Gyllenhaal () is the surname of a Swedish noble family descended from cavalry officer Lieutenant Nils Gunnarsson Haal (died 1680 or 1681), ennobled in 1652 with a change of surname to "Gyllenhaal".Entry for the Gyllenhaal family
in the '' Nordisk Familjebok'' (in Swedish)Article on members of the Gyllenhaal family
in the ''

Svenskt biografiskt handlexikon ''Svenskt biografiskt handlexikon'' () is a compact Swedish dictionary of biography first published in 1873–1876 by the physician and antiquarian Herman Hofberg (1823–1883). The second, updated edition was published in 1906, under the edit ...

'' ("Swedish Biographical Lexicon") (in

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

)

Family name

The name "Gyllenhaal" originated from Nils Gunnarsson Gyllenhaal's father Gunne Olofsson Haal, who was from Hahlegården, a crown homestead in South Härene Parish in the county of

Västergötland Västergötland (), also known as West Gothland or the Latinized version Westrogothia in older literature, is one of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden (''landskap'' in Swedish), situated in the southwest of Sweden. Väs ...

in West Sweden. ''Haal'' comes from the name of the farm estate "Hahlegården". In the Knighthood Letter, signed by Queen Christina, the family name was written in two different ways — first "Gyllenhahl" and then "Gyllenhaal". On the copperplate with his coat of arms now hanging in the House of Nobility (''Riddarhuset'') in Stockholm, it is spelled "Gyllenhahl". Such ambiguities are typical of the time; it would be several generations before Swedish spelling was more strictly regulated. The prefix ''Gyllen'' ("Golden") was the one most used when ennobling someone since the 16th century.Similarly for the naming of the former head of car manufacturer

Volvo The Volvo Group ( sv, Volvokoncernen; legally Aktiebolaget Volvo, shortened to AB Volvo, stylized as VOLVO) is a Swedish multinational manufacturing corporation headquartered in Gothenburg. While its core activity is the production, distributio ...

Pehr Gustaf Gyllenhammar and

Sofia Johansdotter Gyllenhielm Sofia Johansdotter Gyllenhielm (1556/59 – June 1583), was a Swedish noble, the illegitimate daughter of King John III of Sweden and Karin Hansdotter. Life She spent her early childhood with her mother in Turku Castle in the Duchy of Finl ...

De la Gardie The De la Gardie family (also de la Gardie) is the name of a distinguished Swedish noble family of French origin. History The family's social status in France is uncertain; the founder, Ponce d'Escouperie, son of a tradesman, came to Sweden as a m ...

. Actor

Jake Gyllenhaal Jacob Benjamin Gyllenhaal (; ; born December 19, 1980) is an American actor. Born into the Gyllenhaal family, he is the son of director Stephen Gyllenhaal and screenwriter Naomi Foner, and his older sister is actress Maggie Gyllenhaal. He ...

, great-great grandson of the below-mentioned Anders Leonard Gyllenhaal, quipped during an interview prior to the British premiere of '' Prince of Persia'' that his last name was pronounced "Yil-en-hoo-luh-hay", parodying Americans' difficulties with Swedish pronunciation.In

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

, a double "aa" as in Gyllenhaal has for centuries normally been pronounced with an "o" sound as in English "for". In older

, however, it was pronounced with a long "a" as in the English word "far"; the double "aa", as with the "ah" in the alternative "Gyllenhahl" (see above) only indicates a long vowel "a". The "o" sound corresponding to Danish "aa" was normally rendered by "å" ("åå", "åh").The second problem for English-speakers is how to pronounce the prefix "Gyllen", i.e. Golden. The USA branch of the family's solution is to pronounce it "Jill-EN-hall", but in Sweden "Gy" is pronounced as "Y" followed by a near-close near-front rounded vowel, comparable to the short German vowel "ü".

Family history

Nils Gunnarsson Gyllenhaal's descendants today stem from two of his sons: Lars Gyllenhaal (1645–1710), Lieutenant of the Vestgotha cavalry regiment; and his younger brother Hans Gyllenhaal (1655–1710). Hans was killed in action at the

Battle of Helsingborg The Battle of Helsingborg was the last major engagement of the Great Northern War to take place on Swedish soil, and resulted in a decisive victory of a Swedish force of 14,000 men under the command of Magnus Stenbock against a Danish force of ...

as a cavalry captain. The members of the older branch descending from Lars still live in Sweden. The most notable member of that branch was the Minister for Justice Lars Herman Gyllenhaal. In 1851, he was created Knight and Commander of the

Royal Order of the Seraphim The Royal Order of the Seraphim ( sv, Kungliga Serafimerorden; ''Seraphim'' being a category of angels) is a Swedish order of chivalry created by King Frederick I on 23 February 1748, together with the Order of the Sword and the Order of the P ...

. His great-great grandson, Baron Herman Gyllenhaal of Härlingstorp (born 1934), is now the head of both branches of the noble family Gyllenhaal. He has a son, Lars. All the members of the family in the United States are descended from Hans Gyllenhaal through his great great-great grandson Anders Leonard (1842–1905) and his wife Amanda (née Nelson, 1859–1948). Anders Leonard Gyllenhaal emigrated to the United States in 1865. A prominent member of this younger branch hitherto was

Leonard Gyllenhaal Leonard Gyllenhaal (3 December 1752 – 13 May 1840) was a Sweden, Swedish military officer and entomology, entomologist. Born on the Ribbingsberg Manorialism, manor in Västergötland in west Sweden, Leonard Gyllenhaal was son of an army of ...

(1752–1840). In 1807, he was created a Knight of the Royal

Order of Vasa The Royal Order of Vasa () is a Swedish order of chivalry, awarded to citizens of Sweden for service to state and society especially in the fields of agriculture, mining and commerce. It was instituted on 29 May 1772 by King Gustav III. It was u ...

for his scientific work as an entomologist, including his monograph on Swedish insects, ''Insecta Suecia descripta''.

Members

Some notable members of this family are: * Johan Abraham Gyllenhaal (1750–1788), geologist and mineralogist. *

(1752–1840), military officer and gentleman farmer, known as an entomologist and a leading Swedenborgian. His best-known work was his monograph on Swedish beetles, ''Insecta suecica. Coleoptera'' in 4 parts, published between 1808 and 1827. * Carl Henrik Gyllenhaal (1788–1857), a military officer who participated in the

Finnish war The Finnish War ( sv, Finska kriget, russian: Финляндская война, fi, Suomen sota) was fought between the Kingdom of Sweden and the Russian Empire from 21 February 1808 to 17 September 1809 as part of the Napoleonic Wars. As a re ...

of 1808–1809, was later Governor of

Blekinge County Blekinge County ( sv, Blekinge län) is a Counties of Sweden, county or ''län'' in the south of Sweden. It borders the Counties of Skåne County, Skåne, Kronoberg County, Kronoberg, Kalmar County, Kalmar and the Baltic Sea. The capital is Karl ...

and

Skaraborg County Skaraborg County ( sv, Skaraborgs län ) was a county of Sweden from 1634 until 1997. It was disestablished at the end of 1997 when it was merged with the counties of Gothenburg and Bohus and Älvsborg to form Västra Götaland County. The count ...

Privy Councilor A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...

, and finally Director General of the Swedish customs. Created a baron in 1837. * Lars Herman Gyllenhaal (1790–1858), Swedish Prime Minister for Justice 1843–1844. Created a baron in 1843. *

Mathilda d'Orozco ''Mathilda'' Valeria Beatrix d'Orozco also by marriage known as Cenami, Montgomery-Cederhjelm and Gyllenhaal, (14 June 1796 – 19 October 1863) was a Swedish (originally Spanish-Italian) noble and salonist, composer, poet, writer, singer, amate ...

(1796–1863), singer, composer and socialite; married in her third marriage to cavalry lieutenant Baron Carl Alexander Fredrik Gyllenhaal, son of Carl Henrik G. Matilda was a Spanish countess, born in Milan, Italy. She was first married to the stablemaster of

Napoleon I Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

's sister; in 1817, widowed, she married J. Montgomery-Cederhjelm in Vienna and became a leading figure and "trendsetter" in Stockholm society. In 1825 she was widowed again; she married a third time in 1839 to Carl Gyllenhaal. She was the subject of a poem by the leading Swedish poet

Esaias Tegnér Esaias Tegnér (; – ) was a Swedish writer, professor of the Greek language, and bishop. He was during the 19th century regarded as the father of modern poetry in Sweden, mainly through the national romantic epic ''Frithjof's Saga''. He has b ...

