This is a factual question about Swedish names, rather than a discussion of the books. I think GQ is the proper place for it, rather than CS.
In the Pippi books by Astrid Lindgren, the heroine’s full name is given as *Pippilotta Viktualia Rullgardina Krusmynta Efraimsdotter Långstrump. * Is this an ordinary or an unusual name in Sweden?
Is *Långstrump *an actual family name? If it’s real, is it common or rare?
Is *Pippilotta *a common name? Is the diminutive *Pippi *common?
Is it common or unusual to have several middle names?
Are the individual middle names common, unusual or made up?
*Efraimsdotter *seems to be a patronymic. In translation it is rendered as Ephraimsdaughter or Ephraim’s Daughter. Are patronymics common in Swedish names?
They are common in Scandinavian names. Jenson, Svenson, Pearson, Karlson etc. (often “sen” in the Danish versions). And of course, real patronymics are still used to certain extent in Iceland (that is, taking the name of your father and attaching sson or sdottir) to the end.
Generally, the names are made up. Pippilotta is two names joined up, Pippi and Lotta, both fairly common. The combined name is very rare, about a dozen people in Sweden. Probably named for the character.
Viktualia probably means something, even less common. Six registered people with the name, once again, probably named for the character.
Rullergardina, female form of roller blinds, or rolling-down curtains literally. Not a real name.
Krusmynta, a herb, Mentha Spicata Crispa. Not totally unknown as a name, about 60 people with it as a middle name.
Efraimsdotter, old Scandinavian custom of adding -son or -daughter to the fathers name. Still the way its done in Iceland. Rare outside Iceland. Efraim is not a completely rare male name, so as long as you’re doing it that way, its a reasonable last name.
Långstrump, long stocking, made up last name. No registered persons with this as a real name.
So generally a combination of rare and made-up names. Of course the character has become very popular and featured in movies, tv-series and ever-popular books for 70 years, so there will be a few people who have been named for the character regardless of whether it was originally a real name.
The male form, -son, -sønn or -sen is common. The female one very uncommon outside of Iceland. There was a fashion for it for a while, I think 1-2 hundred years back. When it went out of fashion and the custom of a male-line family name returned, the male version was fixed whereas the female one disappeared.
Pippilota Delicatessa Windowshade Mackerelmint Efraim’s Daughter Longstocking is how I remember it being translated from when I was a kid.Looks like a fairly acurate translation.
To a certain very great extent. Patronymics are the norm there. People with proper surnames are in the minority.
That’s not quite the rule. You take the name of your father, inflect it in the genitive, and then add -son (if you’re male) or -dóttir (if you’re female). For example, the male children of Bragi receive the patronymic Bragason, not Bragisson.
Yes. As family names became the norm and law, some people adopted patronymics as family names, and you can find a lot of people with such a “not-really-a-patronymic” as a middle name, but there were also some people who started using the patronymic as a middle name to tell families with the same family name apart, and in a small number of families that has continued as a tradition.
Editing time expired: The patronym or matronym as a middle or last name is apparently also making a comeback after relaxation of the name laws and a rise of the desire to be different.