, helmet
Villads	15th century		Latin	Will, fight
Volmer	15th century	By Valdemar
Walther	See VALTER
Werner	See VERNER
Wilhelm	See VILHELM
Willy		New Danish - English short form of William	English
Zacharias	14th century		Hebrew	The one God remembers
Øjvind		New Danish	Norwegian	Island, twisted, turned
Østen	The Viking Age		Nordic	Island, wealth, stone
Aage	10th century	Short name for Anager	West Danish	Spear
Aamund	The Viking Age		Nordic	Sword-egg, discipline

Girl's names

Name	Earliest occurence in Denmark	Connected to	Origin	Meaning
Abelone	15th century	By Apollon	Greek	Raging
Ada	19th century		Hebrew
Adda	20th century	Short name for the stock Adel-
Adele	13th century	German and French short form of Adelheid	German, French
Adolfine	20th century	Formed from the male name Adolf
Adolphine	See ADOLFINE
Agathe	12th century		Greek	The good
Agnes	13th century		Greek	Pure, chaste
Agnete	13th century	Agnes	Latin
Agnete	13th century	Latinized side form of Agnes	Latin
Alexandra	20th century	Derivation of Alexander
Alexandrine	20th century	Derivation of Alexandra
Alma	19th century		Latin	Honor, favorable
Almine	19th century	Derivation of Alma
Alvina	19th century	Formed from the male name Alvin
Amalie	20th century	German short form of Gothic amal (active)
Amanda	20th century	Formed from the male name Amandus
Amelia	See AMALIE	New Danish - formed from the male name Amelia
Ane		By Anna and names like Kristiane
Anine		By Anna
Ann		New Danish - English form of Anna	English
Anna	12th century	New Danish - side form of Enna	Greek	Grace
Annalise		Contraction of Anna and Lise
Anne		By Anna
Anneline	19th century	Combination
Annesofie		New Danish - compound of Anna and Sofie
Annette		New Danish - French diminutive of Anna	French
Annie		New Danish - English diminutive of Anna	English
Annike	15th century	German diminutive of Anna	German
Antonia		New Danish - formed from the male name Anton
Antonie	See ANTONIA	New Danish - formed from the male name Antoni
Arense	17th century	Formed from the male name Arent
Asta		New Danish - short form of Astrid and Augusta	West Nordic
Astrid		New Danish - side form of Estrid	Swedish-Norwegian
Augusta		New Danish - formed from the male name August
Aurelia	19th century	Feminine form of the male name Aurelius	Latin
Aurora	19th century		Greek	Goddess of the dawn
Axeline		New Danish - formed from the male name Alex
Babette	20th century	Diminutive of Barbara	French
Barbara	15th century		Greek	Foreign
Beate	14th century		Latin	Happy, blessed
Beatrice	13th century		Latin	Lucky
Benedicte	See BENEDIKTE
Benedikte	12th century		Latin	Blessed
Bengte	See BENTE
Bente	15th century	By Benedikte
Bentine	19th century	Formed from the male name Bent
Berete	15th century	By Birgitte
Berhardine		New Danish - formed from the male name Bernhard
Berit	17th century	By Birgitte
Berta	14th century	German short form of the names on Berht-	German	Shining
Birgit		New Danish
Birgitte	14th century	From Celtic Brigit		Shining, gift
Birla	The Viking Age	Nordic diminutive	Nordic	Little bear
Birna	The Viking Age	Nordic short form	Nordic	Bear
Birte		New Danish of Birgitte
Bodil	15th century	From Nordic Bothild	Nordic	Help, battle
Bolette	1800	Diminutive of Bodil
Boline	19th century	Derivation of Bodil
Brynhild	Legendary historic		German	Armor, battle
Carla		New Danish - formed from the male name Carl
Cecilie	11th century		Latin	Blind
Charlotte	17th century		French
Christa	See KRISTA
Christel	19th century
Christence		New Danish
Christiane	SEE KRISTIANE
Christine	12th century	Greek derivation of Christus	Greek
Christopherine	19th century	Formed from the male name Christopher
Christiansine		Formed from the male name Christian
Cicilia	14th century	Side form of Cecilie
Clara	See KLARA
Cornelia		New Danish	Latin	Horn
Dagmar	13th century		German	Day, maiden
Daisy	20th century		English	Day's eye, daisy
Danielle	20th century	Formed from the male name Daniel	French
Dina	17th century		Hebrew	Dreamy
Dorete	15th century	By Dorothea
Dorothea	15th century		Greek-Latin	Gift, God
Dorte	15th century	By Dorothea
Dorthe	15th century	By Dorothea
Dorthea	15th century	By Dorothea
Drude	16th century	German short form of Gertrud	German
Dyveke	16th century		Dutch	Little dove
Ea	20th century	Used for Inger
Ebba		New Danish - formed from the male name Ebbe
Edel	12th century	German side form of Adele	German
Edith		New Danish	English	Wealth, battle
Edle	See EDEL
Edma	19th century	Contraction of Edel-Margrete
Eleanor	13th century	By Helena	Portuguese
Eleanora	See ELEANOR
Elin	14th century	By Helena
Eline	See ELIN
Elisabeth	12th century		Hebrew	God has sworn
Elise	15th century		Hebrew	God has sworn
Ella	15th century		German	Stranger
Ellen		By Eline
Ellinor		By Eleanor
Elly		New Danish - short form of Elisabeth
Elna	14th century	By Eline
Else	14th century
Elsebet	15th century	By Elisabethh
Emma	11th century
Esther	13th century		Persian	Star
Estrid	The Viking Age		Nordic	God, beautiful
Eva	14th century		Hebrew	Life-giving
Filippa	15th century
Flora	15th century		Latin	Flower
Frandsine	19th century	Formed from the male name Frands
Frederikke	After The Middle Ages	Formed from the male name Frederikke
Freya	20th century			Madam
Frida	Legendary historic	Short name for the stock Fred-	Nordic
