What Does the Name Gustav Mean?

Gustav is a boy's name of Scandinavian (Old Norse/Old Swedish) origin meaning “Staff of the Geats (or 'staff of the gods').”

Updated June 2026

Name	Gustav
Gender	male
Origin	Scandinavian (Old Norse/Old Swedish)
Meaning	Staff of the Geats (or 'staff of the gods')
Variants	Gustaf, Gustave, Gustavo, Gustaaf
Popularity	Strongly associated with Sweden as a royal name; also common in Denmark and Germany. Popular again in recent decades among Scandinavian families.

The meaning and origin of Gustav

The name Gustav means “Staff of the Geats (or 'staff of the gods')” and has Scandinavian (Old Norse/Old Swedish) origins. Gustav derives from Old Swedish Gøtstaf, generally interpreted as combining 'Geat' (a Scandinavian tribe) with stafr ('staff'). It is a historic Swedish royal name borne by several kings.

Variants and related names

Gustav is related to several other names you may recognize: Gustaf, Gustave, Gustavo, Gustaaf. These share a common root or are spelling and language variants of the same name.

How popular is the name Gustav?

Strongly associated with Sweden as a royal name; also common in Denmark and Germany. Popular again in recent decades among Scandinavian families.

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