Helga (derived from
Old Norse
Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants ...
''heilagr'' - "holy", "blessed") is a female name, used mainly in
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...
,
German-speaking countries and the
Low Countries
The Low Countries (; ), historically also known as the Netherlands (), is a coastal lowland region in Northwestern Europe forming the lower Drainage basin, basin of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta and consisting today of the three modern "Bene ...
(''Hege'', ''Helle'', ''Helge'', ''Helga'', ''Helka'' or ''Oili''). The name was in use in
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
before the
Norman Conquest
The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Normans, Norman, French people, French, Flemish people, Flemish, and Bretons, Breton troops, all led by the Du ...
, but appears to have died out afterwards. It was re-introduced to
English-speaking nations in the 20th century from
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
, the
Netherlands
, Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
, and the
Nordic countries
The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; ) are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe, as well as the Arctic Ocean, Arctic and Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic oceans. It includes the sovereign states of Denm ...
. Scandinavian male equivalent is
Helge, or Helgi.
Eastern Slavic names
Olga (Ольга) and
Oleg (Олег) are derived from it.
Name day
In Christianity, a name day is a tradition in many countries of Europe and the Americas, as well as Christian communities elsewhere. It consists of celebrating a day of the year that is associated with one's baptismal name, which is normatively t ...
s:
Estonia
Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...
- May 31, Hungary - October 3,
Latvia
Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...
- October 9,
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
- November 21,
Finland
Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...
- May 31,
Greece
Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...
- 11 July
Helga was among the most popular names for girls in Germany from the 1920s to the 1950s.
People
All of last names listed in alphabetical order:
A
*
Helga Adler (born 1943), East German historian and politician
*
Helga de Alvear (1936–2025), German art collector
*
Helga Amesberger, Austrian ethnologist and sociologist
*
Helga Ancher (1883–1964), Danish painter
*
Helga Anders (1948–1986), German-Austrian actress
*
Helga Aradóttir (1538–1614), grand-daughter of executed Icelandic bishop
Jón Arason
Jón Arason (1484 – November 7, 1550) was an Icelandic Roman Catholic bishop and poet, who was executed in his struggle against the Reformation in Iceland.
Background
Jón Arason was born in Gryta, educated at Munkaþverá, the Benedictine ...
*
Helga Arendt (1964–2013), West German sprinter
*
Helga Axt, German chess player
B
*
Helga Bachmann (1931–2011), Icelandic actress and director
*
Helga Baum (born 1954), German mathematician
*
Helga Bergvall (1907–1978), Swedish author
*
Helga Beyer (1920–1941), German resistance fighter
*
Helga Bîrsan (1928–2004), Romanian gymnast
*
Helga Braathen (1953–1982), Norwegian artistic gymnast
*
Helga de la Brache (1817–1885), Swedish con artist
*
Helga Brauer, East German singer
*
Helga Brofeldt (1881–1968), Swedish film actress
C
*
Helga Correia (born 1977), Portuguese politician
*
Helga von Cramm (1840–1919), German–Swiss painter, illustrator, and graphic artist
*
Helga Cranston (1921–2013), German film editor
D
*
Helga Dagsland (1910–2003), Norwegian nurse and organizational leader
*
Helga Dancberga (1941–2019), Soviet then Latvian actress
*
Helga Davis, New York-based multidisciplinary artist
*
Helga Deen (1925–1943), Jewish victim of National Socialism
*
Helga Dernesch (born 1939), Austrian soprano and mezzo soprano
*
Helga Diederichsen (1930–2005), Mexican swimmer
*
Helga Diercks-Norden (1924–2011), German journalist and feminist activist
*
Helga Dietrich (1940–2018), German orchidologist and author
*
Helga Dudzinski (1929–2022), German figure skater
E
*
Helga Einsele (1910–2005), German criminologist, prison director, and high-profile prisons reformer
*
Helga Eng
Helga Kristine Eng (31 May 1875 – 26 May 1966) was a Norwegian psychologist and educationalist. She was the third woman to receive a doctor's degree in Norway, and the first to do so in psychology. Early life and education
She was born in Rakke ...
