Norwegian Last Names
Norwegian last names tell you either who someone’s ancestor was or where the family lived. For centuries most Norwegians carried a patronymic — Ole’s son became Olsen, Hans’s son Hansen — plus the name of the farm they worked. When Norway’s Surname Act, passed soon after World War I, required fixed, inherited surnames, many families chose the farm name, which is why so many Norwegian surnames simply mean “hill”, “bay” or “valley”.
Below are 100+ Norwegian surnames with their meanings, from the most common -sen names to landscape names and the anglicized forms that crossed to the American Midwest. For first names, see our Norwegian names hub and Norwegian girl names, or compare with Swedish last names.
The most common Norwegian surnames (-sen names)
Patronymics still dominate Norway’s surname statistics: Hansen, Johansen and Olsen are each shared by roughly 45,000–50,000 people. The -sen ending is the Danish-Norwegian spelling; Swedes use -son.
| Surname | Meaning | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Hansen | “Son of Hans” | Norway’s most common surname |
| Johansen | “Son of Johan” | From Hebrew Johannes, “God is gracious” |
| Olsen | “Son of Ole” | Ole is a form of Olav |
| Larsen | “Son of Lars” | Lars comes from Laurentius |
| Andersen | “Son of Anders” | Anders = Andrew |
| Pedersen | “Son of Peder” | Peder = Peter, “rock” |
| Nilsen | “Son of Nils” | Nils = Nicholas |
| Kristiansen | “Son of Kristian” | “Follower of Christ” |
| Jensen | “Son of Jens” | Jens is a Danish-Norwegian form of John |
| Karlsen | “Son of Karl” | Karl means “free man” |
| Johnsen | “Son of John” | Also spelled Jonsen |
| Pettersen | “Son of Petter” | Another form of Peter |
| Eriksen | “Son of Erik” | Erik means “ever ruler” |
| Halvorsen | “Son of Halvor” | Halvor is from Old Norse Hallvarðr, “rock guardian” |
| Jørgensen | “Son of Jørgen” | Jørgen = George |
| Henriksen | “Son of Henrik” | “Ruler of the home” |
| Sørensen | “Son of Søren” | Søren is from Severinus |
| Gundersen | “Son of Gunder” | Old Norse Gunnarr, “bold warrior” |
| Iversen | “Son of Iver” | Old Norse Ívarr, “bow warrior” |
| Knutsen | “Son of Knut” | Knut means “knot” |
| Amundsen | “Son of Amund” | Made famous by explorer Roald Amundsen |
| Kristoffersen | “Son of Kristoffer” | “Christ-bearer” |
| Mathisen | “Son of Mathis” | From Matthias, “gift of God” |
| Evensen | “Son of Even” | Even is from Old Norse Eyvindr |
| Thorsen | “Son of Thor” | Also spelled Torsen |
Farm names from hills, slopes and mountains
Norway is steep, and its surnames show it. Many end in the Norwegian definite article -en, so Haug is “hill” and Haugen is “the hill”.
| Surname | Meaning | Old Norse root |
|---|---|---|
| Haugen | “The hill” | haugr |
| Haugland | “Hill land” | haugr + land |
| Berg | “Mountain” | berg |
| Berge | “Mountain, rock” | berg |
| Fjeld | “Mountain” (old spelling of fjell) | fjall |
| Bakken | “The slope” | bakki |
| Bakke | “Slope, bank” | bakki |
| Lie | “Hillside” | hlíð |
| Lien | “The hillside” | hlíð |
| Brekke | “Steep slope” | brekka |
| Aas | “Ridge” | áss |
| Aasen | “The ridge” | áss |
| Hoel | “Knoll, small hill” | hóll |
| Kleiven | “The steep path up a cliff” | kleif |
| Solberg | “Sun mountain” | sól + berg |
Last names from the coast, fjords and rivers
With one of the world’s longest coastlines, Norway has plenty of water surnames. They make striking middle names too — see our names that mean ocean for more.
| Surname | Meaning | Old Norse root |
|---|---|---|
| Strand | “Shore, beach” | strǫnd |
| Vik | “Bay, inlet” | vík |
| Viken | “The bay” | vík |
| Sandvik | “Sandy bay” | sandr + vík |
| Nes | “Headland” | nes |
| Eide | “Isthmus, narrow land crossing” | eið |
| Holm | “Islet” | holmr |
| Holmen | “The islet” | holmr |
| Sund | “Strait, sound” | sund |
| Sunde | “By the strait” | sund |
| Foss | “Waterfall” | fors |
| Fosse | “Waterfall” | fors |
| Myhre | “Bog, marsh” | mýrr |
| Sand | “Sand, sandy beach” | sandr |
| Våge | “Bay, cove” | vágr |
Surnames from fields, valleys and forests
Farmland was precious, so farms were often named for the clearing, meadow or grove they sat in.
