Given name & surname · also Swedish
Esko
Esko is a masculine given name from Old Swedish, ultimately from Old Norse. It is used in Finnish and Estonian.
Original Old NorseÁskell
Meaning & origin
Where it comes from
Esko comes from Old Swedish, and ultimately from Old Norse.
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
How it developed
In Finnish usage, Esko developed from Eskil.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1917. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Esko through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 56
- 56 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 2022
- 7 babies
- 2025
- 5
- #12,597 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +100%
- Rising fast
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 5 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 12,597 among boys’ names. The recent annual counts are too incomplete to establish a ten-year comparison. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 156 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Esko’s family of names
In Finnish usage, Esko has a diminutive in Esa. In Finnish usage, Esko developed from the Swedish form Eskil. In Finnish usage, Esko developed from the Old Norse form Áskell.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 1
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 5
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Esko
- Esko Ahoprime minister of Finland from 1991 to 1995born 1954
- Riki SorsaFinnish singer (1952–2016)
- Esko RechardtFinnish sailorborn 1958
- Esko SairaOlympic biathleteborn 1938
- Esko SeppänenFinnish journalist and politician1946–2025
- Esko ValtaojaFinnish astronomerborn 1951
- Esko SalminenFinnish actor (born 1940)
- Esko JärvinenNordic combined skier, ski jumper and military patrol runner (1907-1976)
- Esko RautionahoFinnish ski jumperborn 1950
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Esko, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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“careful”
77% boys · 23% girls
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“elf-ruler”
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“army”
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Auley
Auley is a masculine given name from Old Irish, ultimately from Old Norse. It is used in Manx.
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Eivin
“luck, good fortune” · “victor, victorious lord”
>99% boys
Nes
“headland, promontory”
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Freyr
Freyr is a masculine given name from Old Norse. It is used in Icelandic.
>99% boys
Even
“God is gracious”
>99% boys