I hate all Swedish boys names! :(

[littlemissbroody26]

We recently had our 20 week scan and found out that we are having a little boy, I am over the moon! The only problem is that now we are more seriously name brain storming I have realised that there are relaly no Swedish names for boys that I love. My OH was convinced the baby was a girl so we had concentrated on girls names and had some lovely girls names picked out.

I have a Swedish baby name book and these are the names that I would consider (but non jump out to me as being amazing)

Alf (reminds me of the guy from home and away)
Alvar (means from nature.. it is appropriate as the baby was conceived the month we were due to have IVF)
Elmer (the elephant?)
Frej (sounds too much like freja?)
rasmus (I like Erasmus but OH will only consider Rasmus, I don't want to call the baby part of a name.. if it was Erasmus my OH could still call him Rasmus, also I don't like the name "raz" as a nn.. it reminds me of "out on the raz" meaning going to pubs and getting drunk)
Sören
Teodor (I don't really like the gift from god meaning as we are not really religious but tio is a nice nn)
tor (god of thunder, I like the meaning but i struggle to say tor in swedish as the o sounds a bit like ou and the r is rolled... so the baby would have its own mum mispronouncing his name forever)

I would love to give the baby a really English name but we live in Sweden and will live here most probably for all of the baby's childhood. DO you think it is so awful to give a child a foreign name?

thank you!

[ZZZenAgain]

not keen on any of those names either tbh which is probably not much help. Swedes speak English well, surely they would have no problem with an English name if that is what you would prefer. I don't think it is awful for your ds to live there without a Swedish name.

Have you flicked through a name book though, maybe you'll find some you do like.

[ZZZenAgain]

oh sorry you say you have a Swedish name book, missed that.

Could also be Danish or Norwegian, couldn't it? They would surely cope with those types of names too.

[Sarcalogos]

I dont think it is in the slightest bit odd for you to call your son an English name (you are English have I got that right?) or a swedish name given that you live there.

How about something English that is similar to one of your preferred Swedish names?

Theodore
Alfie/Alfred


Or another name that works well in both languages (I mean would be easily read and pronounced- my Swedish isn't up to helping you there though!)

[ZZZenAgain]

are there any English names you really like atm?

[BeingFluffy]

I have a foreign name (one of my parents is foreign but not from that country). I constantly suffered with it being mispronounced and misspelt although it is non particularly uncommon nowadays. Nowadays I am glad I have it.

I would have thought that most Swedish people would be familiar with English names; so while it might make it obvious that he is part English I don't think it would be thought weird. Are you sure that most people are called by Swedish names? My Mum is Dutch and I recall quite a few ethnically Dutch kids had non Dutch names, even many years ago, which were treated as quite normal.

[TheLaineyWayIsEssex]

Sven?
Henrik?

[Stellan]

Does it have to be a Swedish name or just one that works in Sweden?

The Internet suggests that the top 20 names in Sweden are:

1. Oscar
   
2. William
   
3. Lucas
   
4. Elias
   
5. Alexander
   
6. Hugo
   
7. Oliver
   
8. Theo
   
9. Liam
   

10. Leo
11. Erik
11 Viktor
13. Emil
14. Isak
15. Axel
16. Filip
17. Anton
18. Gustav
19. Edvin
20. Vincent

I don't know much about the Swedish language or how these names might be pronounced but they all seem fine to me. Looking in the top 100, there's other familiar choices like Benjamin, Simon, Kevin, Casper, Gabriel, Felix, Sebastian, Joel, Adrian, Jack, Samuel, Carl, David, Harry, Eddie, Robin, August, John, Elis, Jacob, Noah, Charlie, Max, Elliot, Alfred and Adam as well as some interesting ones that I think would work well in both languages - Albin, Wilmer, Nils, Linus, Mio, and Elvin.

If this list I've found is correct, I can't really see the problem (www.behindthename.com/top/lists/sw/2010)... I imagine some of the names popular here and there will be pronounced differently but there must surely be some that work well in both.

If you actually require a Swedish name (by origin), disregard this comment!

[derekthehamster]

I knew a Tor he was very sexy But we pronounced it like it's spelt.
Soren is also nice,

[albertswearengen]

I love the names Linus and Lars. I wish I'd had the courage to call my ds one of these but I am Irish.
I do like Casper as well.

[BeingFluffy]

www.behindthename.com/top/

Top 100 Swedish names - seem quite a few English sounding (Alexander, Charlie etc) unless the pronouciation is completely different...

[Kittenkatzen]

I like Alvar, it's nice and the meaning is lovely.

Alexander would probably cross over both cultures quite well I would have thought, as well as Theodor. Also isn't Bo Swedish/Scandinavian?

[SweetPea3]

As a non-Swede, I prefer Soren and Teodor from your list. Also really like Theodore if you don't mind Anglicising.

If you prefer English names though, I would definitely just go with something English that is not too unfamiliar to Swedes x

[BarryShitpeas]

Most Swedish boys I know (and I know a lot as this part of SW London has many Swedish families) have names which work in English also.

Philip
Karl
Michael
Oscar
Erik

Those sort of names.

[Stellan]

Apparently my username is a Swedish boys' name! Maybe I should add it to my boys' list?!

[TheSmallPrint]

Alvar is a great name and also the name of Finlands most famous architect (sorry he's not Swedish!) so it's got good foundations (pun intended).

[lurkingaround]

Jonas?

[Kveta]

Alvar is a fab name, I know a toddler and a corgi called Alvar!

Love Teodor/Theodore too.

My DC are both half British/half forrin, and we have given them pretty ordinary names which happen to work in both languages (although DD's name is spelt the forrin way, pronounced the english way). I don't think it matters a great deal where the name originates, but it does matter that family on both sides can pronounce it.

Alexander, Oliver, Oskar, Edward, Jakob, Benedikt - all work in most european languages :)

[alana39]

I love Soren. But then I would secretly like to be Swedish and think just about any name sounds better with a Swedish accent

Anyway I don't see why you can't use a very English name if that's what you want.

[WillowTrees]

Well my kids are half Norwegian, so similar. My boy is Theodore, spelt the English way. Other names chosen by half Norweigan/non-Norwegian friends are: Max, Lucas, Oscar, Sebastian, Oliver & Elliot.

[redrubyshoes]

I know a Swedish man called Cedric.

[ibbydibby]

Kenth?

[ZZZenAgain]

just had a quick look at a site with Swedish boys names and I see what you mean. Apart from things like Kristofer and Nikas, Mikael which are not really very different to the English versions, I don't think I would use many of them. Halen, Pol, Torkel and Stig and so on.

[ZZZenAgain]

oops Niklas

[WillowTrees]

... And August and Gabriel. We nearly chose Neo, which is reasonably popular in Sweden, met a very cute Swedish baby Neo and I always think of him.
Good luck!