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[Facts] Elske
This is the name of one of my friends. A combination of her mom and grandma's names Elke and Else but also an independent name (used in Germany), so it should have a meaning. I thought it was also a form of Elisabeth but I'm not sure. It's pronounced kind of like Elska. We were always wondering about its meaning.
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I used to think it is a Frisian derivation of the name Elisabeth. But a quick google search indicates that it is of Frisian or Norwegian origine and means "to love". (Norwegian "elsker"?)The late German politician Regine Hildebrandt who was quite popular among East Germans had a daughter named Elske.
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I've seen the name Elske on a Dutch girl. I'm pretty sure it was short for Elisabeth.
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You're right. Elske is rather a common name in Holland. It's an abbreviation of Els or Elisabeth.
(Dutch pronunciation: ELS-kuh)
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ahh it is used in Holland ? Is it used for young girls or an old lady's name ? just wondering
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Sorry but this made me chuckle....Because this is the Danish word for "loving" or to more correct, something that I really can't say on PG rated board. It's more PG-13 or something like that. Though it is the correct word and not some sleezy slang for it.And I'm not sure, but the Elska way, may be Swedish. But I'll let the Swedish posters here answer to that.Just an aside note, is all....
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Well, you could say it's almost like naming someone Makenna Love :D
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oh haha I will tell her about that :P funny haha
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Aha, so then I guessed right before, that this was Danish. It's "älska" in Swedish.

This message was edited 8/1/2008, 4:36 AM

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Oh yeah....I did know that it was spelled as "älska", now that I see the word and suddenly remembered this from reading Swedish once in a while. Thank you. :-)
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In English, we can comfortably shorten Elizabeth to Elsie. And in both German and Dutch, a diminutive can be formed with -chen, -ken or -ke (as well as other spellings that make a k sound). That is where Elske comes from ... same Els- as Elsie, and then the -ke ... though luckily for your friend it's also a comfortable merger of two family names. Not all mergers are successful!
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