Leif is a male given name of
Scandinavian origin. It is derived from the Old Norse name ''Leifr'' (
nominative case), meaning "heir", "descendant".
Use in the Nordic countries
Spelling and prevalence
Across the
Nordic countries
The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; literal translation, lit. 'the North') are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe and the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It includes the sovereign states of Denmar ...
, the most commonly occurring spelling of the name is ''Leif'', however, there are some well-established regional variants:
* – Leiv
* – Lejf
* – Leifur
* – Leivur
In Norway, about 17,000 men have Leif as their first (or only) name. In Sweden, 70,000 men have the name Leif, about 60% of them as a first name. As of 2018, about 15,000 Danish men have Leif as their first name.
Hvor mange hedder... - Danmarks Statistik
/ref> In Finland, as of 2012, 4,628 men have Leif as a first name.
Pronunciation
Because the Scandinavian languages differ in their pronunciation of the digraphs and , the name Leif may be either pronounced as an approximate rhyme for "safe", or approximately like the English word "life", In Sweden, Finland, Iceland and Western Norway, it is an approximate rhyme with "safe". In Denmark, much of Norway, and the southern and western regions of the Faroe Islands, the name is pronounced more like "life", while the only exception to this pattern is in the northern and eastern regions of the Faroe Islands where it is an approximate rhyme with the English word " coif". In no Scandinavian region is the name pronounced like the most commonly heard English language pronunciation, "leaf", as that would be a homophone
A homophone () is a word that is pronounced the same (to varying extent) as another word but differs in meaning. A ''homophone'' may also differ in spelling. The two words may be spelled the same, for example ''rose'' (flower) and ''rose'' (p ...
of the unrelated female name Liv/Lif.
People
* Leif Ove Andsnes (born 1970), Norwegian pianist and exponent of Edvard Grieg
* Leif Axmyr
Leif Bruno Axmyr (11June 193811October 2018) was a Swedish convicted criminal. At the time of his release in 2016, he had been imprisoned longer than any other Swedish inmate who had served a life sentence. In May 1982, Axmyr was on leave from p ...
(1938–2018), Swedish murderer
* Leif Bergdahl
Leif Bergdahl (born 1941) is a Swedish physician and former member of the now defunct right-wing political party New Democracy (Sweden), New Democracy. He served at the Riksdag, Swedish Parliament.
Biography
Bergdahl was born in 1941. He has a de ...
(born 1941), Swedish physician and politician
* Leif Blomberg
Leif Blomberg (15 February 1941–2 March 1998) was a politician and the head of Swedish Metal Workers' Confederation. He was a member of the Social Democratic Party. He held several government posts.
Biography
Blomberg was born in Enköping on 1 ...
(1941–1998), Swedish trade unionist and politician
* Leif Davidsen
Leif Davidsen (born 25 July 1950 in Otterup) is a Danish author and journalist.
Career
Educated as a journalist, in 1977 he started working in Spain as a freelance journalist for Danmarks Radio. In 1980 he began covering Soviet news with freq ...
(born 1950), Danish crime fiction writer
* Leif Davis
Leif Davis (born 31 December 1999) is an English professional footballer who plays for English League One club Ipswich Town as a left back. He can also play as a centre back.
Career Early career
Born in Newcastle upon Tyne, he started his caree ...
(born 1999), English footballer
* Leif Erikson ( 970 – 1020), Norse explorer regarded as having discovered North America before Christopher Columbus
* Leif Garrett
Leif Garrett (born Leif Per Nervik; November 8, 1961) is an American singer, actor, and television personality. He worked as a child actor, then in the 1970s became famous as a teen idol in music. He later received much publicity for his drug ...
(born 1961), Norwegian-American singer and actor
* Leif Hård
Leif Hård (born 1944) is a Swedish politician and former member of the Riksdag, the national legislature. A member of the Social Democratic Party, he represented Södermanland County
Södermanland County ( sv, Södermanlands län) is a coun ...
(born 1944), Swedish politician
* Leif Hoste (born 1977), Belgian road cyclist
* Leif Juster (1910–1995), Norwegian comedian, actor and singer.
* Leif Larsen (1906-1990) Norwegian sailor and the most highly decorated allied naval officer of World War II
* Leif Linde (born 1955), Swedish politician
* Leif Nysmed (born 1970), Swedish politician
* Leif Olsen (1927–2012), Norwegian footballer
* Leif Panduro (1923–1977), Danish novelist and dramatist
* Leif G. W. Persson
Leif Gustav Willy Persson (born 12 March 1945) is a Swedish criminologist and novelist. Persson has four children, one of whom, Malin Persson Giolito, is also a crime writer.
Early life
Leif Gustav Willy Persson was born on 12 March 1945 in Stoc ...
(born 1945), Swedish criminologist, whistle-blower and novelist
* Leif Segerstam (born 1944), Finnish conductor and composer
* Leif Shiras (born 1959), American tennis player
* Leif Tronstad (1903–1945), Norwegian scientist, intelligence officer and military organizer
* Leif Vollebekk, Canadian singer-songwriter
* Le1f (born Khalif Diouf in 1989), American rapper and producer from New York
* Leif Arrhenius Swedish track athlete
See also
*
*
References
{{given name, nocat
Scandinavian masculine given names
Swedish masculine given names
Norwegian masculine given names
Danish masculine given names
Icelandic masculine given names