(1875–1966), Norwegian psychologist and educationalist
*
Helga Erhart, Austrian para-alpine skier
*
Helga Estby (1860–1942), American suffragist
*
Helga Exner (born 1939), Czech-born Danish goldsmith
F
*
Helga Fägerskiöld (1871–1958), Swedish baroness
*
Helga Feddersen (1930–1990), German actress
*
Helga Flatland (born 1984), Norwegian novelist and children's writer
*
Helga Foght (1902–1974), Danish textile artist
*
Helga Forner (1936–2004), professor of singing
*
Helga Franck (1933–1963), German stage and film actress
*
Helga Frier (1893-1972), Danish actress
G
*
Helga Gill, Women Suffrage Society Organizer
*
Helga Gitmark (1929–2008), Norwegian politician
*
Helga Glöckner-Neubert (1938–2017), German writer
*
Helga Gnauer (1929–1990), Austrian fencer
*
Helga Goebbels (1932–1945), eldest daughter of Nazi propaganda minister
Joseph Goebbels
Paul Joseph Goebbels (; 29 October 1897 – 1 May 1945) was a German Nazism, Nazi politician and philologist who was the ''Gauleiter'' (district leader) of Berlin, chief Propaganda in Nazi Germany, propagandist for the Nazi Party, and ...
and
Magda Goebbels
*
Helga Goetze (1922–2008), German artist, writer, and free love activist
*
Helga Gomes, biological oceanographer
*
Helga Göring (1922–2010), German stage, television, and film actress
*
Helga Görlin, Swedish soprano and voice teacher
*
Helga Grebing (1930–2017), German historian and university professor
*
Helga Guitton (born 1942), German radio announcer
*
Helga Gunerius Eriksen (born 1950), Norwegian novelist and children's writer
H
*
Helga Haase (1934–1989), Polish-born speed skater in East Germany
*
Helga Hahnemann (1937–1991), East German multi-faceted stage performer and entertainer
*
Helga Halldórsdóttir (born 1963), Icelandic hurdler
*
Helga Haller von Hallerstein (1927–2017), German countess and politician
*
Helga Haugen (1932–2024), Norwegian politician
*
Helga Haugland Byfuglien (born 1950), Norwegian bishop
*
Helga Helgesen (1863–1936), Norwegian domestic science teacher and politician
*
Helga Hellebrand-Wiedermann (1930–2013), Austrian sprint canoer
*
Helga Henning (1937–2018), German sprinter
*
Helga Henselder-Barzel (1940–1995), German political scientist
*
Helga Hernes (born 1938), German-born Norwegian political scientist, diplomat, and politician
*
Helga Hoffmann (born 1937), German track and field athlete
*
Helga Hörz (born 1935), German Marxist philosopher and women's rights activist
*
Helga Hošková-Weissová (born 1929), Czech artist and Holocaust survivor
I
*
Helga Nadire İnan Ertürk (born 1984), Turkish-German footballer
J
*
Helga Jensine Waabenø (1908–1994), Norwegian nurse and Lutheran missionary
*
Helga Jónsdóttir (born 1957), professor in nursing
K
*
Helga Karlsen (1882–1936), Norwegian politician
*
Helga Klein (1931–2021), German athlete
*
Helga Kleiner (born 1935), German politician
*
Helga Knapp, former Austrian Paralympic alpine skier
*
Helga Koch (born 1942), German fencer
*
Helga Kohl (born 1943), Polish-born photographer based in Namibia
*
Helga Königsdorf
Helga Königsdorf (13 July 1938 – 4 May 2014) was an East German statistician and novelist. She is notable for becoming distinguished in two distinct careers - science and literature.
She wrote three books on mathematics, two co-written with he ...
