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Go on, my ‘sson: Name generator lets fans become honorary Icelanders

Berlin — After Iceland’s giant-smiting progression to the last eight of Euro 2016, football fans across Europe are crossing their fingers and praying to their most vengeful Norse gods that the fairy-tale (or should that be saga?) continues against France on Sunday (July 3).

Berlin — After Iceland’s giant-smiting progression to the last eight of Euro 2016, football fans across Europe are crossing their fingers and praying to their most vengeful Norse gods that the fairy-tale (or should that be saga?) continues against France on Sunday (July 3).

Iceland, a team drawn from a minuscule population of 300,000, have seen off such relative footballing behemoths as Austria (population: 8.5 million) and England (population: 53 million) and remain unbeaten in the competition.

But it’s not just on the field they’ve impressed: their fans have introduced the Iceland thunder clap to the world, an awe-inspiring, synchronised display of Scandinavian sturm und drang that has captured the imagination of neutrals and made the land famous for more than ancient sagas, erupting geysers and Bjork.

Small wonder, then, that everyone suddenly wants to be an Icelander. Happily, people are now able to just that thanks to a name generator that’s been doing the rounds online.

Set up by the Norwegian newspaper Verdens Gang, the generator allows you to rechristen yourself according to Iceland’s peculiar naming customs.

Men’s surnames are composed of their father’s forename with the suffix “-(s)son”, while women’s names follow the same convention but take the suffix “-dottir”. (You don’t need to be a language whizz to work out what those suffixes mean.)

Thus John Smith from Manchester, whose father is called James, can assume the Icelandic nom de guerre Johnir Jamesson for his adopted nation’s crunch match against France in Paris. His half-sister Laura, whose father’s name is Daniel, becomes Laura Danieldottir.

It’s all a bit of fun for now, but if Iceland beat France and their thrilling saga continues, there might be a few people looking out the deed-poll forms so they can become permanent ssons and dottirs. DPA

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