The baby name Loki blends Norse mythology with our love of villains, especially the (somewhat) redeemed variety.
Thanks to Angela for suggesting our Baby Name of the Day.
WHAT DOES THE NAME LOKI MEAN?
The Old Norse loka appears to be the source of the name Loki. It can mean to close or to lock, but also to end.
Other origins are possible, including words meaning flame or deceiver. But etymology almost doesn’t matter, because Loki overwhelmingly means trickster.
WHO IS LOKI IN NORSE MYTHOLOGY?
Loki has never been a good guy.
But he wasn’t always an irredeemable villain, either.
In Norse mythology, he’s a disobedient god. Loki ranges from troublesome to downright malicious – but he always keeps you guessing. In some stories, he travels with ravening hordes bent on destruction. In others, he’s more benign – even occasionally helpful.
Loki is associated with air and magic and fire. If the origin of his name is a riddle, his image – a shape-shifting, sometimes problematic, occasionally helpful god – is well-established.
LOKI IN POPULAR CULTURE
Some version of Loki has featured in music, literature, and popular culture for centuries. Most recently:
- Richard Wagner called him Loge in his masterwork series of operas, known as the Ring Cycle.
- In 1999, Ben Affleck played Bartleby and Matt Damon played Loki in Kevin Smith’s Dogma. Bartleby and Loki were fallen angels, banished to Wisconsin.
- In Neil Gaiman’s American Gods, Loki and Odin are in cahoots – though this is no folk tale. Gaiman also borrows Loki for his comic The Sandman.
But all of these pale to the defining image of Loki that most of us know from the last two decades.
MARVEL AND DISNEY RE-IMAGINE LOKI AGAIN
Chances are that the Loki you picture is borrowed from the big screen and looks something like Tom Hiddleston.
Marvel introduced Loki as a villain in 1949. His origin story is close to at least one version of the original myth. Odin, ruler of Asgard, killed the King of the Frost Giants in battle. Loki was the orphaned son of the defeated king. Odin took him home to raise alongside his own son, Thor.
The foster brothers were competitive, with Loki’s jealousy growing year by year. They eventually became open enemies, as Loki schemed to usurp power from Thor, resorting to sorcery and manipulation. Eventually he decided to take over Earth instead.
Loki was exiled to the underworld for some of his schemes, but he kept coming back. He and Thor are sometimes reluctant allies – they jointly defeated fire demons in one storyline. But mostly Loki is a scene-stealing troublemaker.
The same is true in the movies – from 2011’s Thor to 2019’s Avengers: End Game.
Then came the Disney+ series, Loki. Hiddleston reprised his role, this time traveling through time at the behest of the Time Variance Authority. It’s run for two seasons, in 2021 and 2023. This Loki is a little different, and we get to see him as more antihero than villain.
HOW POPULAR IS THE NAME LOKI?
So where does that leave the name?
We’ve adopted plenty of names from fantasy television characters and sci fi figures. Kylo and Khaleesi, Anakin and Mazikeen. Mythological names are big, too.
The baby name Loki peaked in 2021, when 156 boys received the name. That points to the television series’ depiction of a more heroic(ish) Loki boosting the name.
But Loki has been given to more than 100 boys most years since 2014, suggesting that the Marvel Cinematic Universe boosted the name even when the character was mostly a villain.
In 2023, 108 boys and 8 girls received the baby name Loki.
A CAUTIOUS GREEN LIGHT FOR THE BABY NAME LOKI
But for truly daring parents after an unusual name, the baby name Loki is an intriguing option.
It shares sounds with several popular names. It’s a little bit like Leo mixed with Levi and a dash of Luke.
And if we’re open to borrowing fictional character names regardless of their story arc, Loki feels like it could be on the table for a child born now.
What do you think of the baby name Loki?
First published on October 31, 2013, this post was revised on September 12, 2024.
Thank you for choosing one of my names. 🙂
I love Loki. Pity hubby didn’t.
I see quite a lot of Australian boys named Loki – apart from the Norse god cool factor, the sound of it is similar enough to popular Lachlan and its short form Lachie not to raise too many eyebrows.
I’m seeing the new Thor movie tonight!! I love the name Loki (and the movie character) and I think it could make a cool nickname for Lachlan.
Years ago I had a job application cross my desk for guy named Loki… there were numerous reasons why I didn’t hire him… but a part of me was uncomfortable letting someone named after the trickster god anywhere near a forklift.
I grew up with a boy named Thor and I’ve known several people (plus a couple of dogs) named Odin, so those both feel like “names.” But to me, Loki still feels like a character. Loke, the modern form has been gaining popularity in Sweden (#70), so maybe I just need to give it more time.