Icelandic Baby Names must be on a list of approved names put out by The Icelandic Naming Committee. In the United States, parents are generally free to name their child anything they’d like, so long as they don’t choose symbols or profane words. However, parents in Iceland must select their child’s name from a pre-approved list of names.
Icelandic Baby Names that are on the official list can be chosen without any specific application. Baby names in Iceland must also be able to have a genitive ending or have been adopted through custom in the Icelandic language. If a parent would like to pick a name that is not on the list of approved names it needs to be approved by the committee.
Rules for Icelandic personal names require that the baby name must:
- Have a genitive ending or have been adopted through custom in the Icelandic language,
- Be adaptable to the structure of the Icelandic language and spelling conventions, and
- Not cause the bearer embarrassment.
In this article, we’ll examine common Icelandic Baby Names. Below you’ll find a list of names for both boys and girls.
Icelandic Girl Names
Now that we’ve explored some of the most common names in Iceland (as well as some of the oldest Icelandic names), it’s time to check out some of the most common girls’ names for contemporary Icelandic children.
Some of the top names for girls are:
- Hekla
- Embla
- Anna
- Emilía
- Alexandra
Some of these first names have distinctly Latin or Hebrew origins (Anna, Emilia, Alexandra), while others are more Nordic (Hekla, Embla).
Icelandic Boy Names
The most popular boys’ names in Iceland during 2018 were an exciting mix of traditional Icelandic masculine names and Nordicfied Western names (like Aaron and Alexander). Some of the most popular boys’ name during the year were:
- Aron
- Kári
- Brynjar
- Alexander
- Oliver
Some of these names, like Brynjar (“armor warrior”), are distinctly Nordic. The name Oliver has both Nordic and Latin ties and is notably related to the Old Norse Áleifr (“ancestor’s descendant”). Still, the name Aron is a permutation of Aaron (Hebrew, “high mountain”), and Alexander is Latin, meaning “to defend”.
Read more: 245 Icelandic Names for male / female
50 Popular Icelandic Baby Girl Names
In this list you will find the 50 most popular Icelandic baby girl names. The corresponding count column shows how many girls born in 2018 hold that name. The list of baby girl names are only published once every five years, so our next update is 2023.
| Baby Girl Names | Count |
| 1 Emilía/Emelía (1) | 30 |
| 2 Embla (10-12) | 27 |
| 3-5 Ísabella/Ísabel/Isabella/Isabel (10-12) | 21 |
| 3-5 Katla (16-18) | 21 |
| 3-5 Sara (2) | 21 |
| 6-9 Emma (19-26) | 20 |
| 6-9 Freyja (6) | 20 |
| 6-9 Hekla (35-40) | 20 |
| 6-9 Lilja (5) | 20 |
| 10-13 Alexandra (41-51) | 19 |
| 10-13 Elísabet/Elísabeth (10-12) | 19 |
| 10-13 Hanna (19-26) | 19 |
| 10-13 Karítas/Karitas (13-15) | 19 |
| 14-15 Anna (3) | 17 |
| 14-15 Eva (8) | 17 |
| 16-17 Harpa (19-26) | 16 |
| 16-17 Klara/Clara (19-26) | 16 |
| 18-19 Ingibjörg (150-191) | 15 |
| 18-19 Saga (35-40) | 15 |
| 20-29 Andrea (32-34) | 14 |
| 20-29 Arney (35-40) | 14 |
| 20-29 Birta (72-84) | 14 |
| 20-29 Júlía (27-31) | 14 |
| 20-29 Kamilla/Camilla (85-102) | 14 |
| 20-29 Karen (121-149) | 14 |
| 20-29 Katrín (4) | 14 |
| 20-29 Rakel (72-84) | 14 |
| 20-29 Sóley (13-15) | 14 |
| 20-29 Viktoría (7) | 14 |
| 30-33 Bríet (13-15) | 13 |
| 30-33 Guðrún (19-26) | 13 |
| 30-33 Iðunn (85-102) | 13 |
| 30-33 Þórdís (72-84) | 13 |
| 34-40 Aría (150-191) | 12 |
| 34-40 Aþena (32-34) | 12 |
| 34-40 Elín (19-26) | 12 |
| 34-40 Hrafnhildur (19-26) | 12 |
| 34-40 Kolbrún (41-51) | 12 |
| 34-40 Kristín (27-31) | 12 |
| 34-40 Móeiður (72-84) | 12 |
| 41-46 Birna (85-102) | 11 |
| 41-46 Helena (61-71) | 11 |
| 41-46 Maja (41-51) | 11 |
| 41-46 Matthildur (41-51) | 11 |
| 41-46 Steinunn (103-120) | 11 |
| 41-46 Ylfa (41-51) | 11 |
| 47-53 Auður (85-102) | 10 |
| 47-53 Díana/Díanna (150-191) | 10 |
| 47-53 Eydís (192-269) | 10 |
| 47-53 Margrét/Margrjet/Margret (27-31) | 10 |
| 47-53 Maria (61-71) | 10 |
| 47-53 Salka (19-26) | 10 |
50 Popular Icelandic Baby Boy Names
In this list you will find the 50 most popular Icelandic baby boy names. The corresponding count column shows how many boys born in 2018 hold that name. The list of Baby boy names are only published once every five years, so our next update is 2023.
