Rolf

See also: rolf

English

Etymology

From Old Norse Hrólfr, and from its Old French equivalent, cognates of Rudolph. Brought to England by the Normans, survived in surnames and was revived in the 19th century, partly due to its modern Scandinavian cognate.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɹɒlf/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɒlf

Proper noun

Rolf

1. A male given name from the Germanic languages.
2. A surname originating as a patronymic.

Related terms

• (male given names) Rollo, Rudolph
• (surnames) Rolph, Rowlings, Ruffles

Anagrams

• ROFL, flor, flor.

Danish

Etymology

Old Norse Hrólfr.

Proper noun

Rolf

1. a male given name

German

Etymology

Medieval German contraction of Rudolf. Later associated with modern Scandinavian Rolf.

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

Proper noun

Rolf

1. a male given name, popular in Germany from the 1920's to the 1950's

Related terms

• Rudi
• Rudolf

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Old Norse Hrólfr where <f> has been misinterpreted as /f/. See Rolv.

Proper noun

Rolf m

1. a male given name, variant of Rolv

References

• Kristoffer Kruken, Ola Stemshaug (1995) Norsk personnamnleksikon, Oslo: Det Norske Samlaget, →ISBN
• Statistisk sentralbyrå, Namnestatistikk: 12 029 males with the given name Rolf living in Norway on January 1st 2022, with the frequency peak in the 1920s. Accessed on 9th December, 2022.

Swedish

Etymology

From Old Norse Hrólfr.

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

Proper noun

Rolf c (genitive Rolfs)

1. a male given name

Derived terms

• Roffe (diminutive)

Related terms

• Rudolf

References

• Roland Otterbjörk: Svenska förnamn, Almqvist & Wiksell 1996, →ISBN
• [1] Statistiska centralbyrån and Sture Allén, Staffan Wåhlin, Förnamnsboken, Norstedts 1995, →ISBN: 55 992 males with the given name Rolf living in Sweden on December 31st, 2010, with the frequency peak in the 1930s. Accessed on 19 June 2011.