Simon
Meaning and origin
Wiktionary describes it as a male given name from Hebrew. From Middle English Simon, Symond, Symounde, from Anglo-Norman Simon, Simond, Simund, a conflation of two unrelated names: one from Latin Simon, from Koine Greek Σίμων (Símōn), strictly from Ancient Greek—likely σῑμός (sīmós, “snub-nosed”)—but used for Biblical Hebrew שִׁמְעוֹן (šimʿōn), doublet of Simeon; the other from Old Norse Sigmundr or Old English Siġemund, both from Proto-Germanic *Sigimunduz (literally “Protector of victory”), whence also Sigmund and Siegmund.
Source: Wiktionary, English entry for Simon (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, Simon has been falling over the last few years. Its best year between 1998 and 2022 was 1998. 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 | 1,154 |
| 1999 | 1,143 |
| 2000 | 1,083 |
| 2001 | 882 |
| 2002 | 931 |
| 2003 | 955 |
| 2004 | 878 |
| 2005 | 774 |
| 2006 | 713 |
| 2007 | 587 |
| 2008 | 582 |
| 2009 | 463 |
| 2010 | 448 |
| 2011 | 392 |
| 2012 | 337 |
| 2013 | 330 |
| 2014 | 239 |
| 2015 | 226 |
| 2016 | 191 |
| 2017 | 165 |
| 2018 | 138 |
| 2019 | 122 |
| 2020 | 101 |
| 2021 | 76 |
| 2022 | 75 |
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 | – | 19,909 |
| 2000 | – | 20,999 |
| 2001 | – | 21,949 |
| 2002 | – | 22,908 |
| 2003 | – | 23,903 |
| 2004 | – | 24,829 |
| 2005 | – | 25,565 |
| 2006 | – | 26,309 |
| 2007 | – | 26,926 |
| 2008 | – | 27,585 |
| 2009 | – | 28,065 |
| 2010 | – | 28,517 |
| 2011 | – | 28,925 |
| 2012 | – | 29,283 |
| 2013 | – | 29,640 |
| 2014 | – | 29,915 |
| 2015 | – | 30,190 |
| 2016 | 13 | 30,422 |
| 2017 | 19 | 30,611 |
| 2018 | 16 | 30,753 |
| 2019 | 23 | 30,890 |
| 2020 | 28 | 30,970 |
Simon in a sentence
- Hej! Jag heter Simon.Hi! My name is Simon.
- Simon ringde och sa att han blir lite sen.Simon called and said he'll be a bit late.
- Vet du om Simon kommer på festen på lördag?Do you know if Simon is coming to the party on Saturday?
- Simons mamma är lärare.Simon's mum is a teacher.
Swedish shows possession with a plain -s and no apostrophe: Simons mamma is Simon's mum.
More names
Questions about Simon
How do you pronounce Simon in Swedish?
Press Listen at the top of the page to hear Simon from a native speaker's recording.
What does the name Simon mean?
Wiktionary describes it as a male given name from Hebrew. From Middle English Simon, Symond, Symounde, from Anglo-Norman Simon, Simond, Simund, a conflation of two unrelated names: one from Latin Simon, from Koine Greek Σίμων (Símōn), strictly from Ancient Greek—likely σῑμός (sīmós, “snub-nosed”)—but used for Biblical Hebrew שִׁמְעוֹן (šimʿōn), doublet of Simeon; the other from Old Norse Sigmundr or Old English Siġemund, both from Proto-Germanic *Sigimunduz (literally “Protector of victory”), whence also Sigmund and Siegmund.
How popular is Simon in Sweden?
75 babies were named Simon in 2022. In 2020, 30,998 people in Sweden had Simon as the first name they go by. Among newborns the name has been falling lately and peaked in 1998 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.