Norse Naming Conventions

Last names for the Norse were used to illustrate parentage. The father of a child would give his name, appended with a possessive 's' and "son" in the name of a boy, and "dottir" in the name of a girl.

For instance, if a man named Olaf had a son named Thorvald and a daughter named Silf, his son's name would be Thorvald Olafsson and his daughter's name would be Silf Olafsdottir. Thus, a name like Grimhildsson would be very unusual, as the mother is taking away the name of the father.