| Surname | Meaning | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Dahl | “Valley” | Old spelling of dal |
| Moen | “The moor, sandy plain” | From mór |
| Moe | “Moor, heath” | Common in Trøndelag |
| Lund | “Grove” | From lundr |
| Lunde | “Grove” | Also a word for puffin |
| Hagen | “The enclosed pasture, garden” | From hagi |
| Tveit | “Clearing” | Typical of western Norway |
| Rud | “Clearing in the woods” | From rjóðr |
| Rønning | “Clearing” | From rydning, cleared land |
| Nygård | “New farm” | Also spelled Nygaard |
| Engen | “The meadow” | From eng |
| Skog | “Forest” | From skógr |
| Skaug | “Forest” | Older dialect spelling of skog |
| Vold | “Field, meadow” | From vǫllr |
| Vang | “Field” | From vangr |
| Solheim | “Sun home” | A sunny farmstead |
| Myklebust | “Big farmstead” | mikill + bólstaðr |
| Sæther | “Summer mountain pasture” | From sæter |
| Bø | “Farm” | From bœr; one of the shortest surnames |
Directional Norwegian surnames
Where a valley had several farms, they were often told apart by compass point.
| Surname | Meaning | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Nordby | “North farm” | by = farm, settlement |
| Østby | “East farm” | Also Østbye |
| Vestby | “West farm” | Also a town in Akershus |
| Nordli | “North hillside” | nord + li |
| Sørlie | “South hillside” | sør + li |
| Nordheim | “North home” | Common in Western Norway |
| Nordberg | “North mountain” | nord + berg |
Americanized Norwegian last names
About 800,000 Norwegians emigrated to the US between 1825 and the 1920s, mostly to the Upper Midwest. Many surnames were respelled on arrival.
| Surname | Norwegian original | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Olson | Olsen | Among the most common Scandinavian-American names |
| Larson | Larsen | Common in Minnesota and Wisconsin |
| Hanson | Hansen | Also used by Swedes and Danes |
| Halvorson | Halvorsen | Distinctly Norwegian |
| Knutson | Knutsen | Sometimes Knudson |
| Gunderson | Gundersen | Very common in North Dakota |
| Evenson | Evensen | Rare outside Norwegian families |
| Nelson | Nilsen, Nielsen or Nilsson | Blended with the English Nelson |
| Lee | Lie, “hillside” | Kept its sound, changed its spelling |
| Ness | Nes, “headland” | Kept its meaning |
| Rudd | Rud, “clearing” | Adopted an English look |
Famous Norwegian surnames
These family names are known worldwide thanks to Norwegian artists, writers and explorers.
| Surname | Famous bearer | Name note |
|---|---|---|
| Ibsen | Henrik Ibsen, playwright | “Son of Ib”, a Danish form of Jacob |
| Munch | Edvard Munch, painter of <em>The Scream</em> | From munk, “monk” |
| Grieg | Edvard Grieg, composer | From the Scottish surname Greig |
| Nansen | Fridtjof Nansen, explorer and Nobel Peace laureate | Patronymic family name of Danish origin |
| Heyerdahl | Thor Heyerdahl, Kon-Tiki explorer | Ends in dahl, “valley” |
| Hamsun | Knut Hamsun, novelist | Pen name from the Hamsund farm |
| Bjørnson | Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, poet of the national anthem | “Son of Bjørn” |
| Undset | Sigrid Undset, Nobel-winning novelist | A farm name |
| Wergeland | Henrik Wergeland, poet | A western Norwegian farm name |
Tips for researching a Norwegian surname
- Expect the name to change. Before 1923 a man could be Ole Hansen on one record and Ole Haugen on another — patronymic and farm name used interchangeably.
- Look up the farm. If your surname is a place, the farm probably still exists; Norway’s Digitalarkivet census records are free to search.
- Check for Danish spellings. Dahl, Fjeld and Aas are pre-reform spellings of dal, fjell and ås, kept in family names.
- Remember the Americanizations. An Olson in Minnesota may appear as Olsen, Olesen or Olssøn in Norwegian records.
- Compare the neighbors. Our Viking last names and Finnish last names show how naming evolved across the Nordic region.
Frequently asked questions
What is the most common last name in Norway?
Hansen is the most common surname in Norway, followed by Johansen, Olsen, Larsen and Andersen, according to Statistics Norway. The most common non-patronymic surnames are Berg, Haugen and Hagen.
Why do so many Norwegian surnames end in -sen?
-sen means “son”. Norwegians traditionally took their father’s first name plus -sen, so a surname changed every generation until hereditary surnames became mandatory in 1923.
What is a Norwegian farm name?
A farm name is a surname taken from the farm where a family lived, such as Haugen (“the hill”) or Nygård (“new farm”). Around half of Norwegian surnames today are farm names.
Is Dahl a Norwegian name?
Yes. Dahl means “valley” and is common in Norway and Denmark. Author Roald Dahl was born in Wales to Norwegian parents.
Do Norwegians still use patronymics?
Not as surnames, but the law allows a child to take a patronymic or matronymic (for example Olsdatter or Karisdatter) as a middle or last name, and a few families revive the custom.