Thralls’ Names in Scandinavia

Thanks to the Old Norse literature we have an large corpus of slave names to consider. When analysing these names, we arrive at the unfortunate conclusion that in many (most?) cases these names look like fictious, generative names, created to fit with the thrall topoi in the narrative. This is evident in the enumeration of thrall names in the poem Rígsþula, where all the names for male and female slaves are highly derogatory, obviously to make a statement of these unfree people being firmly at the bottom of society and to be looked upon with contempt. There are some names on slaves which have an origin in Celtic language, which are interesting, and some probably have a historical background. In the will of freed slaves, mentioned before, all former slaves have ordinary personal names that we find among free people. This raises the question if freed slaves took or were given a new, proper and Christian name at the manumission.