Origine et histoire

Nature surname meaning 'mountain stream' or 'hillside stream', composed of the Swedish 'berg' (mountain, hill) and 'strom' (stream, current). Bergstrom is one of the most evocative of the Swedish two-element nature surnames, evoking the clear streams that cascade down the rocky hillsides of Norrland and Smaland. It was adopted predominantly during the era of Swedish military surname assignment (allotment system, 'indelningsverket'), when soldiers were given distinctive names based on their home terrain, and later generalised to civilian use under the 1901 Name Adoption Act.