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When a man entered into military service in Sweden, it was often the case that he would acquire a new surname. This practice was necessary to avoid the ensuing confusion of having several soldiers with the same given and patronymic surnames. For example, how could 10 men all named '''Olof OLOFSSON''' know when his name was called, that he was the desired individual. Therefore, to avoid this confusion new soldiers were assigned a new surname. These surnames often were references to aspects of military life, such as Modig (''courageous''), Tapper (''brave''), Frimodig (''fearless, frank''), and Stark (''strong''). Sometimes, references were made to weaponry. Examples of this practice are Svärd (''sword''), Skjöld (''shield''), Spjut (''spear''), and Lans (''lance''). | When a man entered into military service in Sweden, it was often the case that he would acquire a new surname. This practice was necessary to avoid the ensuing confusion of having several soldiers with the same given and patronymic surnames. For example, how could 10 men all named '''Olof OLOFSSON''' know when his name was called, that he was the desired individual. Therefore, to avoid this confusion new soldiers were assigned a new surname. These surnames often were references to aspects of military life, such as Modig (''courageous''), Tapper (''brave''), Frimodig (''fearless, frank''), and Stark (''strong''). Sometimes, references were made to weaponry. Examples of this practice are Svärd (''sword''), Skjöld (''shield''), Spjut (''spear''), and Lans (''lance''). | ||