Kjell 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 usually male

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 ...

. In

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

, the

cognate In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymological ancestor in a common parent language. Because language change can have radical effects on both the s ...

Kjeld Kjeld is a person name derived from the Old Norse and may refer to: Given name *Saint Kjeld (fl. 1100–1150), Danish clergyman * Kjeld Abell (1901–1961), Danish playwright and theatrical designer * Kjeld Ammentorp (1895–1975), Danish-British ...

or Keld. The name comes from the

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 ...

word ''kętill'', which means "

kettle A kettle, sometimes called a tea kettle or teakettle, is a device specialized for boiling water, commonly with a ''lid'', ''spout'', and ''handle''. There are two main types: the ''stovetop kettle'', which uses heat from a cooktop, hob, and the ...

" and probably also "helmet" or perhaps "cauldron". Examples of old spellings or forms are ''Ketill'' (Old Norse), ''Kjætil'' (Old Swedish) and ''Ketil'' (Old Danish). An equally likely meaning is a source, a hope that the boy will get ample resources to draw upon later in life. Kjell has a

name day In Christianity, a name day is a tradition in many countries of Europe and the Americas, as well as Christian communities elsewhere. It consists of celebrating a day of the year that is associated with one's baptismal name, which is normatively t ...

on July 11 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 ...

and July 8 in

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

, and in

with the variant ''Kjeld''.

Prevalence

In 2007, there were 59,011 men in Sweden with "Kjell" as their first name, making it the 42nd most common masculine name in Sweden. In Swedish and Norwegian it is pronounced with the

voiceless alveolo-palatal sibilant fricative The voiceless alveolo-palatal sibilant fricative is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents this sound is ("c", plus the curl also found in its voiced counter ...

� There were 30,809 men in Norway with "Kjell" as their first name. This makes it the 5th most common masculine name in Norway. In Denmark, 8079 men were called "Kjeld" and 5491 "Keld". In

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

, the number of men called Kjell in 2008 was 1405. The name began to be widely used in the 1600s when it took over from the older name form ''Kætil'' or ''Ketill'', which were also precursors of the name

Kjetil Kjetil is a Norwegian masculine given name. It may refer to: * Kjetil Aleksander Lie (born 1980), Norwegian chess player, Norway's eighth International Grandmaster *Kjetil André Aamodt (born 1971), Norwegian former alpine ski racer * Kjetil Bang- ...

, and a loan from

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

''catillus'', which is the diminutive of ''catinus'' (= barrel, bowl). ''Kætil/Ketill'' was probably one of the most common male names in Old Norse times. In

Landnámabók (, "Book of Settlements"), often shortened to , is a medieval Icelandic written work which describes in considerable detail the settlement () of Iceland by the Norse in the 9th and 10th centuries CE. is divided into five parts and ov ...

, it is the male name that occurs most often - even more frequently than the most widely used compositions with ''Tor-''. There are 44 found

runic Runes are the letters in a set of related alphabets, known as runic rows, runic alphabets or futharks (also, see '' futhark'' vs ''runic alphabet''), native to the Germanic peoples. Runes were primarily used to represent a sound value (a ...

inscriptions from the Viking era that contain the name ''Kætill'', which is why it is the 13th most used male name in this material. Five of the inscriptions are found in Denmark and three in Norway, most others have unknown sites. The name was most often written with runes like ᚲᛖᛏᛁᛚ (''ketil''), ᚲᛁᛏᛁᛚ (''kitil'') or ᚲᚨᛏᛁᛚ (''katil''). In

the name appears in many village (''torp'') names, so there are nearly 20 places named Kelstrup or Kjelstrup. However, the name does not appear in compositions with ''-lev'', and it can only be explained that it was not used at the time when ''-lev'' names were formed. Consequently, we can date the period when ''Kætil/Ketill'' was used as a name, at the time between the end of the

Migration Period The Migration Period ( 300 to 600 AD), also known as the Barbarian Invasions, was a period in European history marked by large-scale migrations that saw the fall of the Western Roman Empire and subsequent settlement of its former territories ...

and the beginning of the

Viking Age The Viking Age (about ) was the period during the Middle Ages when Norsemen known as Vikings undertook large-scale raiding, colonising, conquest, and trading throughout Europe and reached North America. The Viking Age applies not only to their ...

. But the reason that the name gained such tremendous prevalence within a few centuries, we do not know.Kristian Hald: ''Personnavne i Danmark – oldtiden'' (s. 63), Dansk historisk fællesforenings håndbøger, København 1974 The name ''Kjell'' is known in Norway from the 1400s. In recent times, the name was widely used in the 1940s and 50s, but is now rarely used for newborn boys. In Sweden, the name was most popular in the 1940s. ''Kjell'' is today a common name in Norway and Sweden, and ''Kjeld'' or ''Keld'' is common in Denmark. The following table provides a detailed overview of the popularity of the male name ''Kjell'' and its variants in some of the countries where statistics are available.

Name compositions

''Kjell'' is found in many name compositions, both of the old date, written in one word, or in new ones, which are written in two words. *Female names:

Kjellaug Kjellaug is a given name. Notable people with the name include: * Kjellaug Nakkim (1940–2022), Norwegian politician * Kjellaug Nordsjö (1926–2021), Swedish-Norwegian artist * Kjellaug Pettersen (1934–2012), Norwegian senior government offici ...

, Kjellrun, Kjellfrid, Audkjell, Kjella, Kjellbjørg *Male names:

Torkel Torkel is a Nordic masculine given name that may refer to *Torkel Andreas Trønnes (born 1925), Norwegian automobile advocate *Torkel Franzén (1950–2006), Swedish academic *Torkel Halvorsen Aschehoug (1822–1909), Norwegian philosopher of law, e ...

, Arnkjell, Askjell, Finnkjell, Grimkjell, Hallkjell, Kjellbjørn, Kjellfred, Torkjell :Newer: Kjell

Inge Inge is a given name in various Germanic language, Germanic language-speaking cultures. In Swedish and Norwegian, it is mostly used as a masculine, but less often also as a feminine name, sometimes as a short form of Ingeborg, while in Danish, Est ...

, Kjell Magne, Kjell Einar osv. ''Kjell'' is also present in at least one notable Swedish surname: Kjellberg.

People

A–F

* Kjell Almskog (born 1941), Norwegian businessman * Kjell Askildsen (1929–2021), Norwegian writer *

Kjell Aukrust Kjell Aukrust (19 March 1920 – 24 December 2002) was a Norwegian author, poet, artist and humorist. Aukrust is principally known for his Flåklypa stories and Flåklypa drawings. Personal life Aukrust was born in Alvdal Municipality in Hed ...

(1920–2002), Norwegian poet, author and artist *

Kjell Bækkelund Kjell Bækkelund (6 May 1930 – 13 May 2004) was a Norwegian classical pianist. Biography Bækkelund was born in Oslo, Norway. He was the son of Martin Bækkelund (1903–66) and Rallik Antonette Hansen (1904–94). He was a student at the ...

(1930–2004), Norwegian classical pianist *

Kjell Bäckman Kjell Hilding "Tjalle" Bäckman (21 February 1934 – 9 January 2019) was a Sweden, Swedish speed skater. He competed at the 1960 Winter Olympics in the 5000 m and 10000 m events and won a bronze medal in the 10000 m; all three medalists of ...

(1934–2019), Swedish speed skater *

Kjell Berg Kjell Berg (born 11 March 1962) is a Norwegian curler. Berg has played in the lead position for his entire international career. Berg won a silver medal at the 1983 World Junior Curling Championships playing for Pål Trulsen. He also won a ...

(born 1962), Norwegian curler *

Kjell Bergqvist Kjell Bertil Leonard Bergqvist (born 23 February 1953) is a Swedish actor. Bergqvist finished the Royal Dramatic Training Academy in 1973 and made his debut in '' En enkel melodi'' and ''Jack''. He has since cooperated for many years with scr ...

(born 1953), Swedish actor *

Kjell Bjartveit Odd Kjell Bjartveit (14 August 1927 – 22 February 2011) was a Norwegian physician and politician for the Christian Democratic Party. He was born in Flekkefjord, took the cand.med. degree at the University of Oslo in 1951, and the dr.med. degr ...

