Follow
Family Crest, see citation. No. 1 The name "Olsen" was only introduced as a last name or family name around 1850-1900. The surname Olsen appears to be patronymical in origin and is believed to be associated with the Germans meaning, "son of Ole," which is a pet form of the personal name Olaf (ancestor's relic). The most prominent variations of Olsen are Ole, Olaf, Olesen, Ohlson, Olson, Olsan, and Olsun.
Scandinavian Patronymic Surname
This last name was originally a typical Scandinavian Patronymic surname. "A patronym, or patronymic, is a component of a personal name based on the name of one's father, grandfather or an even earlier male ancestor. A component of a name based on the name of one's mother or a female ancestor is a matronym. Each is a means of conveying lineage." [2]
"In Norse custom patronyms and matronyms were formed by using the ending -son (later -søn and -sen in Danish and Norwegian) to indicate "son of", and -dóttir (Icelandic -dóttir, Swedish and Norwegian -dotter, Danish and Norwegian -datter) for "daughter of". This name was generally used as a last name although a third name, a name based on location or personal characteristic was often added to differentiate people and could eventually develop into a kind of family name." [2]
"It is convenient to look upon the first name as the real name. This was given to the child when it was christened. Way back in history only one 'first name' was the rule, but already before 1800 one can find many persons with two such names. Later on a child could be given three or even four 'first names', but only one of them was in use, perhaps two. Hyphenating two 'first names' is a newer custom." [2]
Citations
- House of Names. "Olsen History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms" House of Names. Retrieved December 25, 2020, (https://www.houseofnames.com/)
- House of Names. "Olsen History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms" Scandinavian Patronymic. Retrieved December 25, 2020, (https://wiki.geni.com/index.php/Patronymics)