Icelandic Laws Concerning Personal Names and Their Influence

Icelandic Laws Concerning Personal Names and their Influence

Guðrún KVARAN

Introduction Laws concerning Icelandic names have been in effect from the year 1913. The oldest law applied to given names, surnames and patronymics. A ‘patronymic’ is in Iceland used for the name of the father in genitive with the sending son ‘son’, if male, but dóttir ‘daughter’, if female (see chapter 4). For those not familiar with the Icelandic naming system it should be pointed out that the Icelandic given name is the main and ‘real name’, not patronymic, so that e.g. people are alpha- betically listed with their given names. Ever since the first years of the settlement in the 9th century it has been a tradition in Iceland to use a given name when addressing a person, and then use his or hers father’s name (later also mother’s name) for further distinction from others. SigurðurJónsson is addressed as Sigurður as is also SigurðurPétursson. In the first case the father’s name is Jón,but in the latter case Pétur (Kvaran 2007). Surnames are relatively few, the oldest of them from the 17th century. New laws were passed in the years 1925, 1991 and 1997, with significant changes as to what was accepted at each time. This article discusses the effects these laws have had on the naming habits of Ice- landers and foreign nationals that settle in Iceland. The rules about Icelandic given names have been liberalized, but the rules about surnames tightened. New given names, however, are not entered into an official registry of acceptable names unless a committee, active since 1991, has approved them. The same committee also decides on middle names that are registered separately. Middle names were allowed with the law passed in 1997 (see chapter 5.5). The last changes to the name-laws have had both positive and negative effects on the language structure, which I intend to point out and demonstrate with examples. For example, the use of names written in a foreign way—which are allowed provided they have become

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established in the sense of the law—is often inconsistent with the phonological and morphological system which may cause confusion about pronunciation and writing. This is also the case if the one and the same name can both be a given name and a middle name. The liber- alization of the law has also had a substantial impact on the Icelandic stock of names. Traditional and established names have become less popular and been replaced by foreign fashionable ones. These devel- opments will be discussed further below.

Law Passed in 1913 The naming traditions of the Icelanders changed little from the time of the first settlement in the 9th century until the 19th century. Dou- ble names started appearing in the early 19th century, but it took a long time until they became common practice. From the earliest times children traditionally bore patronymics, although examples can be found in the ancient literature of children who bore matronymic. For example Hildiríðarsynir (the sons of Hildiríður) in Egils Saga and Droplaugarsynir (the sons of Droplaug) in the Saga of Droplaugarsynir. In both these cases the sons lost their fathers at a young age and were raised by their mothers. Examples of children being named after their mothers can be found in national censuses up to the time that the laws were revised in 1925, but the custom was to try to find a ‘father’, if unknown, for the registration of the church. The real fathers were often the priests or the owners of the bigger farms who payed the farm laborers to admit the paternity. In the latter half of the 19th century it became increasingly common that Icelanders changed their names somewhat arbitrarily by modi- fying their given names or adopting surnames which they used for the family and the descendants. The oldest surname, Vídalín, formed from the valley Víðidalur, stems most likely from the 17th century, and Thorlacius (formed from Þorláksson) is only a little younger. The number of surnames increased bit by bit: in the census from 1855, 105 surnames are found, but 297 in the census from 1910. This development displeased a lot of people, and a number of articles appeared in magazines and newspapers against surnames, but also some to their defense. Finally, a law on given names was passed in 1913 (Kvaran, Jónsson 1991: 71-72), the first ever in Iceland. Of its 15 articles, 9 are concerned with surnames. Now it was allowed to

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take up surnames, under the proviso that certain rules were met. The 8th article of the law is significant because it states that a list should be compiled of words and things which could be appropriate for form- ing surnames, and also a list of ancient and new names of men and women to make the selection of names easier. The committee that was formed issued rules in 1915, Icelandicnames, and pointed out four ways to form new surnames: • One could name oneself after a parent: Ari > Aran, Bárður > Bárðan, Svafa > Svafon. • One could name oneself after places by using the endings –an or -on: Bali (farm) > Balan; Hlíð(farm) > Hlíðan,Blanda (river) > Blandon. The endings -star, -fer and -mann were pointed out, to form surnames after names of places. Bergstaðir (farm) > Bergstar, Gaukstaðir (farm) > Gaukstar; Axarfjörður (fjord) > Axfer, Gils- fjörður (fjord) > Gilsfer; Höfn (place) > Hafnmann, Búðir (place) > Búðmann. • Old words in the language like akarn (acorn) > Akarn. • Nicknames of the persons from the old literature, such as Bjólan (Helgi bjólan, settler), Kvaran (Ólafur kvaran, Irish king) were pointed out. The proposals of the committee were fiercely criticized, especially at the beginning, but some people did make use of its suggestions. Adap- tion of a new surname had to be paid for and the name then became the legal property of the payee, his spouse and children. In the years 1915 to 1925 over 240 new surnames were listed (Kvaran, Jónsson 1991: 73–77). Many of them are still in use today, but others did not last long.

Law Passed in 1925 Those who had been most vocal against surnames did not quiet down when the law was passed, and in 1923 a bill was presented containing only three articles. According to the first article everyone was required to follow the old tradition of given names. No new surnames were to be adopted, but, thirdly, those who were older than 10 years old could keep the surname they had been given, but those younger than 10 years had to relinquish it. This bill did not pass, but a new one was presented in 1925 (Kvaran, Jónsson 1991: 77–79), causing heated debates in the parliament until

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the latter was finally adopted. It consisted of seven articles. Its main points were that each individual should have one or two given names and also get a patronymic or matronymic after the given name or use the name of an adoptive father as patronymic and write his or her name in the same way during the whole life. No one could adopt a surname from there on. The third article was very significant. It states that Icelandic cit- izens and their descendants that bore surnames already in 1913 could keep them. Surnames adopted after 1913 could be kept by the bearers of these names as well as their children, but not by any further descendants. Article 4 states that no names may be given other than those cor- rectly following the rules of the Icelandic language. The supervision of the observance of this article was the responsibility of the clergy. In case of dispute the Department of Philosophy of the University of Ice- land was to arbitrate. According to the 6th article the authorities were to issue a list, containing the suggestions of the Department of Phi- losophy for names which should be banned. This law was not implemented stringently. Often a child was given more than two names, especially if the third name was a ‘disguised’ surname. A not uncommon practice was that a child was given a surname as the second or third given name, e.g.JónBreiðfjörðGuðmunds- son, JónSigurðurBreiðfjörðGuðmundsson or AnnaBreiðfjörðGuð- mundsdóttir, AnnaSigríðurBreiðfjörðGuðmundsdóttir. Often these were the children of women that bore surnames, but such names could only be inherited from the father’s side. Four attempts were made to revise the name law from 1925 until finally, with the fourth attempt, a new law was passed. This was in March 1991.

Law Passed in 1991 The law of 1991 was much more elaborate than the one from 1925 (Kvaran, Jónsson 1991; 81–86). It had 5 chapters and a total of 26 articles. The contents relevant for naming will now be related. The first chapter dealt with given names. The first article stated that naming a child was mandatory and that the number of names could not exceed three. The second article stated that the name had to be Icelandic and should not go against the Icelandic morphological rules. The name must not be a burden for the child. A girl could neither be

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given a man’s name nor a boy a woman’s name and it was not allowed to give a surname as a given name unless that name was established by tradition. This article was primarily meant to address two issues. One of these was that which has already been discussed in the example Breiðfjörð, but such names became very popular after the ban on new surnames was established. The second was that a girl should not be given a man’s name and vice versa. The name Blær for instance had been the subject of quite some debate. The noun blærmeans ‘gentle breeze’ and is masculine. The author Halldór Laxness had used it in a novel as a girl’s name and the name was somewhat sought-after. It did not, however, conform to the Icelandic conjugative system as a feminine noun. All the same it was accepted by the court of law as a girl’s name in the year 2012, even if it is against article 5 of the law from 1997. The third article stated that a Committee for Personal Names (CPN) should be installed with the task of compiling a list of names that were considered acceptable. Statistic Iceland was to publish the list, make it known and accessible to the general public and send it to priests and leaders of religious organizations. The list was to be published every three years. The committee which was formed following the law’s passing, used frequency as a criterion when choosing names for the list and at first decided to include only few rare names and postpone inclusion of such names until they were requested. The committee met regularly to deal with requests for names not already on the list. The fourth and fifth article deal with the formal procedures of name giving and the 6th article states that the CPN shall answer requests within two weeks. The eighth article was new and meant to respond to the great dissatisfaction of foreign nationals that had settled in Iceland. It states, that the first and second articles do not apply to a child that is born in this country if both the mother and father of a legitimate child or the mother of an illegitimate child have a foreign nationality. It also states that it is legal to give a child a foreign name as one of its names if either parent is a foreign national or has been so. The name must be demonstrated as valid in the applicants’ home country. The child’s Icelandic name had to conform to the conditions of the second article. Up to this time foreign nationals, requesting to become Icelandic

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nationals, had to abandon their foreign given names and surnames and adopt Icelandic names. The second chapter discusses patronymics, matronymics and surnames. The 9th article states that any person (man or woman) not hav- ing a surname shall name himself after his father or mother in such a way that following his given name(s) comes the name of the father or mother in genitive with the ending son ‘son’, if male, but dóttir ‘daughter’, if female. The law forbade adopting new surnames, but those who had a surname at the time when the law was passed were allowed to keep them as well as their descendants in the male and female line of descent. That names could be passed down the female line of descent was something new, but in accord with the legislation on equality of the sexes. The next articles concern the treatment of surnames, but the 15th article was especially important for foreign nationals. It states that if a foreign national receives an Icelandic citizenship then his children under 15 years of age shall adopt an Icelandic given name and patronymic, which the CPN had accepted. Children of 16 years of age or older were allowed, but not required, to do the same. The individual himself was to adopt an Icelandic name in addition to the one he had before, and his children were to use that name for a patronymic or matronymic. If a child was born after its parent received a legal Ice- landic citizenship it was to be given an Icelandic given name and an Icelandic patronymic. The third chapter deals with the CPN. It consisted of two representatives from the Department of Philosophy and one from the Depart- ment of Law of the University of Iceland. The purpose of the committee is stated in the 18th article. Besides compiling a list of given names that were considered acceptable, as already mentioned, it was to advise priests, leaders of registered religious organizations, Statistics Iceland, the Justice Department and children’s caretakers. Moreover it should arbitrate in matters of dispute regarding naming and the writing of names. The decisions of the CPN were final. The fourth chapter deals with the registration and use of names and the fifth contains several provisions regarding the implementation of the law. This law was a great improvement. It dealt with several problems, like the problems of foreign nationals, and firmly established the Com- mittee for Personal Names. The Icelandic naming customs had not changed greatly and an attempt had been made to preserve Icelandic naming traditions, both regarding given names as well as surnames.

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Law Passed in 1997 Although the law of 1991 had dealt with various problems, several disputed points had still not been resolved, and early in 1996 a committee was formed to revise the current law. Its proposals were presented to the parliament, and a new law was passed in May 1996 that took effect in January 1st 1997. Although the new law was more detailed than the previous one it was in many respects less stringent, and some of the changes have been the cause of difficulties. It has nine chapters with a total of 28 articles and is accessible on the website of the Ice- landic Parliament: http://www.althingi.is under ‘lög um mannanöfn’ [law on personal names].

Major Novelties The first chapter states what is to be considered a full name and what the act of naming implies. The first article of the previous law was changed so that middle names are now allowed. They will be further discussed in 5.5. Now three given names at most can be given, of which one at most can be a middle name, not counting patronymics and matronymics. The second chapter discusses given names. The fifth article contains an important change. Now it is directly stated that a given name has to be able to take an Icelandic genitive ending and to have an established tradition in the Icelandic language. The name must not go against the rules of the Icelandic language system. It shall be written in conformity with general writing rules of the Icelandic language, unless a different mode of writing has been established by tradition. This article of the law has caused great changes in Icelandic naming practices and caused all sorts of difficulties, which will be discussed in chapter 5.2. The third chapter deals with middle names. Their authorization had not existed previously in Icelandic laws. The 6th article states that a child may be given one middle name in addition to its given name(s). A middle name may be given to both boys and girls. The middle name must be derived from Icelandic word roots or to have an established tradition in the Icelandic language, but it may not have a nominative ending. (Thus Breiðfjörð is an acceptable middle name, but not *Breiðfjörður.) Names which have an established tradition as either given names of men or given names of women only are not

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allowed as middle names. Nevertheless a parent’s given name in genitive is allowed as a middle name. Middle names which are formed in the same way as patronymics and matronymics are not allowed. The 7th article contains further rules about taking up middle names. For example, anyone who has a surname can change it to a middle name and anyone who does not have a surname, but has the right to it, can have it as a middle name. The next rule is important. It allows an individual to carry a surname as a middle name if any of his or her siblings by the same parents, his parents, grandfather or grandmother have had it as a given name, middle name or a surname. Many people who are interested in taking up a surname, which existed in the family before, but was not passed down in the female line of descent, have persuaded their grandfather or grandmother to adopt it as a middle name which thereafter was also permissible to descendants. The law was meant to reduce the interest in surnames, but has had the opposite effect. Surnames are the topic of the 4th chapter. The major novelties in that chapter are that an individual may name himself after both his parents or have a surname which he is entitled to in addition to naming himself after the father or the mother. What effects this can have will be discussed in 5.5. The 9th article states that an Icelandic citizen may not take up the surname of his or her spouse. The most extensive changes to the older laws are in the fifth chapter. That chapter deals with foreign nationals. The 11th article states that a person (man or a woman), who has a foreign name as a given name and surname and receives an Icelandic citizenship, may keep his or hers name unchanged, and that those who had received an Icelandic citizenship before the law took effect and had to change their names because of the former law, are now allowed with permission from Statistics Iceland to readopt the names they had before and/or drop the names they were required to adopt, but in such a way that their given names and middle names do not exceed a total of three. Chapter 6 deals with changing names and chapter 7 with rules regarding the registration of a name. Chapter 8 deals with the Com- mittee for Personal Names. Few changes were made in its scope, but some regarding its composition. Instead of two representatives from the Department of Philosophy of the University of Iceland, one is now appointed by the Icelandic Language Commission. It shall now also keep a register on middle names.

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The final chapter of the law concerns various provisions which do not concern directly the inventory of names. In 5.2 to 5.5 the effects that the law has had on naming will be discussed.

Foreign Names The new law has had substantial effects on naming. Given names of foreign origin are in demand, not only by immigrants, but also young Icelandic parents. In order for such names to be accepted, they must meet the general rules on Icelandic spelling and genitive ending or else fall into the category of names that are acceptable because of tradition. According to the so-called ‘tradition rules’ (that apply to all names, not just foreign ones) a name is acceptable if at least one of the following applies: 1. At least 15 Icelanders now bear the name 2. 10–14 bear the name and the oldest is at least 30 years old 3. 5–9 Icelanders bear the name and the oldest is at least 60 years old 4. 1–4 Icelanders now bear the name and it appears in the census of 1910 5. No Icelander bears the name now, but it appears in at least two censuses from 1703 to 1910 A large number of foreign names must be accepted because of these rules. Names such as Abela,Britt,Meda,Filip,Ían and Marísmeet the requirements of spelling and genitive ending and were therefore put on the register without comment. The masculine names Francis and Joshua and the feminine names Charlotte and Marie were put on the register because of tradition. In the lists of the CPN one can see both names that have been accepted and declined on grounds of the tradition rules. It must be pointed out that in Icelandic a distinction is made between vowels with and without accent. Here are some examples. Antonýwith -t- and -ý-, was an attempt to adapt to Icelandic spelling rules, but lacks tradition and was declined on that ground while Anthony was accepted because of tradition. Hectorwith -c- was not accepted, but the list of allowed names has Victor, also with -c- on grounds of tradition. Mag- nus with -u- was declined, but Arthur, Ludvig and Rudolf, also written with -u- are on the register of personal names on grounds of tradition.

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Of female names for example, Aríele and Stefanie were declined because the names end in -e instead of -a like other feminine words that have a weak declension. Christiana was not allowed because of the spelling Ch-, which does not conform to Icelandic orthographic rules and because it had no tradition, but both Christianand Christina are on the list because of tradition. Elinborg was not allowed, but Elina and Elisabethare both on the list on grounds of tradition as forms of Elínaand Elísabeth. The spelling Elízawas declined because of -z-, but Franziska passed because of tradition. Júdithwas not allowed even though a spelling with -ú- was chosen in conformity with the Icelandic form Júdit, because of the spelling with -th-.Judith,on the other hand, is listed on grounds of tradition.

Influence on Declension of Names The law of 1997 makes no mention of the declension of names. When speaking of the adaption of names, most people only think of ortho- graphy. Taking the names Fanny and Polly as an example, which made it on the list on grounds of tradition, both are written with -y instead of -ý (two different vowels) like Fanný and Pollý. The problem is that according to Icelandic orthographic rules -j- is inserted between -í-/-ý- and -a-/-u-, but not after -i-/-y-. The pronunciation is the same which can cause problems in the spelling of the genitive. The names decline in this way:

Nom. Fanny Fanný Acc. Fanny Fanný Dat. Fanny Fanný Gen. Fannyar Fannýjar

Names like Christinaand Christine are a different matter. The first name declines according to the rules for Icelandic feminine words, but the latter has no declension:

Nom. Christina Christine Acc. Christinu Christine Dat. Christinu Christine Gen. Christinu Christine

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Most of the time there is no problem to add a genitive ending to male names. But cases for dispute can arise and one of them is the male name Francis. It has two possible declensions, the one like Hannes and the other like Jens:

Nom. Francis (Hannes) Francis (Jens) Acc. Francis (Hannes) Francis (Jens) Dat. Francisi (Hannesi) Francis (Jens) Gen. Francisar (Hannesar) Francis (Jens)

The choice of declension can only be subjective, and the problem increases as more names are accepted on grounds of tradition.

Nicknames Used as Given Names, It is interesting to observe which nicknames enter the registry of personal names. Although the law of 1991 did not state explicitly that nicknames could not be considered Icelandic names they were as a rule declined. The law of 1997 cleared the way for such names, however, provided they meet the two conditions, spelling and genitive ending. Now a number of nicknames are on the registry of personal names. The male names are about twenty and most are common short forms of given names such as Addi,Ási,Dóri,Fúsi,Geiri,Gutti,Haddi,Jói, Matti,Rósi,Steini,Tonni,Úddi,Villi,Þorri. The formation is simple and mostly according to three ways:

First part of a given name Second part a of given name Doubling of consonants Ás-i (i.e. Ásmundur) Dór-i (i.e. Halldór) Ton-n-i < Anton Gutt-i (i.e. Guttormur) Fús -i (i.e. Vigfús) Vil-l-i < Vilhjálmur Jó-i (i.e. Jóhann) Geir-i (i.e. Þorgeir) Þor-r-i (i.e. Þorvaldur) Matt-i (i.e. Marteinn) Stein-i (i.e. Þorsteinn) Rós-i (i.e. Rósmundur) Vald-i (i.e. Þorvaldur)