(1927–2011), Norwegian physician and politician * Kjell Bohlin (1928–2011), Norwegian politician * Kjell Bondevik (1901–1983), Norwegian politician and uncle of Kjell Magne *

Kjell Magne Bondevik Kjell Magne Bondevik (; born 3 September 1947) is a Norway, Norwegian Lutheranism, Lutheran Religious minister, minister and Politics of Norway, politician. As leader of the Christian Democratic Party (Norway), Christian Democratic Party, he ser ...

(born 1947), former Norwegian prime minister and nephew of Kjell *

Kjell Borgen Kjell Borgen (21 October 1939 – 22 August 1996) was a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party. He served as Minister of Transport and Communications from 1986 to 1988, Minister of Local Government from 1988 to 1989 and again from 1990 to 1 ...

(1939–1996), Norwegian politician * Kjell Carlström (born 1976), Finnish cyclist * Kjell Colding (1931–2009), Norwegian diplomat and politician * Kjell Dahlin (born 1963), Swedish ice hockey player *

Kjell Elvis Kjell Henning Bjørnestad (born 12 March 1968), known as Kjell Elvis (or K. Elvis), is a Norwegian professional Elvis impersonator – a who had plastic surgery to look more like American rock 'n' roll musician Elvis Presley. He is also a sound ...

(born 1968), Norwegian Elvis impersonator *

Kjell Engebretsen Kjell Engebretsen (born 29 April 1941 in Oslo) is a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party. He was elected to the Norwegian Parliament from Akershus in 1993, and was re-elected on two occasions. Engebretsen was a member of Frogn Frogn is a ...

(born 1941), Norwegian politician *

Kjell Eriksson 'Kjell Sylve Eriksson (born 1953 in Uppsala) is a Swedish writer, author of the detective chief inspector Ann Lindell crime novels. ''Den upplysta stigen'' (“Shining path”), the first of the Lindell series, was named Best First Novel of 1999 ...

(born 1953), Swedish author *

Kjell Espmark Kjell Erik Espmark (19 February 1930 – 18 September 2022) was a Swedish writer, literary historian, member of the Swedish Academy, and Professor of the History of Literature at Stockholm University. He was elected to the Swedish Academy on 5 M ...

(1930–2022), Swedish author *

Kjell-Olof Feldt Kjell-Olof Feldt (18 August 1931 – 8 January 2025) was a Swedish Social Democratic politician who was minister of finance between 1983 and 1990. Previously, Feldt was assistant minister of finance from 1975 to 1976 and minister of comme ...

(1931–2025), Swedish politician *

Kjell Fjalsett Kjell Sigurd Fjalsett (born 1952) is a Norwegian singer and musician. He made a name for himself in the Norwegian gospel music, gospel and Christian pop scene as a teenager in the choir Believe, covering the song "Oh Happy Day" among other things. ...

(born 1952), Norwegian musician * Kjell Fjørtoft (1930–2010), Norwegian journalist and writer

G–M

* Kjell Gjerseth (1946–2025), Norwegian novelist and journalist *

Kjell Grede Kjell Birger Grede (12 August 1936 – 15 December 2017) was a Swedish film director.Kjell Grengmark (1935–2022), Swedish curler *

Kjell Håkonsen Kjell Håkonsen (23 December 1935 – 18 April 2011) was a Norway, Norwegian harness racing coach and coachman. During his career, he had 5531 starts and won 1094 races. He is best known for having trained and coached Spikeld and Rex Rodney who hav ...

(1935–2011), Norwegian harness racing coach *

Kjell Hallbing Kjell Hallbing (5 November 1934, in Bærum – 6 May 2004, in Tønsberg) was a Norwegian author of Western books. Under the pseudonym Louis Masterson, he wrote a series of books about the fictitious Texas Ranger (and later U.S. Marshal) ' ...

(1934–2004), Norwegian author * Kjell Heggelund (1932–2017), Norwegian literary researcher and lecturer *

Kjell Helland Kjell Edvard Helland (born 29 May 1940 in Melhus Municipality) is a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party. He was elected to the Norwegian Parliament from Sør-Trøndelag Sør-Trøndelag (; ) was a Counties of Norway, county comprising t ...

(born 1940), Norwegian politician * Kjell Henriksen (1938–1996), Norwegian scientist *

Kjell Höglund Kjell Höglund (born 8 December 1945 in Östersund, Sweden) is a Swedish singer-songwriter. Höglund, who found his musical breakthrough in the 1970s, is in his native country renowned for his mixture of Realism (arts), realism, absurdism and su ...

(born 1945), Swedish singer * Kjell Holler (1925–2000), Norwegian politician *

Kjell Holmström Kjell Albrekt Oliver Holmström (July 8, 1916 – March 14, 1999) was a Swedish bobsledder who competed in the 1950s and in the 1960s. He won a bronze medal in the four-man event (tied with West Germany) at the 1953 FIBT World Champions ...

(1916–1999), Swedish bobsledder *

Kjell Hovda Kjell Hovda (born 27 October 1945) is a former Norwegian biathlon, biathlete. His achievements include winning silver and bronze medals in relays at the Biathlon World Championships. Career Born in Veggli on 27 October 1945, Hovda participated ...

(born 1945), Norwegian biathlete *

Kjell Isaksson Kjell Gunnar Isaksson (born 28 February 1948) is a retired pole vaulter from Sweden, who broke the world record several times in 1972. Pole vaulting First he broke the record set by Christos Papanikolaou of Greece and San Jose State University ...

(born 1948), Swedish pole vault world record holder *

Kjell Jennstig Kjell Jennstig (born February 17, 1960) is a Swedish musician and composer/songwriter. As a musician he is mostly known as guitarist in Swedish motorcycle group, Kenneth & the Knutters. As a composer/songwriter, he has written for a number of Swed ...

(born 1960), Swedish musician *

Kjell Johansson (disambiguation) Kjell Johansson may refer to: *Kjell Johansson (referee) (active 1978–1982), Swedish football referee *Kjell Johansson (table tennis) (1946–2011), Swedish table tennis player *Kjell Johansson (tennis) Kjell Johansson (born 12 February 1951) ...

, various people * Kjell Jonevret (born 1962), Swedish football manager and former player *

Kjell Kaspersen Kjell Kaspersen (born 7 April 1939) is a former footballer from Norway. For many years he was goalkeeper for Skeid and the Norwegian national team. He was league champion in 1966, and was elected Player of the Year by ''Verdens Gang'' in 1964. ...

(born 1939), Norwegian footballer *

Kjell Kjær Kjell Kjær (February 1, 1942 – January 8, 2025) was a Norwegian film actor, puppeteer, director, and program host. He also performed as a stage actor, including at the National Theater in Oslo. Puppet theater In 1968, Kjell Kjær participat ...

(1942–2025), Norwegian actor, puppeteer, director, and program host * Kjell Knudsen (1931–2022), Norwegian politician *

Kjell Koserius Generalmajor, Major General Kjell Bertil Ingvar Koserius (26 October 1943 – 4 December 2002) was a Swedish Air Force officer. Early life Koserius was born on 26 October 1943 in Kinna Parish, Älvsborg County, Sweden. Career Koserius graduated ...

(1943–2002), Swedish Air Force major general * Kjell Larsson (1943–2002), Swedish politician *

Kjell Eugenio Laugerud García Kjell Eugenio Laugerud García (24 January 1930Kjell Lauri Kjell Lauri (29 June 1956 – 11 August 2023) was a Swedish orienteering competitor. His achievements include winning a world championship gold medal in the relay with the Swedish team, and three more medals in relay. Biography Lauri was a Rel ...

, Swedish orienteer * Kjell N. Lindgren (born 1973), US astronaut * Kjell Lönnå (1936–2022), Swedish choir leader and composer

N–Z

* Kjell Nilsson (born 1949), Swedish weightlifter and actor * Kjell Nordström (born 1949), Swedish politician *

Kjell A. Nordström Kjell Anders Nordström (born 26 February 1958) is a Swedish economist, writer and public speaker. Biography Born in Skärholmen, a suburban district in southern Stockholm, Nordström grew up on a small island in the Finland, Finnish Åland ...

(born 1958), Swedish economist, writer and public speaker *

Kjell Olofsson Kjell Olofsson (born 23 July 1965 in Gothenburg) is a former Sweden, Swedish football (soccer), footballer who played as a Striker (association football), striker. Career Dundee United 1996–97 season Olofsson joined Scottish club Dundee Unit ...

