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ArchivesSOLVEIG – popularity prior to „Peer Gynt“
The etymology of the name SOLVEIG seems to be debated – at least as far as its second part is concerned. Any additional infos to what this site says, anybody?
But my other question is: How old is the name itself? Is it an old Norse name? How popular was it, before it was used in “Peer Gynt”? And what influence had the opera on its popularity? How widespread is it nowadays in the Scandinavian countries ?
But my other question is: How old is the name itself? Is it an old Norse name? How popular was it, before it was used in “Peer Gynt”? And what influence had the opera on its popularity? How widespread is it nowadays in the Scandinavian countries ?
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Replies
Hi Andy,
Solveig is an Old Norse name which has been used in Norway (especially in Sogn og Fjordane and Møre og Romsdal) during the entire Middle Ages, so it's much older than Ibsen's Solveig from "Peer Gynt" (1867). It has still been used after Christianization and there were (and still are) lots of dialectal variant forms, e.g. Sølvi, Soloug, Sulu, Sylvi + many more.
The first part of the name (Sol-) comes from the Old Norse word 'salr' meaning "house with one room; big room, hall", but some people think there's a connection to the Old Norse word 'sól' which means "sun".
The second part (-veig), probably derives from Old Norse 'veig' meaning "strength" or 'víg' meaning "battle". Some people see connections to Old Norse 'vé' which means "devoted, dedicated".
In modern Danish, Solveig sounds like 'solvej' which means "way/path of the sun". So one of the variant spellings of Solveig in Denmark is Solvej as well.
As for Sweden, your "Peer Gynt"-theory is absolutely right. The name had not been used in Sweden before 1880. In the 1930s and 1940s, Norwegian and Danish names became very popular in Sweden, and Solveig was one of them.
At the moment, Solveig is a very old fashioned name. Most Solveigs are in their 70s or 80s.
Norway: ~ 21,000 (most popular in the 1920s)
Sweden: ~ 21,000 (most popular in the 1940s)
Denmark: ~ 4,500 (no statistics found)
Finland: ~ 2,000 (most popular in the 1940s)
Iceland: ~ 50 (no statistics found)
Outside the Nordic countries, Solveig is known (and used) in the Netherlands and northern Germany as well.
Name days:
Norwegian: 1st September
Swedish: 4th June
Finlandswedish: 3rd September
Viele Grüße von
Satu
Solveig is an Old Norse name which has been used in Norway (especially in Sogn og Fjordane and Møre og Romsdal) during the entire Middle Ages, so it's much older than Ibsen's Solveig from "Peer Gynt" (1867). It has still been used after Christianization and there were (and still are) lots of dialectal variant forms, e.g. Sølvi, Soloug, Sulu, Sylvi + many more.
The first part of the name (Sol-) comes from the Old Norse word 'salr' meaning "house with one room; big room, hall", but some people think there's a connection to the Old Norse word 'sól' which means "sun".
The second part (-veig), probably derives from Old Norse 'veig' meaning "strength" or 'víg' meaning "battle". Some people see connections to Old Norse 'vé' which means "devoted, dedicated".
In modern Danish, Solveig sounds like 'solvej' which means "way/path of the sun". So one of the variant spellings of Solveig in Denmark is Solvej as well.
As for Sweden, your "Peer Gynt"-theory is absolutely right. The name had not been used in Sweden before 1880. In the 1930s and 1940s, Norwegian and Danish names became very popular in Sweden, and Solveig was one of them.
At the moment, Solveig is a very old fashioned name. Most Solveigs are in their 70s or 80s.
Norway: ~ 21,000 (most popular in the 1920s)
Sweden: ~ 21,000 (most popular in the 1940s)
Denmark: ~ 4,500 (no statistics found)
Finland: ~ 2,000 (most popular in the 1940s)
Iceland: ~ 50 (no statistics found)
Outside the Nordic countries, Solveig is known (and used) in the Netherlands and northern Germany as well.
Name days:
Norwegian: 1st September
Swedish: 4th June
Finlandswedish: 3rd September
Viele Grüße von
Satu
This message was edited 4/3/2005, 12:55 AM
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