Question…

Question…

I have a story going right now, it’s not a book that’s getting published officially (I may in the future) but I’m just going to be publishing it on AO3 for now. It’s about a pirate, the pirate’s daughter and a princess. It’s set in Norway, it’s definitely not a modern story but it’s still a few years after Vikings were a thing in Scandinavia. The issue I’m having is the character’s names.

I was originally going to call the MC by [name_u]Endellion[/name_u] but I didn’t like it too much for her. So, question is, do these names fit the characters? [name_u]Or[/name_u] should I give them more [name_f]English[/name_f] style names to keep people from having to guess on pronunciations?

[name_u]Pirate[/name_u] [name_f]Queen[/name_f] (MC) : [name_f]Sigrid[/name_f] “Tyr” [name_m]Vidar[/name_m] [name_f]Marina[/name_f] Vigdris Asgerdatter

[name_u]Reason[/name_u] I choose her name

[name_f]Sigrid[/name_f] [name_m]Vidar[/name_m] [name_f]Marina[/name_f] Vigdris is the full name I picked for her because I learned that [name_f]Sigrid[/name_f], [name_m]Vidar[/name_m] and Vigdris were associated with the meanings of victory, war, battle, etc. [name_f]Marina[/name_f], I choose because well she’s a pirate and she’s out at sea all the time. Not to mention that [name_f]Marina[/name_f] was one of her mother’s middle names which she later passed on to [name_m]Tyr[/name_m] and [name_m]Tyr[/name_m] then passed it on to her daughter. [name_m]Tyr[/name_m], I picked as a nickname or her pirate “calling” since [name_m]Tyr[/name_m] was the god of war and bloodshed as well as the bringer of order and justice.

Pirate’s Daughter : [name_f]Sif[/name_f] [name_f]Freya[/name_f] [name_f]Sigyn[/name_f] [name_f]Marina[/name_f] Sigriddatter

[name_u]Reason[/name_u] I choose her name

[name_f]Sif[/name_f] and [name_f]Freya[/name_f], I choose for Tyr’s daughter because both names have to do with the meaning of war, battle etc. Not only that but [name_f]Freya[/name_f] was a lady. I choose [name_f]Sigyn[/name_f] because she was the trickster wife of [name_u]Loki[/name_u] and associated with poetry. Tyr’s daughter can be bit of a prankster so I figured it fit. Sigriddatter, I used because [name_m]Tyr[/name_m] doesn’t have a husband.

Norwegian [name_f]Princess[/name_f] : [name_f]Abelone[/name_f] “Lone” [name_f]Ingrid[/name_f] Synnove [name_f]Astrid[/name_f] Bjorndatter

[name_u]Reason[/name_u] I choose her name

[name_f]Abelone[/name_f] [name_f]Ingrid[/name_f] Synnove [name_f]Astrid[/name_f] is the name of the princess because I felt that it sounded so queenly. I liked [name_f]Abelone[/name_f], solely for the fact that [name_m]Lone[/name_m] sounded like a cool nickname. I definitely want to keep [name_f]Abelone[/name_f]. The others I’m not 100% keen on, aside from Synnove. [name_f]Ingrid[/name_f] and [name_f]Astrid[/name_f] have to do with beauty while [name_f]Abelone[/name_f] and Synnove have to do with the sun.

If you could name my characters that fit them, what would it be? Should I give them [name_f]English[/name_f] sounding names or stick to names that are in the Norwegian/Nordic/Norse realm of things? What are some other Nordic or Norse names I could use?

I like them - and I’d stick to the ones you’ve got - it signals the time you’re writing about and they seem really well thought out. If you’re worried about pronunciations, you could always include them at the start.

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Name trends in the period

If this is right after the Vikings were a thing, they most likely just turned [name_u]Christian[/name_u]. Biblical names were on the rise.

Also, people didn’t start using middle names here until the mid 1500s, and even then it was just nobility until the 1800s. Nicknames are fair game, though.

It was rude to use god names as people names

Back when people belived in Norse mythology, it was considered rude to give people god names. People named after gods became more of a thing with national romanticism in the late 1700s/early-mid 1800s. What they would have done before that, was Norse word names unrelated to gods, and (very common) mashing up a god name with a word name. For example, they would take the god [name_m]Ing[/name_m], and then they would add another word to make [name_f]Ingrid[/name_f] (Ing+beautiful), Ingegerd (Ing+fence/protection), [name_m]Ingmar[/name_m] (Ing+excellent/famous), [name_f]Ingeborg[/name_f] (Ing+castle/defence).

