indicate the level to which a name has been verified.
Meaning & History
Means "German" in Swedish. It probably started out as a nickname for someone who had immigrated from Germany or for someone who had German ancestry. It could also be a 'soldier name' and refer to the military unit someone belonged to. Soldier names became common in Sweden in the 17th and 18th century when patronymic surnames were the norm. When joining the army, the soldiers needed a unique surname in order to distinguish them from each other. The names could be taken from a trait (like one's ancestry), or from military terms (like the military unit one belonged to).