Geir

Geir is a masculine given name primarily used in Norway and Iceland. It is derived from the Old Norse element geirr meaning "spear". This root is common in Germanic names, from Proto-Germanic *gaizaz, which also gave rise to Old High German gêr, Old English gâr, and Gothic gaisu.

Geir has been popular in Norway from the 1950s through the 1980s, with a peak in the late 1960s to 1970s when over 2% of newborn boys were named Geir. As of 2014, there were 22,380 men with this name in Norway (0.9% of the male population). The Old Norse spelling Geirr is rare, with only 89 individuals in Norway as of 2014. The name is also occasionally given in Sweden and Denmark.

Geir appears as the second element in compound names such as Asgeir (meaning "god of the spear") and Torgeir ("Thor's spear"). The related German form Gero shares the same etymology. Despite occasional English translations misinterpreti