Tor

Like many other three-letter names, Tor packs plenty into three brief letters. Strong and powerful, playful and jaunty, or earthy and whimsical, depending on how you view it, here are a number of possible ways to interpret Tor:

A variation of Thor: Predominantly used in Norway and Sweden, Tor is a modern form of the Norse thunder god’s name. Pronounced TOOR, it ranked in the Norwegian Top 100 until 2002.

An unexpected nickname: A slightly offbeat choice for Victor, Victora, Hector, and Theodore.

A Hebrew bird name: Used occasionally as a unisex choice, Tor means “turtle dove” in Hebrew, taken from yonet tor.

A regal, Nigerian choice: Tor translates to “king” in Tiv, a language spoken by 8 million people in Nigeria and Cameroon.

An English geological word name: Used to describe a craggy rock at the top of a hill, created by erosion or used to describe the hill itself, Tor may be associated with the Glastonbury Tor, along with several highpoints of Dartmoor and Bodmin Moor in the UK.

While for some, it may sound too similar to the word “tore”, I was first drawn to this name after I saw it in the book series, Ally’s World by Karen McCombie, which I read as a teen. It was given to the main character’s younger brother, who, if I remember rightly, was named after the place in Glastonbury, Somerset.

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