, and a song by

Erik Gustaf Geijer Erik Gustaf Geijer (12 January 1783 – 23 April 1847) was a Swedish writer, historian, poet, romantic critic of political economy, philosopher, and composer. His writings served to promote Swedish National Romanticism. He was an influential ...

; she herself wrote songs and set Tegnér's ''Rings Drapa'' to music. * Anders Leonard Gyllenhaal (1842–1905), grandson of Leonard G., editor-in-chief of the Swedish-American newspaper '' Svenska Amerikanaren Tribunen'' in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. Ancestor of the American branch.Anders Leonard Gyllenhaal: Obituary
translated from an obituary in ''Nya Svenska Amerikanaren'' ("The New Swedish-American"), published in 1905. *

Stephen Gyllenhaal Stephen Roark Gyllenhaal (; born October 4, 1949) is an American film director and poet. He is the father of actors Jake Gyllenhaal and Maggie Gyllenhaal. Personal life Gyllenhaal was born in Cleveland, Ohio, to Virginia Lowrie (née Childs) and ...

(born 1949), film director and poet, great grandson of Anders Leonard G., was married to producer and screenwriter

Naomi Foner Gyllenhaal Naomi Foner ( Achs; born March 4, 1946) is an American screenwriter and director. She is the mother of actor and actress Maggie and Jake Gyllenhaal. Early life and education Foner was born in Brooklyn, New York City, the daughter of doctors Rut ...

. * Anders Gyllenhaal, Washington Editor and Vice President of News,

The McClatchy Company The McClatchy Company, commonly referred to as simply McClatchy, is an American publishing company incorporated under Delaware's General Corporation Law and based in Sacramento, California. It operates 29 daily newspapers in fourteen states an ...

, former executive editor of the '' Miami Herald''. * Lars Gyllenhaal (born 1968), great great great grandson of Lars Herman Gyllenhaal, Swedish writer, member of the Swedish Military History Commission. * Maggie Gyllenhaal (born 1977),

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

-nominated American actress, daughter of Stephen G. *

(born 1980),

-nominated American actor, son of Stephen G. * Sam Gyllenhaal, musician, videographer, son of Anders G."Sam Gyllenhaal (No 1,018)"
by Paul Lester, ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', 9 May 2011

Family tree

* Nils Gunnesson Gyllenhaal ** Gudmund Gyllenhaal (1643–1701) ** Lars Gyllenhaal (1645–1710) *** Lars Gyllenhaal (1690–1756) **** Lorentz Herman Gyllenhaal (1723–1786) ***** Lars Herman Gyllenhaal (1757–1830) ****** Lars Herman Gyllenhaal (1790–1858), Swedish Prime Minister for Justice ** Hans Gyllenhaal (1655–1710) *** Abraham Adolph Gyllenhaal (1694–1743) **** Georg Rudolf Gyllenhaal (1721–1780) ***** Carl Jonas Gyllenhaal (1749–1808) ****** Carl Henrik Gyllenhaal (1788–1857) ******* Carl Alexander Fredrik Gyllenhaal (1814–1910) ∞ (1)

, Singer, composer and socialite ∞ (2) Ulla Lagercrantz ∞ (3) Alma Ahlstedt **** Hans Reinhold Gyllenhaal (1724–1796) *****

(1752–1840), Swedish military officer and entomologist ****** Fredrik Leonard Gyllenhaal (1802–1873) ******* Anders Leonard Gyllenhaal (1842–1905) ******** Leonard Efraim Gyllenhaal (1881–1934) ********* Hugh Anders Gyllenhaal (1921–1979) **********

(born 1949), American film director and poet *********** Maggie Gyllenhaal (born 1977), American actress and filmmaker ***********

(born 1980), American actor and producer

Notes

References

Bibliography

* Nordisk familjebok, 2nd edition, Volume 10, 1909. (on

Projekt Runeberg Project Runeberg ( sv, Projekt Runeberg) is a digital cultural archive initiative that publishes free electronic versions of books significant to the culture and history of the Nordic countries. Patterned after Project Gutenberg, it was founded ...

) (in

) * ''

'', Volume 1, 1906 (in

)

External links

{{Commons category, Gyllenhaal family
Gyllenhaal family tree official website

Noble family Gyllenhaal No. 814
at the Swedish genealogy website ''Adelsvapen'' (in

) Surnames Swedish-language surnames Swedish noble families