Spelling nitpick

I would really recommend either avoiding names with unfamilliar characters, or spelling them with their correct characters. So you can have Synnøve (Norweigan form), or [name_f]Sunniva[/name_f] (broader Scandinavian form), or Sunngifu (Old [name_f]English[/name_f] form), but you shouldn’t use Synnove.

What I would name them:
[name_u]Pirate[/name_u] [name_f]Queen[/name_f]: [name_f]Sigrid[/name_f] “Sigge” Siøfar Asgersdatter

Reasons

[name_f]Sigrid[/name_f] is a solid name choice, so I’m keeping it and removing the middles. [name_m]Sigge[/name_m] is a very old surname for names that contain the beginning “Sig-” (meaning victory). It’s mostly used as a shortform for [name_m]Sixten[/name_m] (spelled Sigsten in ye olden times), which is a boy name, so you would get some gender bending here.

I think it’s cool that you want some sort of pirate/warrior name for her, and it does fit the setting! They just would never use a god name like that. If I were you, I would draw inspiration from historical people like [name_m]Sven[/name_m] Tveskägg (Sven Two-beards), [name_m]Erik[/name_m] Blodyx (Erik Blood-axe), [name_m]Harald[/name_m] Hårfager (Harald Hair-pretty) and make up something similar for her. I can help with translation if you want, but right now I don’t really know her character well. Possibly you could use Sjøfar (seafaring). Grammatically that would either be [name_f]Sigrid[/name_f] Siøfar or Siøfarar-Sigrid, you could pick one or switch.

Pirate’s daughter: [name_f]Thordis[/name_f] Sigridsdatter

On surnames for children of unwed mothers and also other choices.

[name_f]Sif[/name_f], [name_f]Freya[/name_f] and [name_f]Sigyn[/name_f] are all god names. I don’t know any girl names that utilise these, but [name_f]Sif[/name_f] is the wife of [name_m]Thor[/name_m], so I’m using his name instead. Some alternatives:

  • [name_f]Thordis[/name_f] is a combination of [name_m]Thor[/name_m] and Dis (meaning both fog (mystical, encompasses both the seafaring thing and the poetry thing) and goddess (you mentioned that you wanted [name_f]Freya[/name_f] because she was a lady)
  • Thorunn/Thorunnr is a combination of [name_m]Thor[/name_m] and Unn/Unnr (the daughter of the sea god Ægir, and also a word that means something similar to “wave”)
  • Thorbjørg is a combination of [name_m]Thor[/name_m] and Bjørg (castle/defence, (same as Borg from before, but more Norweigan))
  • Thorgerd is a combination of [name_m]Thor[/name_m] and [name_u]Gerd[/name_u] (meaning fence, protection) so could mean something like “please [name_m]Thor[/name_m], protect this girl”.
  • Thorfhildr is a combination of [name_m]Thor[/name_m] and Hildr (meaning battle)
  • Thorgun/Thorgunn is a combination of [name_m]Thor[/name_m] and Gun/Gunn (a valkyrie who rides on a wolf).

As for her surname, typically, a daugther would get the dad’s name + datter if the parents were married, even if the parents married after the birth of the child. I see that you already know this, and have come up with a solution on your own. I agree with you, but want to tell you why.

If the child was born outside wedlock, there were a few options. The most common was that the child counted as under the authority of her mother’s father, so she would get his name + datter. (This would give her the same surname as her mother). It was also fairly common for the mother to not say who the father was, and then marry someone else (in cases where the biological father was unpleasant). The child might then take her stepfather’s name + datter. Another option was calling the child by the biological father’s name + datter as a snide way to tell the community what he did.

[name_u]An[/name_u] unwed mother faced a lot of backlash from the community, and the child’s name was a good way to give him some of the blame too without revealing enough (ie outright telling everyone who he was) that anyone would force them to marry. It was also useful if the father was already married to someone else.

That being said, I don’t dislike the idea of giving Sigrid’s daughter the surname Sigridsdatter (it would need an S after [name_f]Sigrid[/name_f] for the sake of grammar), since it has become popular in feminist circles since the 1970s. Sure, it’s anachronistic, but it’s not implausible that people would have done so before. Especially since [name_f]Sigrid[/name_f] seems to be an unconventional sort of woman.

