Solveig

Solveig (/ˈslv/ SOHL-vay) is a female given name of Old Norse origin. It is most common in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Iceland, and it is also common in Germany and France.

Etymology

The name consists of two parts, where both parts have different theorized origins.

  • Sol-
    • Old Norse salr "house, hall, home"
    • Old Norse sól "sun"
    • Old Norse sölr "sun-coloured, yellow"
  • -veig
    • Old Norse veig "strength"
    • Old Norse víg "battle"
    • Old Norse vígja "to butt"

Versions

Generally speaking, the most common version is Solveig. However, alternative versions are used in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, Germany, Latvia, and on the Faroe Islands, and to some extent in France.

Norwegian, Swedish, and Danish
  • Solveig
  • Sólveig
  • Solvej
  • Solvei
  • Solveij
  • Solveg
Icelandic
  • Solveig
  • Sólveig
Latvian and Lithuanian
  • Solveiga
German and French
  • Solveig

In fiction

Solveig is a central character in the play Peer Gynt by Henrik Ibsen. She sings the famous "Solveig's Song" in Edvard Grieg's musical suite of the same name. Ibsen uses sun imagery in association to the character (scene 10, act 5), indicating that Ibsen may have favored the idea that the name is etymologically associated with the sun.

There is also a female central character in the Argentine novelist Leopoldo Marechal's Adán Buenosayres named Solveig Amundsen. Furthermore, Solveig is the main character and narrator of Matthew J. Kirby's Icefall.

Notable people called Solveig

  • Miklabæjar-Solveig, an Icelandic woman who lived in the late 18th century and is the subject of local folklore

Given name

Middle name

Surname

See also

References

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