Book 2 - Nathan, Amy, Madison and Ethan Berga

Norwegian Naming Customs
Since the early 10 th century, Norwegians have
traditionally taken a name associated with their family
farm. Prior to 1860, Danish surnames were not
hereditary; but, changed with each generation. 1 This
meant that a Norwegian son born to Jorgen
Petersen would be known by the surname
Jorgensen, a daughter of Jorgen
would be known as Jorgensdatter. In
many cases, Datter, was shortened
to dtr, becoming Jorgensdtr. In
old Norde, sen, is translated,
the son of. Along with this surname,
a Norwegian added his
farm name; which was the
name of the farm on which he
lived at the time. Farm names
changed according to where
one lived and moved. 2 In our
own Norwegian family, Johan
Mikkelsen Nordrum, the son
of Mikel Amundsen, was born
on the farm named: Nordrum. Johan’s
brother, Amund, lived on the
farm, Brennum; a smaller portion of
the larger Nordrum farm. 3 Amund’s surnames
became; Mikkelsen-Brennum. Johan
Mikkelsen’s sons took the surname Johansen, while
their cousins, the sons of Amund Brennum, took the
surname Amundsen, which was changed to Emerson
once they moved to America. 3
Norwegian women did not change their name with
marriage, until they immigrated to America and took
on the customs of their new country. 2 In the 1870’s
Norwegian legislation was passed which stated that
women should use the masculine form for their patronymic
name. This law put an end to all surnames ending
in “datter.” 2 In 1904, with so many surnames ending
in “sen,” the Norwegian government made steps
to add surnames. 2 This explains why older family
Elisabet Marit Jonsen Aasen Nordrum
1835-1902
documents have “Aasen” as Elisabet’s maiden name,
while American court and county records show her
maiden name as “Johnson.” Her descendants know her
as Elizabeth Nordrum; however, in census records she
gives her name as Mary Mikkelsen. She was
the daughter of Jon, so her surname was
“Jonsen.” Since legislation was passed,
Elisabet used Jonsen rather than Jonsdtr.
She lived on the farm, Aasenberg;
and married into the name,
“Mikkelsen Nordrum;” thus,
Elisabet’s many surnames were
difficult to explain as her name
changed with the customs and
countries she lived in. 5 Adding
to the confusion was the
surname’s tendency to change
once arriving in America: from
Aesen to Auson, Mikkelsen to
Michaelson, Jonsen to Johnson
and Amundsen to Emerson. In
1870, when the Nordrums settled
in Wisconsin, there was a clash of
naming customs. Elisabet did not take
her husband’s surname, nor did any of her
children share her surname, or her husband’s;
or even receive middle names. American customs and
records would change this slowly through the first
Nordrum generation. The Nordrum children slowly
incorporated their new country’s customs over their
life time. For instance, Hans was buried as a Nordrum;
however, all his life he would sign his personal letters,
“Hans Mikkelsen.” 3 When William Vanasse married
Lena, he was surprised to discover that her name was
Lena Nordrum and not Lena Mikkelsen. 3 And finally,
each of the Nordrum boys, in the west, used “J” as
their middle initial, signifying, Johansen which had
been converted to a middle name. 54