Gerd	15th century	Short name of compounded names with -gerd	Nordic	Fence
Gerda		Side form for Gerd	Modern Danish
Gertrud	12th century		German	Spear, darling
Geske	15th century	German diminutive of Gese	German
Grethe	13th century	German short form of Margrethe	German
Gro	Legendary historic		Scottish, Nordic	Woman, grow
Gudrun	12th century		Nordic	God, runic
Guldborg			Nordic	God, castle
Gundborg	13th century		Nordic	Fight, castle
Gunhild	Legendary historic		Nordic	Fight
Gunver	Legendary historic		Nordic	Fight, carefully
Gyda	The Viking Age	Short form of the stock Gud-	Nordic
Hanne	15th century	Short form of Johanne
Hansine		Formed from the male name Hans	Modern Danish
Hedvig	13th century		German	Fight, strife
Helene	11th century		Greek-Latin	Ready
Helga	Legendary historic		Nordic	Holy
Helvig	Legendary historic		German	Whole, unhurt, fight
Henrikke	15th century	Formed from the male name Henrik	German
Herdis			Modern Danish, Nordic	Army, Goddess
Ida	12th century	Short form of Adelaide	German
Inge	Legendary historic	Short form of the stock Ing-	Nordic
Ingeborg	9th century		Nordic	Protection
Inger	14th century	From Ingegerd
Ingrid	11th century		Nordic	Beautiful
Isabella	15th century		Spanish-Portuguese
Jacobine		Formed from the male name Jacob
Jensine		Formed from the male name Jens
Johanne	13th century		Hebrew	God acts mercifully
Judith	13th century		Hebrew	Jewess
Jutta	13th century	Short form of Judith
Jytte	15th century	Side form of Jutta
Jørgine		Formed from the male name Jørgen
Kaja	14the century	Short form of Katarina
Kamma	19th century	Contraction of Karen Margretrhe
Karen	15th century	From Katarina
Karin	15th century	Form of Katarian in Eastern Denmark
Katarina	12th century		Greek	Pure, chaste
Katrine	15th century	From Katarina
Kirsten	14th century	From Christine
Kirstine	14th century	From Christine
Kjerstine	15th century	From Kirstine
Kristence	See CHRISTENCE
Kristiane	13th century	Formed from the male name Kristian
Kristine	See CHRISTINE
Laura	After The Middle Ages	Short form of Laurentia	Italian
Lene	14th century	Short form of Helene and Magdelene
Leonora	17th century	From Eleonora
Lis	The Middle Ages	Short form of Elisabeth
Lisbet	16th century	By Elisabeth
Lise	15th century	Short form of Elisabeth	German
Liva	10th century	Pet name of Olivia
Lucia	12th century		Latin	Light
Ludovica		From the male name Ludovicus which is Ludvig in Latin
Madsine		Formed from the male name Mads
Magda		Short form of Magdalene
Magdalene	15th century		Hebrew	From the town, Magdala
Magnhild	13th century		Nordic	Strength, fight
Malene		From Magdalene
Maren	15th century	From Marina
Margareta	11th century		Greek-Latin	Pearl
Margrethe	13th century	From Margareta
Maria	12th century	From Hebrew Mirjam	Greek
Marianne		Constrctued by Maria and Anna
Marie	15th century	From Maria
Marina	14th century		Latin	Sea
Marne	After The Middle Ages	From Marina
Martha	12th century		Hebrew	Mistress
Mathilde	13th century		German	Power, fight
Mette	Legendary historic	From German Mechtild
Metha	19th century	From Margareta and Mette
Nanna	Legendary historic		Nordic	Brave, mother
Nielsine		Formed from the male name Niels
Nikoline		From Nicolaus, Nicolai
Nille	15th century	Short form of Pernille
Nora		Short form of Eleonora
Oda	12th century	Short form of the stock Autha-	German	Rich
Olefine		Formed from the male name Olef
Olga			Russian
Oline		Formed from the male name Ole
Otilie	14th century	From German Odile	Latin
Paula		Formed from the male name Paulus
Pauline		Diminutive of Paula	French
Pernille	14th century	From Petronella
Petra		Formed from the male name Petrus
Poula	See PAULA
Pouline	See PAULINE
Ragnhild	9th century	Side form of Regnhild	Norwegian-Swedish
Rasmine		Formed from the male name Rasmus
Rigmor	15th century			Powerful, brave
Rosa	19th century		Latin	Rose
Ruth	After The Middle Ages		Hebrew	Friend
Sabina	17th century		Latin
Sara	18th century		Hebrew	Princess
Sesil	15th century	From Cecilia
Sibylle	13th century		Latin	Viewer
Sidse	15th century	From Cecilia
Sidsel	15th century	From Cecilia
Signe	Legendary historic
Sigrid	Legendary historic		Nordic	Victory, beautiful
Sille	14th century	From Cecilia
Sine	17th century	Short form of Hansine, Jensine, etc.
Solvej			Nordic	Hall, house
Sophia	12th century		Greek	Wisdom
Stine	15th century	Short form of Kristine, Ernestine, etc.
Susanne	14th century		Hebrew	Lily
Sørine		Formed from the male name Søren
Søster	13th century		Nordic	Sister
Thekla	12th century		Greek
Theodora	After The Middle Ages		Greek	God, gift
Thilde		Short form of Mathilde
Thora	Legendary historic	Short form of the stock Thor-	Nordic
Thorhild	The Viking Age	Formed from the male name Thorfred
Thyra	10th century		Nordic	Thor, fight
Tove	The Viking Age	Formed from the male name Tovi	Nordic
Trine	14th century	Short form of Katrine
Trude	15th century	Short form of the stock -trud	Nordic
Ulrikke		Formed from the male name Ulrik
Una	12th century		Nordic
Ursula	15th century		Latin	Little bear
Valborg	13th century		German	Defence
Vera			Russian	Faith
Vibeke	14th century	German diminutive of Viborg
Viborg	The Viking Age		Nordic	Fight, defender
Victoria			Latin	Victory
Vita	18th century		Latin	Life
Volborg	13th century	From Valborg
Yrsa	Legendary historic		Nordic
Åse	Legendary historic		Nordic	Goddess

