Nordic and Scandinavian diaspora in the United Kingdom refers to people from the Nordic countries who settled in the United Kingdom, their descendants, history and culture. There has been exchange of populations between Scandinavia and Great Britain at different periods over the past 1,400 years. Over the last couple of centuries, there has been regular migration from Scandinavia to Great Britain, from families looking to settle, businesspeople, academics to migrant workers, particularly those in the oil industry.[citation needed]
Scandinavian ancestry of British peoples
editAs many as 20,000-35,000 Scandinavian migrants may have settled in England during the Viking Age in the 8th-11th centuries.[1] A study into the Scandinavian ancestry of British peoples found that there is evidence of particular concentrations in the Isle of Man, Shetland and Orkney; and to a lesser degree, in the Western Isles of Scotland and in the Wirral, West Lancashire, Cumbria and Yorkshire in England.[2][3][4][5]
The Normans established a ruling class in medieval England, following the Norman conquest of 1066, with most kings of England from the 11th to 13th century also being Dukes of Normandy. Normans were, in part, the French-speaking descendants of Scandinavian settlers in northern France after the establishment of the Duchy of Normandy in 910 AD.[6]
Several British surnames are indicative of Scandinavian roots. Some, including Cobain, Gamble, Hemming, Ransom, Thorburn and Tordoff are derived from Scandinavian given names. Others, such as Bond, are derived from Scandinavian legal terms, while Dench and Norman originate as ethonyms for Scandinavians.[7]
Contemporary migration
editThe 2001 UK Census recorded 22,525 people born in Sweden, 18,695 in Denmark, 13,798 in Norway, 11,322 in Finland and 1,552 in Iceland.[8]
In more recent estimates by the Office for National Statistics, Sweden was the only Scandinavian country to feature in the top 60 foreign countries of birth of UK residents in 2013, with an estimated 27,000 people.[9]
Notable individuals
editThis section needs additional citations for verification. (July 2015) |
The table below includes Britons with significant recent Nordic ancestry.
| Name | Image | Ancestry | Occupation and notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jacob Aagaard |  |
Denmark | Danish-born Scottish chess grandmaster |
| Alicia Agneson |  |
Sweden | Actress who moved to London at age 15 |
| Damon Albarn | .jpg) |
Denmark | English-Icelandic musician, singer and songwriter of Danish descent through his mother. |
| Alexandra of Denmark |  |
Denmark | Queen of the United Kingdom, consort of Edward VII, King of the United Kingdom and Emperor of India |
| Marit Allen | Norway | fashion journalist and costume designer | |
| Sir Ove Arup | Denmark | British engineer, founder of Arup | |
| Richard Ayoade | .jpg) |
Norway | British comedian and actor with a Norwegian mother. |
| Svend Bayer | Denmark | Potter | |
| Elynor and Zoe Bäckstedt | Sweden | Welsh racing cyclists, daughters of Swedish racing cyclist Magnus Bäckstedt | |
| Antonia Bernath |  |
Norway | Actress |
| Tom Blomqvist |  |
Sweden | Racing driver, son of Swedish rally driver Stig Blomqvist |
| MyAnna Buring |  |
Sweden | actress |
| W. D. Caröe | _Caröe,_1930.jpg) |
Denmark | Architect |
| Georgina Castle | Sweden | Actress | |
| Izzy Christiansen |  |
Denmark | Former footballer for Manchester City, Lyon, Everton and England |
| Roald Dahl |  |
Norway | Author |
| Sophie Dahl | Norway | Fashion model and granddaughter of Roald Dahl | |
| Camilla Dallerup | Denmark | Ballroom dancer, a former professional on BBC One's Strictly Come Dancing | |
| Sandra Dickinson | Finland | actress | |
| Carl Johannes Edwards | Finland | stained glass artist | |
| Britt Ekland |  |
Sweden | Actress and Bond Girl |
| Johan Eliasch | Sweden | UK-based businessman, chairman & CEO of sporting goods manufacturer Head and deputy treasurer of the Conservative Party | |
| Harry Julius Emeléus |  |
Finland | chemist |
| Mariella Frostrup | Norway | Journalist and radio and television presenter | |
| Adeline Genée |  |
Denmark | Ballet dancer |
| Charles Hambro | Denmark | Banker and politician, part of the Hambros Banking dynasty | |
| Gustav Holst |  |