So, I think the surname should be Sigdridsdatter or Asgersdatter

Norweigian [name_f]Princess[/name_f]: [name_f]Margarethe[/name_f] Biørnsdatter, alternatively [name_f]Abigail[/name_f] Biørnsdatter

Reasons

I think a [name_f]Princess[/name_f] in this time period really needs a [name_u]Christian[/name_u] name, so that her father can show off how forward thinking and righteous he is. [name_f]Abelone[/name_f] is sadly a greek mythology name, even though it is really pretty. [name_f]Abigail[/name_f] is a close alternative. It is very uncommon here in Scandinavia, and I think it always has been. More common biblical names are [name_f]Ada[/name_f], [name_f]Hannah[/name_f], [name_f]Susanna[/name_f] [name_f]Esther[/name_f], [name_f]Rakel[/name_f], [name_f]Sarah[/name_f], [name_f]Martha[/name_f], [name_f]Eva[/name_f], and [name_f]Magdalene[/name_f]. Now that I think of it, [name_f]Margarethe[/name_f] isn’t Biblical (I think) but it was super common among richer folks around the time Christianity came.

[name_m]Bjørn[/name_m] is a modern spelling. Biørn is older, and also looks more royal to the modern eye. So Biørnsdatter it is.

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@Foulbaubleofmansvani Thank you for the help! But the story isn’t right after the Viking era. It’s still a good bit after it but it’s still not super modern of a time. And also [name_f]Sif[/name_f] is Tyr’s adoptive daughter so that’s why I wanted Sigridsdatter as her daughter’s last name because [name_f]Sigrid[/name_f] absolutely despises her father (for reasons not specified unless you read the story) so that’s why [name_m]Tyr[/name_m] doesn’t give her daughter his last name. I also gave her the nickname of [name_m]Tyr[/name_m] because I believe that that’s the nickname that she gave herself as an honor name for the god. Which kind of shows that it’s a pretty modern-ish story, yet it’s still an older style story (because of the style of dress, etc).

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What I wrote applies to the years around 1050-1500, with slightly more give for the [name_f]Princess[/name_f] name in the latter 200 years of that span. Meaning a [name_f]Princess[/name_f] [name_f]Abelone[/name_f] is more realistic after the year 1300.

Anyway, with this context, I’m 100% on board with Sigridsdatter!

Have you considered the female form [name_f]Tyra[/name_f] instead of [name_m]Tyr[/name_m]? It’s not exactly a god name so would be less taboo. But I’m mostly just mentioning this in case you didn’t know the name [name_f]Tyra[/name_f] existed.

You know your story the best, and it sounds like you’re going for a sort of historical-esque escapade, so you can decide what level of pickiness you want. I’m pretty sure people outside of Scandinavia wouldn’t notice anything wrong with your original ideas, and I’m only this picky because I have studied language conventions. And also because I think it’s nicer for writers to find this out before publication than after. I promise I’m not trying to be as harsh on you as I sound!

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I did know [name_f]Tyra[/name_f] existed! [name_m]Just[/name_m] when I found out the pronunciation was “tee-rah” and not “ty-rah” I was a little deterred not going to lie. But I suppose it’s not so bad. I would like to be picky on it. But for me, in the past, pickiness always seemed to make me not want to write a story at all because I was too picky. So I’m trying to push my pickiness aside in order to write, if that makes sense. Though, I am of Norwegian descent so I should be a bit picky but I can’t push past my pickiness to write so yeah I have to keep the pickiness minimal in order to start writing this story.

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It’s not pronounced Tee-rah though… It’s not [name_m]Ty[/name_m] as in [name_u]Tyler[/name_u] either. The Y is pronounced as if you took [name_f]Molly[/name_f] or [name_f]Peggy[/name_f] and drew out the Y for longer. It’s the same Y-sound as in [name_m]Tyr[/name_m] itself… I’m confused

Anyway, please write this story, it sounds really good! Don’t let my nitpicks get in the way.

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I will definitely be writing it. I’ve been racking my brain for if I should make her Norwegian or something else. Because there are more than just Norwegian pirates. But I thought she’d be descended from Vikings. Not 100% sure yet but hopefully I’ll post this on AO3. If you do end up wanting to read it, my AO3 is i_write__shit.