The 10 most common family names in 1801/1803 were:

Jensen (Jenssen)
Nielsen (Nilsen)
Pedersen (Petersen, Pettersen)
Hansen (Hanssen)
Christensen (Kristensen, Chrestensen)
Andersen (Anderssen)
Larsen (Larssen)
Sørensen (Sörensen)
Rasmussen (Rasmusen)
Jørgensen

In 2024, the Top-10 has the exact same names and the order is only a little different. Most importantly is that Nielsen now the most common family name:

Nielsen
Jensen
Hansen
Andersen
Pedersen
Christensen
Larsen
Sørensen
Rasmussen
Jørgensen

In total, there are around 147,000 different family names in Denmark of which 12,000 are patronymic family names, i.e. with the “sen” at the end.

More than half the Danish population has a patronymic family name.

Interested in uncovering more about your own Danish heritage or exploring the stories behind the names in your family? We offer a free consultation to help you begin your journey into discovering your Danish roots. Reach out to us today, and let’s explore your family’s history together!

Danish Names

Family Names

1828 – Free choice of the family name

1856 – Same family name for future generations

Boy's names

Girl's names

© 2025 MyDanishRoots.dk

Privacy Policy

Danish Names

Family Names

1828 – Free choice of the family name

1856 – Same family name for future generations

Boy's names

Girl's names

ChatGPT sagde: