Further to Eysteinn's explanation, 'víf', cognate with English "wife"
is one of a number of synonyms for "woman" (or "wife") used in Old
Norse poetry; in Old English too 'wíf' can mean simply "woman" as well
as more specifically "wife". In at least one Old Norse runic
inscription, a woman is identified as the "wife of..." using the more
normal word 'kona' "woman, wife" -- in normalised spelling:

Þyrvé, Végauts kona, lét reisa stein þenna eptir Þorbjörn, son Sibbu,
systling sinn, er hon hugði betr en svásem syni.

"Þyrvé, Végautr's wife, had this stone raised in memory of Þorbjörn,
son of Sibbi, her cousin, whom she cared for more than had he been her
own son / than a dear son."

Note that the possessive form of names (or genitive case as it's
called) can't always be made by adding -s. Some names have other ways
of forming the genitive, e.g. the daughter of Helga would be
Helgudóttir; the son of Bjarni would be Bjarnason; Hallgerðr :
Hallgerðar-; Droplaug : Droplaugar-. Some names have more than one
alternative form, e.g. Bjarnar-, Björns-. What factors influence the
choice between these variants? Incidentally, was Olga used in early
times? I though this was originally a Slavic adaptation of the Old
Norse name Helga; I could be mistaken... Also, I'm curious about
matronymics. It's the individual's choice in modern Iceland, isn't
it? I read somewhere that the practice has become more common in
recent years.

> A matronymic was possible, but only in rare cases, usually if the

father's name was unknown.

Might it also have been used if the mother happened to be much better
known or more prominent in society than the father for some reason?

LN



--- In norse_course@yahoogroups.com, "Patricia" <originalpatricia@...>
wrote:

>
> AIUI - in most every case where a patronymic is used - it cannot be

changed

> because you are the child of your father - if he acknowledges you

and you

> are sprinkled with water and he formally accepts you
> I believe this is the case today
> To use a Matronymic might suggest that your fathers name be not known or
> that he has not acknowledged you - with all the concomittant

difficulty that

> entails
> Or - perhaps your mother was of a noble line and Daddy was not
> At all events I am almost sure that .........'s wyf is not recorded
> You are whom you are - complete with Patronymic
> Kveðja
> Patricia
>
> -------Original Message-------
>
> From: Lodin Myklebust
> Date: 25/11/2006 15:41:43
> To: Norse Course
> Subject: [norse_course] Female names
>
> Our group was discussing the practice of female surnames and the various
> sources of surnames including nicknames, location names, etc. A sticking
> point on married names or family names came forward. We need a tie

breaker.

> Could someone venture an answer?
>
> Opinion 1
> >If you're married, you would be described as the wife of your

husband. It

> would be a little insulting if you continued with your father's

surname, as

> it suggests you're embarrassed to take your husbands name, so Ragnaborg
> Haroldsdottir becomes Ragnaborg Vlladswif, if her husband was generally
> known as Vllad.<
>
> Opinion 2
> >I was of the understanding that the tradition was for women to take the
> mothers name...example...Helga Oglasdottir..meaning Helga the

daughter of

> Olga.. I thought the whole point of surnames in that time period was to
> determine what lineage you were from..and had nothing to do with who you
> married.<
>
> Thanks,
>
> Lodin
>