(born 1965), Swedish footballer * Kjell Opseth (1936–2017), Norwegian politician *

Kjell Oscarius Kjell Oscarius (born 1 May 1943 in Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest ur ...

(born 1943), Swedish curler * Kjell Øvergård (born 1947), Norwegian politician * Kjell Qvale (1919–2013), Norwegian-American business executive *

Kjell Risvik Kjell Risvik (29 June 1941 – 28 March 2021) was a translator of literature into Norwegian language, Norwegian from various languages, including Catalan language, Catalan, English language, English, French language, French, German language, G ...

(1941–2021), Norwegian translator *

Kjell Rodian Kjell Åkerstrøm Hansen Rodian (30 June 1942 – 29 December 2007) was a Danish cyclist who won an individual silver medal in the road race at the 1964 Olympics. After that he semi-retired for nine years, and after returning to cycling rode the ...

(1942–2007), Danish cyclist *

Kjell Inge Røkke Kjell Inge Røkke (born October 25, 1958) is a Norwegian billionaire businessman. He is the chairman of the Norwegian-based company Aker ASA, and holds directorships in Aker BP, Kværner, Ocean Yield, Aker BioMarine and Aker Energy. As of De ...

(born 1958), Norwegian investor *

Kjell Roos Kjell Roos (born 11 March 1956), is a Swedish guitarist and singer. Roos leads the Swedish dansband '' Kjell Roos Band'', earlier known as ''Roosarna''. He has done duets with Swedish singer Kikki Danielsson such as '' I juletid (Save Your Love ...

(born 1956), Swedish musician ** Kjell Roos Band, a Swedish band led by Roos *

Kjell Samuelsson Kjell William Alf Samuelsson (born 18 October 1958) is a Swedish former professional ice hockey defenseman who played 14 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Tampa B ...

(born 1958), Swedish professional hockey player * Kjell Bloch Sandved (1922–2015), Norwegian author and lecturer * Kjell Scherpen (born 2000), Dutch footballer * Kjell Schneider (born 1976), German beach volleyball player * Kjell Sjöberg (1937–2013), Swedish ski jumper *

Kjell Søbak Kjell Søbak (born 21 June 1957) is a Norwegian former biathlete. At the 1984 Olympics of Sarajevo, Søbak finished second with the Norwegian relay team, which consisted of himself, Eirik Kvalfoss, Rolf Storsveen, and Odd Lirhus. In addition, ...

(born 1957), Norwegian biathlete *

Kjell-Erik Ståhl Kjell-Erik Bertil Ståhl (born 17 February 1946) is a retired long-distance runner from Sweden. He represented his native country twice at the Summer Olympics (1980 and 1984) in the men's marathon, finishing in 19th place in Moscow. Ståhl twice ...

(born 1946), Swedish long-distance runner * Kjell Storelid (born 1970), Norwegian speed skater *

Kjell Stormoen Kjell Stormoen (24 March 1921 – 22 October 2010) was a Norwegian actor, scenographer and theatre director. An actor and director at Rogaland Teater in the early 1950s, he was later assigned as actor to the theaters Riksteatret, Den Nationale ...

(1921–2010), Norwegian actor and theatre director *

Kjell Storvik Kjell Storvik (born 20 November 1930) is a Norwegian economist and former Governor of the Central Bank of Norway. He is a cand.oecon. by education. From 1977 to 1981 he was the vice president of the Norwegian Shipowners' Association. He was t ...

(born 1930), Norwegian economist and former Governor of the Central Bank of Norway *

Kjell Sundvall Kjell Gösta Sundvall (born 31 March 1953) is a Sweden, Swedish director/producer. Sundvall has directed a series of films about the police officer Martin Beck (played by Peter Haber). Selected filmography *2015 in film, 2015 - ''Prästen i pa ...

(born 1953), Swedish director * Kjell Svindland (1933–2025), Norwegian politician * Kjell Westö (born 1961), Finnish author

References

External links

Behind the Name: KjellThink Baby Names: Kjell
{{given name, Kjell, nocat Norwegian masculine given names Masculine given names Swedish masculine given names

Prevalence

Name compositions

People

A–F

G–M

N–Z

See also

References

External links