Esbjörn
Meaning and origin
Wiktionary describes it as a male given name from Old Norse. From Old Norse Ásbjǫrn, from áss, óss (“god”) + bjǫrn (“bear”).
Source: Wiktionary, Swedish entry for Esbjörn (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Popularity in Sweden
Among newborns, Esbjörn has been rising over the last few years. Its best year between 1998 and 2022 was 2019. The figures are for this exact spelling; other spellings of the name are counted on their own.
Years with fewer than two babies (fewer than ten before 2004) show as zero in the chart and as – in the table.
Show the figures
| Year | Boys |
|---|---|
| 1998 | – |
| 1999 | – |
| 2000 | – |
| 2001 | – |
| 2002 | – |
| 2003 | – |
| 2004 | 3 |
| 2005 | – |
| 2006 | – |
| 2007 | 2 |
| 2008 | 2 |
| 2009 | 4 |
| 2010 | 3 |
| 2011 | – |
| 2012 | 4 |
| 2013 | 4 |
| 2014 | – |
| 2015 | 2 |
| 2016 | – |
| 2017 | 3 |
| 2018 | 6 |
| 2019 | 8 |
| 2020 | – |
| 2021 | 3 |
| 2022 | 4 |
Everyone registered in Sweden on 31 December with this as the first name they use.
Show the figures
| Year | Men and boys |
|---|---|
| 1999 | 521 |
| 2000 | 528 |
| 2001 | 537 |
| 2002 | 542 |
| 2003 | 545 |
| 2004 | 548 |
| 2005 | 543 |
| 2006 | 545 |
| 2007 | 544 |
| 2008 | 543 |
| 2009 | 543 |
| 2010 | 537 |
| 2011 | 535 |
| 2012 | 531 |
| 2013 | 527 |
| 2014 | 521 |
| 2015 | 512 |
| 2016 | 509 |
| 2017 | 505 |
| 2018 | 504 |
| 2019 | 498 |
| 2020 | 494 |
Esbjörn in a sentence
- Hej! Jag heter Esbjörn.Hi! My name is Esbjörn.
- Esbjörn bor i Umeå och jobbar som snickare.Esbjörn lives in Umeå and works as a carpenter.
- Vet du om Esbjörn kommer på festen på lördag?Do you know if Esbjörn is coming to the party on Saturday?
- Esbjörns mamma är lärare.Esbjörn's mum is a teacher.
Swedish shows possession with a plain -s and no apostrophe: Esbjörns mamma is Esbjörn's mum.
More names
Questions about Esbjörn
How do you pronounce Esbjörn in Swedish?
Press Listen at the top of the page to hear Esbjörn in your device's Swedish voice. J is said like the English y. Ö is like the vowel in 'bird', said with rounded lips.
What does the name Esbjörn mean?
Wiktionary describes it as a male given name from Old Norse. From Old Norse Ásbjǫrn, from áss, óss (“god”) + bjǫrn (“bear”).
How popular is Esbjörn in Sweden?
4 babies were named Esbjörn in 2022. In 2020, 494 people in Sweden had Esbjörn as the first name they go by. Among newborns the name has been rising lately and peaked in 2019 in the years SCB covers (1998–2022).
Popularity figures: Statistics Sweden (SCB), name statistics (BE0001) from the Statistical Database, released as open data under CC0. Each spelling is counted as its own name, as SCB does. SCB's open name statistics end with babies named in 2022 and the population on 31 December 2020; SCB stopped producing name statistics in 2024 and now points to the Swedish Tax Agency (Skatteverket) for newer figures.
Origins, IPA and recordings: Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0), via kaikki.org; recordings from Lingua Libre on Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA). Lingolib is not affiliated with SCB or Wiktionary. Sources last checked 7 October 2026.