| Baby Boy Names | Count |
| 1 Aron (1) | 51 |
| 2 Alexander (5) | 39 |
| 3 Emil (15-16) | 35 |
| 4-5 Kári (10-11) | 29 |
| 4-5 Viktor/Victor (6-9) | 29 |
| 6 Óliver (23-31) | 28 |
| 7 Mikael/Mikkael/Mikkel (19-21) | 26 |
| 8 Jökull (2) | 24 |
| 9-10 Guðmundur (6-9) | 23 |
| 9-10 Jón (3-4) | 23 |
| 11 Gunnar (12-13) | 22 |
| 12-13 Jóhann (39-45) | 21 |
| 12-13 Úlfur (23-31) | 21 |
| 14 Daníel (14) | 20 |
| 15-16 Brynjar (32-38) | 19 |
| 15-16 Dagur (17-18) | 19 |
| 17-19 Baltasar (56-60) | 18 |
| 17-19 Ólafur/Olav (19-21) | 18 |
| 17-19 Sölvi (83-98) | 18 |
| 20 Kristján/Kristian/Christian (6-9) | 17 |
| 21-22 Arnar (3-4) | 16 |
| 21-22 Birkir (23-31) | 16 |
| 23-29 Antoni (195-281) | 15 |
| 23-29 Ari (68-82) | 15 |
| 23-29 Einar (23-31) | 15 |
| 23-29 Elmar (23-31) | 15 |
| 23-29 Magnús (19-21) | 15 |
| 23-29 Pétur/Pjetur (39-45) | 15 |
| 23-29 Stefán/Stefan (10-11) | 15 |
| 30-34 Björn (32-38) | 14 |
| 30-34 Elvar/Elfar (46-55) | 14 |
| 30-34 Frosti (39-45) | 14 |
| 30-34 Óðinn (68-82) | 14 |
| 30-34 Sigurður (23-31) | 14 |
| 35-39 Andri (99-116) | 13 |
| 35-39 Kristófer (6-9) | 13 |
| 35-39 Leon (117-161) | 13 |
| 35-39 Theódór/Theodór (68-82) | 13 |
| 35-39 Ýmir (39-45) | 13 |
| 40-44 Adam (23-31) | 12 |
| 40-44 Atli (99-116) | 12 |
| 40-44 Bjarki (56-60) | 12 |
| 40-44 Elías (22) | 12 |
| 40-44 Leó (46-55) | 12 |
| 45-53 Alex (117-161) | 11 |
| 45-53 Bjarni (99-116) | 11 |
| 45-53 Eyþór (117-161) | 11 |
| 45-53 Fannar (83-98) | 11 |
| 45-53 Gabríel (46-55) | 11 |
| 45-53 Haukur (23-31) | 11 |
Source Icelandic Baby Names: https://www.statice.is/statistics/population/births-and-deaths/names/
Summary of Icelandic Baby Names
Icelandic Baby Names are bound by pretty strict rules. For that reason many of the popular names are very traditional with the name history clearly preserved. The most common baby names for girls are Emilía, Embla and Ísabella. The most common baby names for boys are Aron, Alexander, and Emil.