Addibelongs under the first part since the nickname probably was formed from the pronunciation form Arn- > Addn-, e.g. /Addn-mundur/. Falling outside of these categories is Úddi, which is probably nickname of Úlrik. The female names are more varied and much more numerous. Many names that fall into the same categories as the male names:

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First part of a given name Second part of a given name Doubling of consonants Kar-í (i.e. Karítas) Bín-a (i.e. Jakobína) Mal-l-a (i.e. Magdalena) Kat-a (i.e. Katrín) Fí-a (i.e. Ólafía) Stein-a (i.e. Steinunn) Hann-a (i.e. Jóhanna) Val-a (i.e. Valgerður) Odd-a (i.e. Þórodda) Veig-a (i.e. Sigurveig)

Other common nicknames are formed from given names with the ending -ý and such nicknames have been fashionable for a long time. Examples are: Addý,Allý,Ellý,Gunný,Mattý,Ollý,Sirrý,Vallý,Valý. As short names are in fashion, one can expect that more nicknames will be requested.

Middle Names and Surnames Middle names that the Committee on personal names has accepted are listed in the registry of middle names. Since the law was passed until the end of the year 2011, the committee has agreed to about 140 middle names, but it must be remembered that sometimes more than one name bearer is behind each name, male and/or female. The idea behind allow- ing middle names was to reduce interest in surnames. That has certainly happened, but now a much easier way has been opened up. Many of those who choose a middle name, do not use their patronymics or matronymics in day-to-day routine, but cannot avoid using them on official documents. The middle name becomes in practice the equivalent of a surname. Middle names can cause confusion if they are also on the list of given names. A very common latter part of middle names is -berg. It is also quite common in given names as a side form of -bergur. The names Arnberg,Línberg and Steinbergare both on the list of first names and middle names. Thus there is no way of telling whether Guðmundur ArnbergJónssonhas two first names or one first name and one middle name. According to the law an individual’s full name consists of one or two given names, a middle name, if he/she has one, and a patronymic, matronymic or a surname, e.g.: • One given name and patronymic: Sigurður Jónsson • One given name, a middle name and patronymic: Sigurður Hafn- fjörð Jónsson

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• Two given names and patronymic: Sigurður Már Jónsson • Two given names, a middle name and patronymic: Sigurður Már Hafnfjörð Jónsson • Three given names and patronymic: Sigurður Björn Már Jónsson Sigurður could have used his mother’s name Guðrún, Guðrúnarson (gen.compound) as a matronymic instead of Jónsson (gen.compound) which is a patronymic. If he was entitled to a surname he could, e.g., be registered as SigurðurKvaran. The rules, however, can get more complex. If a middle name does not meet the general requirements, one can use as a middle name a name that a close relative has or has had (siblings, parents, grandpar- ents). In most cases this is a surname. Those who have close relatives that were entitled to bearing a surname can now adopt it as a middle name, but it is not registered in the middle name registry. Now the name of parents in genitive can also be used as a middle name and it is not entered into the middle name registry. My daughter, who has a mother with a given name Guðrún, but a surname Kvaran, and a father named Jakob, can choose to register as: Steinunn Jakobsdóttir (gen. compound) Steinunn Guðrúnardóttir (gen. compound) Steinunn Guðrúnar (the mother’s name used as a middle name in gen.) Jakobsdóttir Steinunn Jakobs (the father’s name used as a middle name in gen.) Guðrúnardóttir Steinunn Kvaran Steinunn Kvaran (surname used as a middle name ) Guðrúnardóttir Steinunn Kvaran (surname used as a middle name) Jakobsdóttir Steinunn Guðrúnar (the mother’s name used as a middle name in gen.) Kvaran Steinunn Jakobs (the father’s name used as a middle name in gen.) Kvaran Steinunn Jakobsdóttir Kvaran (two surnames) Steinunn Guðrúnardóttir Kvaran (two surnames) Steinunn Guðrúnardóttir Jakobsdóttir (two surnames) Steinunn Jakobsdóttir Guðrúnardóttir (two surnames) Her brother can use the same possibilities by exchanging -sonfor -dóttir, BöðvarJakobsson,BöðvarGuðrúnarson,BöðvarGuðrúnarJakobsson etc.

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Conclusion As previously stated the Icelandic laws on names have been in constant change since 1913 and have become increasingly open to various novelties. The law of 1997 in many ways accommodated the public’s wishes, but it has several flaws. Growing demands for foreign spellings which has to be supported by tradition leads to discrimination (see 5.2): The case may arise that out of two names which are in all respects com- parable only one will be accepted on grounds of tradition, but not the other if not enough people are registered in the national registry. The declension of names with foreign spelling can also be difficult, and no rules as to how they should be treated are included in the law. Because of these faults and others which have in the article been pointed out, the time has come to revise the existing law.

References Íslenzkmannanöfn. [Icelandic personal names] 1915. Gefið út að til- hlutan Stjórnarráðs Íslands [Published through the agency of the Icelandic ministry offices]. Reykjavík. Kvaran, Guðrún, Jónsson frá Arnarvatni, Sigurður. 1991. NöfnÍslend- inga. [The Names of the Icelanders]. Reykjavík: Heimskringla. Kvaran, Guðrún. 2007. Das isländische Personennamensystem. In: A. Brendler und S. Brendler (eds.)EuropäischePersonnamensys- teme.EinHandbuchvonAbasischbisZentralindisch, 310–321. Hamburg: Baar.

From the Internet: Lög um mannanöfn [Law on personal names]: http://www.althingi.is/

Guðrún Kvaran The Árni Magnússon Institute for Icelandic Studies / University of Iceland Neshaga 16 IS-107 Reykjavík Iceland [email protected]

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Summary: Icelandic Laws Concerning Personal Names and their Influence Laws concerning Icelandic personal names have been in effect in Iceland since the year 1913. The oldest laws covered first names, last names and family names. In 1925, 1991 and 1997 new laws took effect with substantial changes regarding what was allowed at a given time. This article discusses the influence of these laws on naming both of Icelanders and foreign nationals who take up residence in Iceland. Rules concerning first names of Icelanders have been relaxed but rules for family-names tightened. Nevertheless, new first names will not be registered without the consent of a special committee, active since 1991. It is now legal to take the name of either the father or mother or both as last name which is not a family name. Also, it is now permissible to adopt middle names, which are in many respects becoming quasi-equivalent to family names. The same committee must accept these middle names and enter them in a special registry. Foreign nationals receive better treatment than before and are not obligated to take up an Icelandic name. The last revisions to the naming-laws have had both positive and negative impacts on the language system that this article aims to point out and demonstrate by examples. For example, the use of foreign spelling of names that are accepted in the registry, provided there is an established tradition for them in a legal sense, is often inconsistent with the Icelandic phonological and morphological system, thus causing confusion as to the proper pronunciation and spelling. The same thing applies if the same name can both be a first and a middle name but with different declinations. The greater tolerance of the laws has also had significant impact on the Icelandic stock of names. Old and rooted names pass away in favour of fashionable foreign ones. The changes that the laws have brought about and their impact on Icelandic naming traditions are discussed in the paper.

Résumé : La législation islandaise sur les noms de personnes et son influence Les lois concernant les noms de personnes islandaises ont été en vigueur en Islande depuis l’année 1913. Les plus anciennes lois couvraient les prénoms, noms et noms de famille. En 1925, 1991 et 1997 de nouvelles lois sont entrées en vigueur avec des modifications substantielles concernant ce qui était permis à un temps donné. Cet article analyse l’influence de ces lois sur la dénomi- nation à la fois des Islandais et les ressortissants étrangers qui s’installent en Islande. Les règles relatives aux prénoms des Islandais ont été assouplies, mais les règles pour les noms de famille resserrées. Néanmoins, de nouveaux prénoms ne seront pas enregistrées sans le consentement d’un comité spécial, actif depuis 1991. Il est maintenant légal de prendre le nom soit du père ou la mère ou les deux comme nom qui n’est pas un nom de famille. En outre, il est maintenant permis d’adopter des deuxièmes prénoms, qui deviennent à de nombreux égards quasi-équivalent à des noms de famille. Le même comité doit accepter ces deuxièmes prénoms et de les inscrire dans un registre spécial.

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Les ressortissants étrangers reçoivent un meilleur traitement qu’auparavant et ne sont pas obligés de prendre un nom islandais. Les dernières révisions apportées aux lois de dénomination ont eu à la fois des impacts positifs et négatifs sur le système de la langue que cet article vise à souligner et de démontrer par des exemples. Par exemple, l’utilisation de l’orthographe étrangère des noms qui sont acceptés dans le registre, à condition qu’ils aient une tradition établie dans un sens légal, est souvent incompatible avec le système islandais phonologique et morphologique, provoquant ainsi une confusion quant à la correcte prononciation et orthographe. La même chose s’applique si le même nom peut être à la fois un premier et un deuxième prénom, mais avec différentes déclinaisons. La plus grande tolérance des lois a également eu un impact significatif sur le stock islandais de noms. Les noms anciens et enracinée passent en faveur des noms étrangers en vogue. Les chan- gements que les lois ont amené et leur impact sur les traditions de dénomina- tion islandaises sont examinés dans l’article.

Zusammenfassung: Die isländische Namengesetzgebung und ihre Auswirkung Gesetze über isländische Personennamen sind in Island seit 1913 in Kraft. Das älteste Gesetz betraf Vornamen, Nachnamen und Familiennamen. In den Jahren 1925, 1991 und 1997 wurden neue Gesetze verabschiedet, die substan- zielle Änderungen gegenüber den jeweiligen früheren Bestimmungen enthielten. In dem Artikel wird der Einfluss dieser Gesetze auf die Namensgebung sowohl von Isländern als auch von Ausländern mit Wohnsitz in Island diskutiert. Die Regeln für Vornamen von Isländern wurden im Laufe der Jahre gelockert, aber die für Familiennamen verschärft. Neue Vornamen können allerdings nicht ohne die Zustimmung eines Komitees, das seit 1991 tätig ist, offiziell registriert werden. Es ist jetzt legal entweder den Vornamen des Vaters, der Mutter oder beide Namen für die Bildung eines Nachnamens, der kein Fami- lienname ist, zu verwenden. Ebenfalls ist es gestattet Mittelnamen anzunehmen, und diese haben in vielen Fällen einen Status ähnlich dem eines Fami- liennamens erlangt. Das genannte Komitee muss die Mittelnamen gutheißen und in ein besonderes Register eintragen. Neubürger ausländischer Herkunft sind im Gegensatz zu früher nicht mehr verpflichtet, einen isländischen Namen anzunehmen. Die letzten Revisionen der Namengesetzte haben sowohl einen positiven als auch einen negativen Einfluss auf das isländische Sprachsystem gehabt, und in dem Artikel werden solche Einflüsse anhand von Beispielen bespro- chen. Ausländische Schreibweisen für Namen, die in dem Register unter der Voraussetzung einer Tradition im legalen Sinne aufgenommen werden, stehen häufig im Widerspruch zu dem phonetischen und morphologischen System des Isländischen, was wiederum zu einer Verwirrung über die korrekte Aussprache und Rechtschreibung führen kann. Dasselbe trifft zu, falls ein Name sowohl ein Vorname als auch ein Mittelname sein kann, aber mit verschiedenen

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Deklinationen. Die größere Toleranz der Gesetze hat auch den isländischen Vorrat an Namen in signifikanter Weise beeinflusst indem alte und verwurzelte Namen modischen ausländischen Namen weichen. Die Änderungen, die durch die Gesetze hervorgerufen wurden, und ihr Einfluss auf die Tradition der isländischen Namensgebung, werden in dem Artikel diskutiert.

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