Salem
Meaning and origin
Wiktionary describes it as a female given name from Hebrew. From Biblical Hebrew שָׁלֵם (šālēm) (Genesis 14:18).
Source: Wiktionary, English entry for Salem (CC BY-SA 4.0). This is the origin of the name in English; families in Sweden may have taken it from another language.
Popularity in Sweden
Among newborns, Salem has been fairly steady over the last few years. Its best year between 1998 and 2022 was 2020. 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 | Girls | Boys |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | – | – |
| 1999 | – | – |
| 2000 | – | – |
| 2001 | – | – |
| 2002 | – | – |
| 2003 | – | – |
| 2004 | – | 3 |
| 2005 | – | – |
| 2006 | 3 | – |
| 2007 | – | – |
| 2008 | – | – |
| 2009 | 2 | 3 |
| 2010 | – | – |
| 2011 | – | – |
| 2012 | – | – |
| 2013 | – | 4 |
| 2014 | – | – |
| 2015 | – | 3 |
| 2016 | – | 6 |
| 2017 | – | 2 |
| 2018 | – | 5 |
| 2019 | – | 4 |
| 2020 | 2 | 8 |
| 2021 | 2 | – |
| 2022 | – | 2 |
Everyone registered in Sweden on 31 December with this as the first name they use.
Show the figures
| Year | Women and girls | Men and boys |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 30 | 142 |
| 2000 | 32 | 149 |
| 2001 | 38 | 161 |
| 2002 | 40 | 170 |
| 2003 | 40 | 173 |
| 2004 | 40 | 185 |
| 2005 | 41 | 186 |
| 2006 | 46 | 213 |
| 2007 | 48 | 234 |
| 2008 | 49 | 239 |
| 2009 | 55 | 254 |
| 2010 | 57 | 264 |
| 2011 | 61 | 269 |
| 2012 | 60 | 273 |
| 2013 | 64 | 281 |
| 2014 | 67 | 295 |
| 2015 | 69 | 315 |
| 2016 | 73 | 353 |
| 2017 | 75 | 369 |
| 2018 | 77 | 384 |
| 2019 | 80 | 393 |
| 2020 | 84 | 402 |
Salem in a sentence
- Hej! Jag heter Salem.Hi! My name is Salem.
- Jag ska fika med Salem i eftermiddag.I'm having coffee with Salem this afternoon.
- Salems mamma är lärare.Salem's mum is a teacher.
Swedish shows possession with a plain -s and no apostrophe: Salems mamma is Salem's mum.
Related names and other spellings
More names
Questions about Salem
How do you pronounce Salem in Swedish?
Press Listen at the top of the page to hear Salem in your device's Swedish voice.
What does the name Salem mean?
Wiktionary describes it as a female given name from Hebrew. From Biblical Hebrew שָׁלֵם (šālēm) (Genesis 14:18).
How popular is Salem in Sweden?
2 babies were named Salem in 2022. In 2020, 486 people in Sweden had Salem as the first name they go by. Among newborns the name has been fairly steady lately and peaked in 2020 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.