Icelandic Last Names That Are Wildly Popular & Fascinating

William Shakespeare had the right idea when he asked, “What’s in a name?” Ironically, Romeo Montague, the star-crossed lover who uttered those words, should have actually asked, “What’s in a last name?” as that was at the heart of his story. In fact, in most societies, a surname is the crux of a person’s identity, carrying with it traditions, origin, history, and meaning. But the passing down of surnames is oft unique. For example, the baby naming convention in Iceland is pretty fascinating if you’re not familiar with it. Unlike the way last names work generationally in the United States, Iceland (and other countries like Russia) places a different emphasis on familial ties when it comes to names. That being said, everyone in a family may not have the same surname, and that’s because of the way naming works. Let us break it down for you.

Consider this: In the U.S., oftentimes one partner takes the last name of the other partner after marriage. This becomes the family’s last name. In Iceland, this isn’t the case. When two people marry, they don’t commonly take on a different last name that becomes the family name. Rather, they keep their pre-marriage name. In the U.S. when a family brings a child into the world, patriarchal norms dictate the child takes the last name of the father. While that may not always be the case in modern society, the child still usually takes the family’s last name.

Now here’s how it works in Iceland. When a child is born, parents enjoy time with the baby before even committing to any names. We’re talking a few solid months before the baby has a name — this way the parent or parents can get to know the baby and pick out a moniker that feels fitting. They may name the baby whatever they want, but for a surname (which really isn’t a surname at all), the baby is given a name that corresponds to its father’s name — a patronym. Like in many Slavic cultures, sons and daughters have different iterations of their fathers’ names — each name has a suffix that literally means “son” or “daughter.” So if a couple by the names of Anna Kristjánsdóttir and Magnús Pétursson have a baby girl and name her Kristín, her surname (or patronym) would be Magnúsdóttir, because she is the daughter of Magnús.

It can be a little tricky to understand if you’re not familiar with the naming convention in Iceland, but it’s actually quite interesting and makes a lot of sense as far as naming goes. Surnames that mean “child of” date back millennia but many countries simply have family surnames that are taken on by the whole family tree. Icelandic names have evolved, though, too and now families are free to use matronymic (mother’s) names as well as patronymic names if they so choose.

This isn’t the only fascinating marker of Icelandic names — people who live in Iceland have to choose from a pre-approved list of first names for their babies, too. If they want to choose a name not on the list, it has to be approved by the Icelandic Naming Committee. Yes, that is a real thing. Fascinating, right? Anyway, if you want to check out some of the most popular Icelandic last names (which are really patronyms!), find a list below.

Icelandic Last Names

1. Jónsdóttir

Meaning: Daughter of Jón, God has been gracious.

Origin: Icelandic

2. Jónsson

Meaning: Son of Jón, God has been gracious.

Origin: Icelandic

3. Kristjánsdóttir

Meaning: Daughter of Kristján, follower of Christ.

Origin: Estonian, Icelandic

4. Kristjánsson

Meaning: Son of Kristján, follower of Christ.

Origin: Estonian, Icelandic

5. Ólafsdóttir

Meaning: Daughter of Olafur, ancestor’s relic.

Origin: Old Norse, Icelandic

6. Ólafsson

Meaning: Son of Olafur, ancestor’s relic.

Origin: Old Norse, Icelandic

7. Magnúsdóttir

Meaning: Daughter of Magnús, or great.

Origin: Icelandic

8. Magnússon

Meaning: Son of Magnús, or great.

Origin: Icelandic

9. Jóhannsdóttir

Meaning: Daughter of Jóhann, noble and bright.

Origin: Icelandic

10. Jóhannsson

Meaning: Son of Jóhann, noble and bright.

Origin: Icelandic

11. Björnsdóttir

Meaning: Daughter of Björn, bear.

Origin: Icelandic, Danish, German, Dutch

12. Björnsson

Meaning: Son of Björn, bear.

