Solveig (, ) is a female

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 ...

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 ...

origin. It is most common 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 ...

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 ...

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

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 ...

, and it is also somewhat common in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

and

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Etymology

The name consists of two parts, where both parts have different theorized origins. * Sol- ** Old Norse ''salr'' "house, hall, home" ** Old Norse ''sól'' "sun" ** Old Norse ''sölr'' "sun-coloured, yellow" * -veig ** Old Norse ''veig'' "strength" ** Old Norse ''víg'' "battle" ** Old Norse ''vígja'' "to butt" ** Old Norse ''väg'' "way"

Versions

Generally speaking, the most common version is Solveig. However, alternative versions are used in

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

, and on the

Faroe Islands 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 ...

, and to some extent in

. ;Norwegian, Swedish, and Danish: * Solveig * Sólveig * Solvej * Solvei * Solveij * Solveg ;Icelandic: * Solveig * Sólveig ;Latvian and Lithuanian: * Solveiga ;German and French: * Solveig

In fiction

Solveig is a central character in the play ''

Peer Gynt ''Peer Gynt'' (, ) is a five-Act (drama), act play in verse written in 1867 by the Norwegian dramatist Henrik Ibsen. It is one of Ibsen's best known and most widely performed plays. ''Peer Gynt'' chronicles the journey of its title character fr ...

'' by

Henrik Ibsen Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright, poet and actor. Ibsen is considered the world's pre-eminent dramatist of the 19th century and is often referred to as "the father of modern drama." He pioneered ...

. She sings the famous " Solveig's Song" in

Edvard Grieg Edvard Hagerup Grieg ( , ; 15 June 18434 September 1907) was a Norwegian composer and pianist. He is widely considered one of the leading Romantic music, Romantic era composers, and his music is part of the standard classical repertoire worldwid ...

's musical suite of the same name. Ibsen uses sun imagery in association to the character (scene 10, act 5), indicating that Ibsen may have favored the idea that the name is etymologically associated with the sun. There is also a female central character in the Argentine novelist

Leopoldo Marechal Leopoldo Marechal (June 11, 1900 – June 26, 1970) was one of the most important Argentine writers of the twentieth century. Biographical notes Born in Buenos Aires into a family of French and Basque descent, Marechal became a primary scho ...

's '' Adán Buenosayres'' named Solveig Amundsen. Furthermore, Solveig is the main character and narrator of Matthew J. Kirby's ''

Icefall An icefall is a portion of certain glaciers characterized by relatively rapid flow and chaotic crevassed surface, caused in part by gravity. The term ''icefall'' is formed by analogy with the word ''waterfall'', which is a similar phenomenon of ...

''. Solveig is also one of the protagonists in the video game ''

Battlefield V ''Battlefield V'' is a 2018 first-person shooter game developed by DICE and published by Electronic Arts. The game is the successor to 2016's '' Battlefield 1'' and the eleventh main installment in the ''Battlefield'' series. It is based on Wor ...

'', in the episode called "Nordlys".

Notable people called Solveig

* Miklabæjar-Solveig, an Icelandic woman who lived in the late 18th century and is the subject of local folklore

Given name

Sólveig Anspach Sólveig Anspach (8 December 1960 – 7 August 2015) was an Icelandic-French film director and screenwriter. Born to a German-Romanian father Gerhard Anspach and an Icelandic mother Högna Sigurðardóttir, she spent most of her life living ...

, an Icelandic-French film director *

Solveig Christov Solveig Beda Christov (née Fredriksen; 29 October 1918 – 16 May 1984) was a Norwegian novelist, writer of short stories, and playwright. Early and personal life Solveig Fredriksen was born in Drammen as a daughter of electrician Fredrik ...

, a Norwegian novelist, writer of short stories and playwright *

Solveig Dommartin Solveig Dommartin (; 16 May 1961 – 11 January 2007) was a French actress. Her acting career began in the theatre with Compagnie Timothee Laine and with the Theater Labor Warschau. She had her first experiences with film as an assistant of Jac ...

, a French actress *

Solveig Egman-Andersson Laila Solveig Egman-Andersson (born 6 January 1942) is a retired Swedish artistic gymnast who competed at the 1960, 1964 and 1968 Summer Olympics The 1968 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad () and official ...

, a Swedish artistic gymnast and Olympian *

Solveig Guðmundsdóttir Solveig Guðmundsdóttir (c. 1430 – 1501), was an Icelandic heiress and landlord. She was the daughter and heir of judge Guðmundur Arason ríki and landlord Vatnsfjarðar-Kristín Björnsdóttir, the richest couple on Iceland. She is rememb ...

, an Icelandic heiress and landlady *

Solveig Gulbrandsen Solveig Ingersdatter Gulbrandsen (born 12 January 1981) is a Norwegian former footballer played a midfielder. At club level she has previously represented Kolbotn, FC Gold Pride, Vålerenga Fotball Damer and Stabæk. With the Norwegian nati ...

, a Norwegian footballer *

Solveig Gunbjørg Jacobsen Solveig Gunbjørg Jacobsen (8 October 1913 – 25 October 1996)Gravminner i Norge.
D ...

Solveig Hedengran Solveig Hedengran (26 April 1910 – 29 April 1956) was a Swedish stage and film actress. She appeared in about 30 films between 1919 and 1956. Selected filmography * '' Synnöve Solbakken'' (1919) * '' German Women - German Faithfulness'' ( ...

, a Swedish actress *

Solveig Heilo Solveig Heilo (born 24 December 1981), known professionally as Sol Heilo, is a Norwegian composer, artist, musician, music producer, arranger, designer and costume designer. She is mostly known for the band Katzenjammer. Sol works in different ...

, also known as Sol Heilo, a Norwegian composer, artist, musician, music producer, arranger, designer *

Solveig Jülich Solveig Jülich is a Swedish historian of ideas, professor at the department of History of Science and Ideas at Uppsala University. Biography Solveig Jülich holds a Ph.D in technology and social change from Linköping University in 2002, for ...

, a Swedish historian of ideas, professor * Solveig Krey, a Norwegian naval officer * Solveig Kringlebotn, a Norwegian operatic soprano singer *

Solveig Nordlund Solveig Nordlund (born June 9, 1943) is a Swedish- Portuguese filmmaker. Biography Nordlund grew up in Stockholm and has a BA degree in Art History from the Stockholm University. In 1962, she met Alberto Seixas Santos, whom she married, and he ...

, a Swedish-Portuguese filmmaker * Solveig Nordström, a Swedish archaeologist who developed her career in Spain *

Sólveig Pétursdóttir Sólveig Guðrún Pétursdóttir (born 11 March 1952) is an Icelandic politician and a former speaker of the Althing, the Icelandic parliament, serving from 2005 to 2007. She was a parliament member from 1991, for the Reykjavík Constituency (1 ...

, an Icelandic politician and former speaker of the Icelandic parliament *

Solveig Slettahjell Solveig Slettahjell (born 2 April 1971) is a Norwegian jazz singer, known for her soulful, seductive voice. Career Slettahjell was born in Bærum, Norway, and made her recording debut with the album ''Slow Motion Orchestra'' (2003), which co ...

, a Norwegian jazz singer * Solveig Sollie, a Norwegian politician * Solveig Sundborg, a Danish film actress * Solveig Rogstad, a Norwegian biathlete * Solveig Rönn-Christiansson, a Swedish politician * Solveig Torsvik, a Norwegian politician

Middle name

* Heide Solveig Göttner, a German fantasy writer

Surname

Martin Solveig Martin Laurent Picandet (; born 22 September 1976), better known by his stage name Martin Solveig (), is a French DJ, singer, songwriter and record producer. He hosts a weekly radio show called ''C'est La Vie'' on radio stations worldwide, incl ...

, a French DJ

References

{{More footnotes, date=April 2009
Nordic Names - Solveig

Behind the Name - Solveig
Germanic given names Scandinavian feminine given names Danish feminine given names Icelandic feminine given names Norwegian feminine given names Feminine given names Swedish feminine given names