(1938–2014), German mathematician and author
*
Helga Konrad (born 1948), Austrian politician
*
Helga W. Kraft, German-American professor
*
Helga Krapf (born 1988), Filipina actress
*
Helga Krause (1935–1989), German film editor
*
Helga Kreuter-Eggemann (1914–1970), German art historian
*
Helga Kühn-Mengel (born 1947), German politician
*
Helga Kuhse, Australian philosopher
*
Helga Kurm (1920–2011), Estonian pedagogical scientist
L
*
Helga Labs (born 1940), East German politician
*
Helga Landauer (born 1969), Russian director, writer, and poet, based in New York City
*
Helga Larsen (1884–1947), Danish trade unionist and pioneering politician
*
Helga van Leur (born 1970), Dutch meteorologist
*
Helga Lie (1930–2019), Norwegian politician
*
Helga Lindner (1951–2021), German swimmer
*
Helga Liné (born 1932), Portuguese-Spanish film actress and circus acrobat
*
Helga Livytska, Ukrainian humanitarian and public figure
*
Helga Lopez (1952–2022), German politician
*
Helga Luber, former East German slalom canoeist
*
Helga Lütten (born 1961), German former professional tennis player
M
*
Helga Martin (1940–1999), German film actress
*
Helga Matschkur (born 1943), German gymnast
*
Helga Mees (1937–2014), German fencer
*
Helga Moddansdóttir, Haakon Paulsson’s mistress
*
Helga Molander (1896–1986), German actress
*
Helga Moreira (born 1950), Portuguese poet
*
Helga de la Motte-Haber (born 1938), German musicologist
*
Helga Mucke-Wittbrodt (1910–1999), German physician
*
Helga Mühlberg-Ulze, East German sprint canoeist
*
Helga Müller, German luger
N
*
Helga Németh (born 1973), Hungarian handball player
*
Helga Neuner (born 1940), German actress
*
Helga Newmark (1932–2012), first female Holocaust survivor ordained as a rabbi
*
Helga Niemann (born 1956), German former swimmer
*
Helga Niessen Masthoff (born 1941), retired West German tennis player
*
Helga Nõu (born 1934), Estonian writer
*
Helga M. Novak (1935–2013), German-Icelandic writer
*
Helga Nowotny (born 1937), Austrian university professor emeritus
O-Ö
*
Helga Offen (1951–2020), German volleyball player
*
Helga Margrét Ögmundsdóttir (born 1948), Icelandic former professor
P
*
Helga Pakasaar, Canada-based contemporary art curator and writer
*
Helga Paris (1938–2024), German photographer
*
Helga Pedersen, several people
*
Helga Pichler, Italian luger
*
Helga Pilarczyk (1925–2011), German operatic soprano
*
Helga Plumb (born 1939), Austrian-born Canadian architect
*
Helga Pogatschar (born 1966), German composer
R
*
Helga E. Rafelski (1949–2000), German particle physicist
*
Helga Radtke (born 1962), German track and field athlete
*
Helga Ramstad (1875–1956), Norwegian politician
*
Helga Richter, retired German rower
*
Helga Marie Ring Reusch (1865–1944), Norwegian painter
*
Helga Ruebsamen (1934–2016), Dutch writer
*
Helga Rullestad (born 1949), Norwegian politician
*
Helga Rut Guðmundsdóttir (born 1970), Icelandic professor of music education
S
*
Helga Salvesen (1963-2016), Norwegian physician and professor of medicine
*
Helga Schauerte-Maubouet (born 1957), German-French organist, writer, and music editor
*
Helga Schmid (born 1960), German diplomat
*
Helga Schmidt-Neuber (1937-2018), German swimmer
*
Helga Schneider (born 1937), Italian writer of German origin
*
Helga Schubert (born 1940), German psychologist and author
*
Helga Schuchardt (born 1939), German politician
*
Helga Schultze
Helga Schultze (2 February 1940 – 12 September 2015), also known by her married name Helga Hösl, was a German female tennis
Tennis is a List of racket sports, racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (si ...
