Icelandic male given names come from Icelandic and Old Norse, often preserving original morphology. A clear masculine marker is the nominative ending -ur or -r, as in Erlingur, Gissur, and Hrafn. Many men’s names are compound Norse forms built from elements such as ás, -grím/-grim, -leif/-leifur, and -kell, which also distinguish masculine patterns. Christian-era adaptations appear in forms like Fridrik alongside older Norse names.

In modern use, Iceland follows the Naming Committee’s rules, so male names generally keep Icelandic spelling and diacritics, and traditional forms remain common. Examples include Bjarki, Bjartur, Erlingur, Fannar, Flosi, Fridrik, Gissur, Hrafn, Hrafnkell, and Illugi.