The Viking Age lasted from about 800 to 1050 CE, but old Scandinavian culture continues to influence Britain and our language. During this period, the Vikings staged wages of invasions and settled in parts of Britain, including Northumbria, York (where the Viking settlement was known as Jorvik), and East Anglia. Although their physical presence is no longer visible, Norse influence prevails, most notably in the place names and surnames of today.
The Vikings did not pass down surnames from generation to generation as we do today; instead, Norse people used the system of patronymics, constructing surnames as a direct reflection of the father’s, or occasionally mother’s, first name. A similar naming system was traditionally found in Welsh.
The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain reveals that many surnames now seen throughout Britain are Viking in origin. Below is a list of some of the most popular:
The top Viking surnames
ASKEW
This name derives from the old-Scandinavian word eikiskógr, meaning ‘oak wood’, and is common in North and East England.
BAIN
This name comes from the Old Scandinavian word beinn, meaning ‘straight, direct’, or 'ready to serve, hospitable’. It is widespread in areas of Scotland.
BOTTLE
Predominantly found in Kent, this comes from the Old Scandinavian female personal name Bóthildr, from bót (‘remedy’) and hildr (‘battle, war’).
BRAND
This name can refer to the Old Scandinavian personal names Brand and Brand, as well as the word brandr, meaning ‘firebrand, sword-blade’.
CARTWRIGHT
This surname is indicative of occupation, comprised of the Old Scandinavian kartr and the Old English wyrhta, denoting a ‘craftsman’ or a maker of carts.
CLEGG
Deriving from a Middle English nickname clege, or the Old Scandinavian kleggi, this name means ‘gadfly, horsefly’ and seems to indicate somebody irritating.
COULSON
In some cases, this name is believed to be a compound of Old Scandinavian kolr (‘swarthy, dark-complexioned’) and sveinn (‘lad’).
DOTT
This name is believed to originally have derived from the Old Scandinavian dottr, meaning 'lazy', 'wretched creature’.
FINDLAY
While this predominantly correlates to the Gaelic personal name Fionnlagh, from fionn or ‘white, fair’ and laoch or ‘hero’, it is reinforced by an Old Scandinavian name based on finn (‘Finn’) and leikr (‘fight’ or ‘hero’).
GADD
This is believed to come from an Old Scandinavian nickname gaddr, meaning ‘a sharp-pointed metal spike, a goad’.
GILL
This name is common in north-west England, where Vikings settled, and derives from the Old Scandinavian gil, meaning ‘deep glen, ravine’.
GUNN(E)
This surname comes from a Middle English personal name in turn derived from the Old Scandinavian Gunni or Gunna.
HAMMOND
Widespread in England and Wales, especially Suffolk, this relationship name comes from the Old Scandinavian Hámundr, which may have been used in Normandy.
HOLT
This name comes from the Old Scandinavian word holt, meaning ‘wood, thicket, grove’.
KAY
This can be traced to the nickname from Old Scandinavian kei, meaning ‘left-handed’.
KERR
A locative name for someone who lived by a marsh or swampy woodland, from the Old Scandinavian kjarr.
KIRBY
This name is composed of the Old Scandinavian elements kirkja (‘church’) and bȳ (‘farmstead, village’).
OSBORNE
A relationship name partly from the late Old English Ōsbern, an Anglicisation of the Old Scandinavian Ásbiǫrn (from áss or ‘god’ and biǫrn or ‘bear’). Particularly common in Cornwall.
OSMOND
This name was popular among Normans in Normandy and comes from the Old Scandinavian Ásmundr, from elements meaning ‘god’ + ‘protection’ in English, or ‘hand; bride-price’ in Scandinavian.
RAVEN
A name especially common in Essex, Suffolk and Norfolk, this is a relationship name from Raven, a Middle English personal name derived from the Old Scandinavian hrafn, meaning ‘raven’.
SKINNER
An occupational name from the Old Scandinavian skinn, used to refer to someone who stripped the hide from animals to be used in the production of fur garments or leather.
THORBURN
This name comes from the Old Scandinavian name Þorbiǫrn which is composed of the elements Þórr or ‘Thor’, the name of the god of thunder in Scandinavian mythology, and bjǫrn, or ‘bear, warrior’.
WROE
A locative name from the Old Scandinavian vrá, meaning ‘nook, corner of land’, referring to someone who lived in an isolated place.