(1940-2015), German female tennis player
*
Helga Seibert (1939-1999), judge at Bundesverfassungsgericht
*
Helga Seidler (born 1949), German former athlete and Olympic medalist
*
Helga Sigurðardóttir (born 1969), Icelandic swimmer
*
Helga MarÃa Sista (born 1947), Argentine alpine skier
*
Helga Slessarev, scholar of German literature
*
Helga Stene (1904-1983), Norwegian educator, feminist, and resistance member
*
Helga Stentzel, Russian-born visual artist
*
Helga Stephenson, Canadian media executive
*
Helga Steudel (born 1939), German former motorcyclist and car racer
*
Helga Stevens, Belgian politician
*
Helga Stroh (born 1938), German fencer
T
*
Helga Tawil-Souri (born 1969), Palestinian-American media scholar and documentary filmmaker
*
Helga Testorf, subject of Andrew Wyeth's famous paintings
*
Helga Thaler Ausserhofer (born 1952), Italian politician
*
Helga Thomas (1891–1988), Swedish film actress
*
Helle Thorning-Schmidt (born 1966), 41st Prime Minister of Denmark
*
Helga Timm (1924-2014), German politician
*
Helga Charlotte Tolle, German actress, singer and dancer
*
Helga Margrét Þorsteinsdóttir (born 1991), Icelandic heptathlete
*
Helga Trüpel (born 1958), German politician (Bündnis 90/Die Grünen)
V
*
Helga Vala Helgadóttir (born 1972), Icelandic politician
*
Helga Varden, Norwegian-American philosopher
*
Helga Vieira (born 1980), Portuguese female tennis player
*
Helga MarÃa Vilhjálmsdóttir (born 1995), Icelandic alpine skier
*
Helga Vlahović (1945–2012), Croatian journalist, producer, and television personality
W
*
Helga Wagner (born 1956), German former swimmer
*
Helga Wanglie (1903-1991), elderly woman in a persistent vegetative state
*
Helga Weippert (1943–2019), German Old Testament scholar
*
Helga Weisz (born 1961), Austrian industrial ecologist, climate scientist, and professor of industrial ecology and climate change
Z
*
Helga Zepp-LaRouche (born 1948), German journalist and politician
*
Helga Zimmermann (born 1942), German former swimmer
*
Helga Josephine Zinnbauer (1909-1980), Australian community worker and librarian
*
Helga Zoega (born 1976), Icelandic professor of public health
*
Helga Zöllner (1941-1983), Hungarian figure skater
Fictional characters
* Helga, wife of Hagar in the comic strip ''
Hägar the Horrible''
* Helga, a Dutch enemy character in the fighting game ''
Human Killing Machine''
*
Helga the Fair, a character in
Gunnlaugs saga ormstungu
* Helga, a character in the game ''
Suikoden IV''
* Helga, lead character in the 1967 sex education film
Helga – Vom Werden des menschlichen Lebens
* Helga, wife of Floki, character in the historical series ''
Vikings
Vikings were seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway, and Sweden),
who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded, and settled throughout parts of Europe.Roesdahl, pp. 9â ...
''
* Helga von Bubble, a character in the ''
Toy Story Toons'' short, ''
Partysaurus Rex''
* Helga Gallimard, wife of Rene Gallimard in the play ''
M Butterfly''
* Helga Geerhart, a character in the BBC sitcom ''
'Allo 'Allo!
''Allo 'Allo!'' is a British sitcom television series, created by David Croft and Jeremy Lloyd, starring Gorden Kaye, Carmen Silvera, Guy Siner and Richard Gibson. Originally broadcast on BBC1, the series focuses on the life of a Frenc ...
''
* Helga Hufflepuff, founder of Hogwarts' Hufflepuff house in the ''
Harry Potter
''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven Fantasy literature, fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young Magician (fantasy), wizard, Harry Potter (character), Harry Potter, and his friends ...
'' books
*
Helga Jace, a character in
DC Comics
DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...
* Helga Pataki, a character in the Nickelodeon animated TV series ''
Hey Arnold!''
* Helga Phugly, a character in the adult animated sitcom ''
The Oblongs''
* Helga Rasmussen, a founder of the Black Armory in the video game ''
Destiny 2
''Destiny 2'' is a free-to-play online first-person shooter video game developed by Bungie. It was originally released as a pay-to-play game in 2017 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows. It became free-to-play, utilizing the games as a se ...
''
* Helga Sinclair, a character in the 2001 Disney animated feature film ''
Atlantis: The Lost Empire''
* Helga Von Guggen, an antagonist in the Franco-Canadian animated TV series ''
Totally Spies''
Other
* Helga, one of the two phantom torsos carried by the
Artemis 1 mission
References
External links
Popularity of the name in the United States
{{given name
Scandinavian feminine given names
German feminine given names
Dutch feminine given names
Hungarian feminine given names
Norwegian feminine given names
Swedish feminine given names
Danish feminine given names
Finnish feminine given names
Feminine given names
Icelandic feminine given names
Swiss feminine given names