Leif

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 most commonly occurring spelling of the name is Leif, however, there are some well-established regional variants:

•  Norway – Leiv^[2]
•  Denmark – Lejf^[3]
•  Iceland – Leifur [ˈleiːvʏr̥]^[4]
•  Faroe Islands – Leivur [ˈlaɪvʊɹ]^[5]

In Norway, about 17,000 men have Leif as their first (or only) name.^[6] In Sweden, 70,000 men have the name Leif, about 60% of them as a first name.^[7] As of 2018, about 15,000 Danish men have Leif as their first name.^[8] In Finland, as of 2012, 4,628 men have Leif as a first name.^[9] In the U.S. , as of 2015, 6,415 men have Leif as a first name.

Pronunciation[]

Because the Scandinavian languages differ in their pronunciation of the digraphs ⟨ei⟩ and ⟨ej⟩, 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 of the unrelated female name Liv/Lif.

People[]

• Leif Ove Andsnes (born 1970), Norwegian pianist and exponent of Edvard Grieg
• Leif Axmyr (1938–2018), Swedish murderer
• Leif Blomberg (1941–1998), Swedish trade unionist and politician
• Leif Davidsen (born 1950), Danish crime fiction writer
• Leif Davis (born 1999), English footballer who plays for Premier League club Leeds United
• Leif Erikson (c. 970 – c. 1020), Norse explorer regarded as having discovered North America before Christopher Columbus
• Leif Garrett (born 1961), Norwegian-American singer and actor
• 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 Olsen (1927–2012), Norwegian footballer
• Leif Panduro (1923–1977), Danish novelist and dramatist
• Leif G. W. Persson (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
• Le1f (born Khalif Diouf in 1989), American rapper and producer from New York

References[]

Name list

This page or section lists people that share the same given name.
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