Sven
/svɛn/noun
A masculine given name of Scandinavian origin.
Did you know?Sven is the modern Scandinavian form of Old Norse Sveinn, the same ancient word that ultimately gave English the poetic term “swain.”
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*swainaz
“Young man, youth, or servant; a reconstructed ancestral form”
Old Norse
Old Norse
sveinn
“Boy, young man, servant, or retainer”
Old English
Old English
swān
“Young man or servant”
Middle English
Middle English
swein / sweyn
“A young man, countryman, or attendant”
Medieval Scandinavia
Old Danish/Swedish
Sven / Swen
“A masculine personal name derived from the word for young man or servant”
Modern English
English
Sven
“A Scandinavian masculine given name”