Origin: Icelandic, Danish, German, Dutch

13. Gunnarsdóttir

Meaning: Daughter of Gunnars, brave warrior.

Origin: Swedish, Icelandic

14. Gunnarsson

Meaning: Son of Gunnars, brave warrior.

Origin: Swedish, Icelandic

15. Helgadóttir

Meaning: Daughter of Helgi, holy.

Origin: Old Norse, Icelandic

16. Helgason

Meaning: Son of Helgi, holy.

Origin: Old Norse, Icelandic

17. Karlsdóttir

Meaning: Daughter of Karl, free.

Origin: German, Icelandic

18. Karlsson

Meaning: Son of Karl, free.

Origin: German, Icelandic

19. Pétursdóttir

Meaning: Daughter of Peturs, strong.

Origin: Latin, Greek, Icelandic

20. Pétursson

Meaning: Son of Peturs, strong.

Origin: Latin, Greek, Icelandic

21. Ragnarsdóttir

Meaning: Daughter of Ragnar, warrior of God.

Origin: Icelandic

22. Ragnarsson

Meaning: Son of Ragnar, warrior of God.

Origin: Icelandic

23. Árnason

Meaning: Son of Árna.

Origin: Anglo-Saxon

24. Árnadóttir

Meaning: Daughter of Árna.

Origin: Icelandic

25. Ásgeirsdóttir

Meaning: The last name of the daughter of Ásgeirs.

Origin: Icelandic

26. Gísladóttir

Meaning: This means the daughter of Gisli.

Origin: Icelandic

27. Gíslason

Meaning: Son of Gísla.

Origin: Icelandic

28. Guðjónsdóttir

Meaning: It means daughter of Guðjóns.

Origin: Icelandic

29. Guðmundsdóttir

Meaning: The daughter of Guðmunds.

Origin: Icelandic

30. Guðmundsson

Meaning: Son of Guðmunds.

Origin: Icelandic

31. Guðjónsson

Meaning: Guðjóns.

Origin: Icelandic

32. Waage

Meaning: It refers to weights, or a machine used to weigh items.

Origin: Icelandic, Norwegian

33. Blöndal

Meaning: Blonde hair person.

Origin: Russian, Icelandic

34. Möller

Meaning: Mill operator or miller.

Origin: Norwegian, Scandinavian

35. Briem

Meaning: Psuedo foreign.

Origin: Germanic

36. Hall

Meaning: Big rock or stone.

Origin: Old Norse, Icelandic

37. Schram

Meaning: Cleft in a rock or someone who lives near a rock.

Origin: Icelandic

38. Beck

Meaning: Refers to a brook or stream.

Origin: Germanic

39. Gröndal

Meaning: A green dale.

Origin: Swedish

40. Gray

Meaning: It doesn’t have a specific meaning.

Origin: Scandinavian

41. Strom

Meaning: Related to the Nordic god of thunder and lightning, Thor.

Origin: Nordic

42. Bui

Meaning: Dweller.

Origin: Nordic

43. Almr

Meaning: Elm tree.

Origin: Scandinavian

44. Araujo

Meaning: A type of climbing plant, with white, fragrant flowers.

Origin: Portuguese, Galician

45. Agnarsson

Meaning: Son of Agnar, son of a warrior, terror or edge of the sword.

Origin: Norse

46. Albertsson

Meaning: Albert’s son, noble or bright.

Origin: German

47. Alexandersdóttir

Meaning: Daughter of Alexander or defender of men.

Origin: Greek

48. Andersen

Meaning: Manly or son of Anders.

Origin: English

49. Annadóttir

Meaning: Daughter of Anna or grace.

Origin: Hebrew

50. Aradóttir

Meaning: Sky’s platform or female offspring of Ara.

Origin: Icelandic

51. Arason

Meaning: Son of Ara or altar of the sky.

Origin: Latin