Vidkunn

Norwegian Nynorsk

Alternative forms

• Vidkun (alternative spelling)

Etymology

Borrowed from Old Norse Víðkunnr, from víðr (“widely”) +‎ kunnr (“known”), thus meaning “famous”.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /viːkʊn/, /vɪkːʊn/

Proper noun

Vidkunn m (definite Vidkunnen)

1. a male given name from Old Norse, meaning “widely known, famous”
   • 1920, Halvdan Koht, transl., Sverre-soga [Sverris Saga], Oslo: Det Norske Samlaget (Landsmaalslaget), →ISBN, page 97:

     Den gongen budde på Bjarkøy Vidkunn Erlingsson, ein stor og fager kar; han var då attan år, og hadde nyst teke ved farsarven sin. Kong Magnus sende bod til Vidkunn, at han skulde koma til han og taka lendmanns-namn av han.

     At this time, Vidkunn Erlingsson lived in Biarkey, the handsomest of all the men of Hálogaland. He was now eighteen years of age, and had lately inherited his father’s estate. King Magnus sent word to Vidkunn to come to him and take the rights of a baron.

Usage notes

The name was made infamous by the traitor and Nazi collaborator Vidkun Quisling (1887–1945).

Related terms

• vid (“wide”)
• kunn (“known”)

References

• Eivind Vågslid (1988) “Vidkunn”, in Norderlendske fyrenamn (in Norwegian Nynorsk), →ISBN