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This thesis deals with place-names in the southern part of the municipality of Skellefteå in the province of Västerbotten, more precisely the parishes of Bureå, Burträsk and Lövånger. It consists of three different sections, first a survey of the settlement names in each parish, then a section on the second elements in these place-names, and finally a study of names of more recent settlements.

The earliest place-names here are names like Blacke, Bureå, Bäck, Kräkånger and Lövånger. The second elements in the names from the medieval expansion period are mark, böle, byn, träsk, sjön and vattnet. Placenames of Nordic, Sami and Finnish origin are found in Skellefteå. The name Lossmen has its origin in Ume Sami and was then borrowed into Finnish. Originally Sami names are Gorkuträsk, Jäppnästjärnliden, Lubboträsk, Sittuträsk and Tavträskliden.

The thesis consists of interpretations of the names on parishes, villages, farms and summer pastures, and in Bureå and Lövånger also the names of seasonal fishing stations.

The second major section deals with the second elements included in village names, alternative village names, names of parts of villages and farm names. Here the second elements in place-names in Bureå, Burträsk and Lövånger are accounted for, as are the names in the parishes of Byske, Jörn and Skellefteå. This is followed by a discussion of the second elements in Västerbotten and quite often in other parts of Norrland as well.

The third major section consists of an analysis of the names of recent settlements in the area. These were established from the 1730s and up to 1870. Founding settlements was a way of providing livelihoods for a rapidly growing population. The study comprises 726 names, of which 269 are in the primary area of investigation, the parishes of Bureå, Burträsk and Lövånger. Extensive comparisons are made continually with conditions in the parishes of Byske, Jörn and Skellefteå in the northern area. The aim of the study is to determine in greater detail what characterises the names of more recent settlements in the municipality of Skellefteå in terms of categories of settlement names, their frequency and distribution within the area. A comparison is also made between Skellefteå and the municipality of Vännäs (Hagervall 1986). One of Hagervall’s findings is that many names are not based on existing features. This thesis shows, however, hardly any cases of stereotype naming in Västerbotten and that in nearly all cases the names refer to features.