Sweden | English composer and music teacher, best known for his orchestral suite The Planets |
| Agnete Hoy | Denmark | potter | |
| Carl Jenkinson | .jpg) |
Finland | Footballer, formerly of Arsenal F.C. and England, also represented Finland at under-19 and under-21 level. Mother is a Swedish-speaking Finn |
| Ashley Jensen |  |
Denmark | Scottish actress |
| Ulrika Jonsson | Sweden | Television personality | |
| Synnøve Karlsen | Norway | Actress | |
| Jessica Kellgren-Fozard | Sweden | YouTuber | |
| Jonas Kellgren | Sweden | First professor of rheumatology in the UK | |
| Felix Kjellberg |  |
Sweden | Swedish YouTuber who moved to Brighton. |
| Gertrude Lawrence |  |
Denmark | actress / performer |
| Magnus Lund |  |
Norway | English rugby union player |
| John Lundstram | .jpg) |
Norway | English footballer |
| Jessica Madsen | Denmark | actress | |
| Mikko Mäkelä | .png) |
Finland | filmmaker |
| Magnus Magnusson | Iceland | Television presenter, notably for the BBC's Mastermind, and novelist | |
| Sally Magnusson | Iceland | News presenter and daughter of Magnus Magnusson | |
| Rosita Spencer-Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough | Sweden | Artist and noblewoman | |
| Jan Mølby |  |
Denmark | Former professional footballer who spent much of his career at Liverpool F.C. |
| Kirsten O'Brien |  |
Norway | TV presenter |
| Nils Ramming | Sweden | footballer | |
| Hans Rausing |  |
Sweden | Billionaire heir to the Tetra Pak/Tetra Laval dynasty |
| Sigrid Rausing |  |
Sweden | Philanthropist and publisher |
| Toby Regbo |  |
Norway | Actor |
| Christian Rodska | Denmark | Actor | |
| Christian Salvesen | Norway | Shipowner and businessman | |
| Edward Theodore Salvesen | Norway | Scottish lawyer, politician and judge | |
| Peter Schmeichel |  |
Denmark | Former Manchester United goalkeeper; his son Kasper spent his childhood in Manchester. |
| Sasha Siem |  |
Norway | Singer-songwriter and composer |
| Sofia Sjöborg | Sweden | Equestrian; born and raised in London and represents Sweden in international competitions. | |
| Nicholas Ashley-Cooper, 12th Earl of Shaftesbury | Sweden | Peer and runner | |
| Steve Simonsen | Denmark | English goalkeeper | |
| Rupert Svendsen-Cook | Norway | English Formula BMW UK race car driver | |
| Georgia Tennant | .jpg) |
Finland | actress and producer |
| Sandi Toksvig |  |
Denmark | Comedian |
| Charly Wegelius | .jpg) |
Finland | Directeur sportif and former racing cyclist, son of Finnish equestrian Christopher Wegelius |
| Christian Wolmar |  |
Sweden | Journalist, author, and railway historian |
| Patrick Wymark | Finland | English actor |
See also
editReferences
edit- ↑ Røyrvik, Ellen C.; Kershaw, Jane (21 November 2016). "The 'People of the British Isles' project and Viking settlementin England" (PDF). Antiquity. 90 (354): 1670. Retrieved 27 March 2026.
- ↑ Excavating Past Population Structures by Surname-Based Sampling: The Genetic Legacy of the Vikings in Northwest England
- ↑ Goodacre, S; Helgason, A; Nicholson, J; Southam, L; Ferguson, L; Hickey, E; Vega, E; Stefánsson, K; Ward, R; Sykes, B (2005). "Genetic evidence for a family-based Scandinavian settlement of Shetland and Orkney during the Viking periods". Heredity. 95 (2): 129–135. doi:10.1038/sj.hdy.6800661. PMID 15815712.
- ↑ "Gene geography: Do you have Viking ancestry in your DNA?". Wellcome Trust. 2004. Retrieved 9 January 2010.
- ↑ Branagan, Mark (30 January 2009). "'Time team' to seek out genetic secrets of Yorkshire's Viking past". Yorkshire Post. Retrieved 9 January 2010.
- ↑ Elizabeth Van Houts (2000). The Normans in Europe. Manchester University Press. p. 1. ISBN 9780719047510. Archived from the original on 2 May 2023. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
- ↑ McClure, Peter; Hanks, Patrick; Lenarcic, Simon (2022). Dictionary of American Family Names. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780197648865.
- ↑ "Country-of-birth database". Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Retrieved 23 April 2015.
- ↑ "Estimated overseas-born population resident in the United Kingdom by sex, by country of birth (Table 1.4)". Office for National Statistics. 28 August 2014. Retrieved 23 April 2015. Figure given is the central estimate. See the source for 95 per cent confidence intervals.