jordgubb (Swedish)
Where does "jordgubb" come from?
The Swedish word 'jordgubb' for strawberry is likely a shortened form of a compound like 'jordgubbssmak' (strawberry taste). It combines 'jord' (earth) and 'gubb' (old man or gnome), though the connection to the fruit remains a curious linguistic mystery.
Full etymology tree
- jordgubb (Swedish), 'strawberry'
- clipping jordgubbssmak (Swedish), 'taste of strawberry'
- compound jordgubbe (Swedish), 'a strawberry, from Fragaria × ananassa'
- compound smak (Swedish), 'taste (how something tastes)'
- clipping jordgubbssmak (Swedish), 'taste of strawberry'
Updated July 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris