Birger is a

Scandinavia Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...

n name from

Old Norse Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants ...

, ''bjarga'', meaning "to help, to save, to protect". It is widely used in

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

as Birger but also as Børge. The Swedish variant of ''Birger'' would soon evolve into ''Börje'', however, the prior form would remain common, and was not confused with its successor. The

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

ic form is ''Birgir''. Birger is primarily a

masculine Masculinity (also called manhood or manliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and roles generally associated with men and boys. Masculinity can be theoretically understood as socially constructed, and there is also evidence that some beh ...

given name A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well, and differentiates that person from the other members of a group (typically a f ...

, but can also be found as a

surname In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several give ...

Birger

Given name

Middle Ages

* Birger, King of Sweden (1280–1321) *

Birger Brosa Birger Brosa (Old Norse: ''Birgir Brósa''; died 9 January 1202) was the Swedish jarls, jarl of Sweden from 1174 to 1202. Biography He was a son of Bengt Snivil and a member of the powerful House of Bjälbo. In medieval texts, he is either cal ...

(died 1202), Swedish jarl * Birger Gregersson (1383), Archbishop of Uppsala *

Birger Jarl Birger Jarl or Birger Magnusson (21 October 1266) was a Swedish statesman and regent, ''Swedish jarls, jarl'', and a member of the House of Bjälbo, who played a pivotal role in consolidating Sweden after the civil wars between the House of Eri ...

(1210–1266), Swedish statesman * Birger Persson (died 1327), Swedish magnate, knight, privy councillor and Uppland's first lawspeaker

Modern world

* Birger Asplund (1929–2023), Swedish hammer thrower * Birger Carlstedt (1907–1975), Finnish artist * Birger Cederin (1895–1942), Swedish fencer * Birger Dahlerus (1891–1957), Swedish businessman and amateur diplomat * Birger Ekeberg (1880–1968), Swedish jurist *

Birger Eriksen Birger Kristian Eriksen (17 November 1875 – 16 July 1958) was a Norway, Norwegian military officer (with the rank of Military ranks and insignia of Norway, Oberst) who was instrumental in stopping the first wave of ''Gruppe 5'' of the Germ ...

(1875–1958), Norwegian colonel who repelled the initial German World War II invasion force * Birger Gröning (born 1975), German politician * Birger Hedqvist (1894–1964), Swedish lieutenant general *

Birger Ljungberg Birger Ljungberg (7 June 1884 – 20 April 1967) was a Norwegian military officer and politician from the Conservative Party who served as Minister of Defence from 1939–1942. Ljungberg was criticized for his actions at the beginning of the ...

(1884–1967), Norwegian military officer, politician and Minister of Defence from 1939 to 1942 * Birger Ljungström (1872–1948), Swedish engineer, technical designer, industrialist and inventor *

Birger Malmsten Birger Malmsten (23 December 1920 – 15 February 1991) was a Swedish actor. He had many roles in Ingmar Bergman's films. Selected filmography * '' South of the Highway'' (1936) – Student (uncredited) * ' (1940) – Staff Member (uncredite ...

(1920–1991), Swedish actor * Birger Sandzén (1871–1954), Swedish-American painter *

Birger Sjöberg Birger Sjöberg (1885–1929) was a Swedish poet, novelist and songwriter, whose best-known works include the faux-naïf song collection ''Fridas bok'' (Frida's book) and the novel ''Kvartetten som sprängdes'' (The quartet that split up), a some ...

(1885–1929), Swedish poet and songwriter

Surname

Charles Birger Charles "Charlie" Birger (born Shachna Itzak Birger, February 5, 1881 – April 19, 1928) was an American bootlegger during the Prohibition period in southern Illinois. Early life Charles Birger was born to a Jewish family in the Russian Empire ...

(1881–1928), American bootlegger *

Hugo Birger Hugo Birger (until 1878 Hugo Birger Peterson) (12 January 1854 – 17 June 1887) was a Swedish painter. Biography Youth Born in Stockholm, his father was printmaker Sven August Peterson who, among other things, printed securities. By accom ...

(1854–1887), Swedish painter *

Malene Birger Malene Birger is a Danish fashion designer. She co-founded Day Birger et Mikkelsen in 1997 and By Malene Birger in 2003. Career Birger graduated from the Danish Design School in 1989. She began her career in the fashion industry in 1989 as d ...

(born 1962), Danish fashion designer *

Pablo Birger Pablo Birger (7 January 1924 – 9 March 1966) was an Argentine racing driver who raced in two World Championship Grands Prix for the Gordini team. He raced a Gordini Type 15 in the 1953 Argentine Grand Prix but the car lasted just twenty-one ...

(1924–1966), Argentine racing driver *

Trudi Birger Trudi Birger (; 24 April 1927 – 24 April 2002) was a German-born, Israeli-nationalized writer, biologist, and Holocaust survivors, Holocaust survivor. After the war Birger migrated to Israel, where she founded the Dental Volunteers for Israel ...

(1927–2002), German Holocaust survivor and writer

Birgir

Birgir is used in

and the

Faroes The Faroe Islands ( ) (alt. the Faroes) are an archipelago in the North Atlantic Ocean and an autonomous territory of the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. Located between Iceland, Norway, and the United Kingdom, the islands have a populat ...

. In 2016, 1045 people had Birgir as a first given name in Iceland, and 285 had it as a second name.Hagstofa Íslands - Nöfn
/ref> * Birgir Þórarinsson (born 1965), Icelandic politician * Birgir Ísleifur Gunnarsson (1936–2019), Icelandic politician

References

{{surname Given names Scandinavian masculine given names Swedish masculine given names Masculine given names