Boy · Old Norse
Þorkell
Say it: THOR-kel
Meaning
From the god-name Þórr and ketill 'cauldron' (possibly 'helmet').
Likelythe main view, with some doubt.
A frequent runestone name, carried to England in the 11th century.
Its wave through time
No birth counts are recorded for this name in the records loaded here: it has been given to fewer than five babies a year, or not at all, since records began.
Through the ages
Used by
The family of the name
Other spellings: Thorkell, Thorkel
| Swedish | Torkel |
|---|---|
| Danish | Torkild |
| Norwegian | Torkjell |
Famous bearers
- Thorkell the Tall, Jomsviking leader and earl in England
Names worth a look
Where this comes from
- Viking Age runestone inscriptions
- The Icelandic sagas and other Old Norse literature
- Anglo-Saxon charters, chronicles and church records
Meanings and histories are compiled from the study of names and their languages and checked by a second review.
Meanings and histories are drawn from the study of names and their languages, each with a confidence rating; popularity figures come from official birth records. Name histories are a living field: if you know of a correction, we would be glad to hear it.