namnbruk

Namnbruk is the practical system for how people use names in everyday life and in official contexts. It encompasses which elements of a person’s name are actively used in speech and writing, and how those names are registered and changed in civil records. In Sweden and many Nordic countries, a person’s legal name is the name recorded in the population register and used for official purposes, while the name a person is commonly addressed by is called tilltalsnamn. Most people have several given names (förnamn) and may also have middle names; the tilltalsnamn is the one chosen for day-to-day use, even if it is not the legal first name. The family name (efternamn) is the surname and may be a single name, a double surname, or a hyphenated form, with possibilities for changes through marriage, legal name changes, or adoption.

Namnbruk thus covers both personal preference and legal constraints: changes must follow national rules, and forms and registries distinguish between the used name and the legal name. In practice, individuals can sometimes carry a different surname in informal contexts than their official documents, though there are limits intended to ensure consistent identification in public records. Naming practices may also reflect cultural, family, and regional traditions, including historical use of patronymics or matronymics and shifts toward more gender-neutral naming conventions. Understanding namnbruk helps explain how people are addressed, how records are kept, and how surname inheritance is communicated in society.