Name change
MisVic	Does anyone know which king and when Norwegians with the common names of Olsen and Hanson were asked to change their names? Our original family name was Olsen and the entire family, save one brother changed their name to Lilleberg which was I think, a brickyard or factory near Kristiania.
jwiborg	Hmmm...? [:I] I've not heard of any King who asked the Norwegians to change their names... I think it was more of a practical issue. When "everybody" was named Ole Hansen or Hans Olsen, it was hard to distinguish between them..., so they added the farmname to the names. This became more and more common throughout the late 1800's, possibly with a peak between 1880-1910. The King was the swedish King Oscar II, but I don't think he was involved much in this. I'm not sure of Lilleberg, but there is a factory just outside Oslo named Lilleborg, which is the main supplier of soap and detergents in Norway. The factory was established in 1833 in downtown Kristiania/Oslo. There is a brickyard called Ensjų teglverk in Oslo, and it's located just a few 100 meters from Lilleberg industrial area. Jan Peter
Jo Anne Sadler	I sure have never heard that one.[:)] Recommend you read the article on this site, Those Norwegian Names.