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Swedish Kin

What does dräng mean?

In Swedish records, dräng means farmhand: a male servant on a farm, usually unmarried and hired for one year at a time.

Swedish
dräng
In English
farmhand
Also seen as
drängen, drängar, lilldräng
Group
Occupations and social standing
Illustration of a farmhand plowing a muddy field with a horse in front of red farm buildings
A farmhand plows with a horse on an autumn day in the 1800s.

Definition

A dräng (farmhand) was a male farm laborer who did the heavy work on a farm1. Farmhands were usually unmarried and hired for a year at a time1. A lilldräng was a young boy who took service on a farm to support himself1.

In the records

Servants were written on the same page as the farmer's family, at the bottom of the household3. The title stands before the name3.

What it meant

From 1664 until 24 October 1926, servants were governed by servant laws, the legostadgor1,4,6. Under the law of 1734 the service year began at Michaelmas, 29 September, and from 1819 on 24 October5. A servant who changed employer had to report within seven days, and was entitled to a free week1. The word once also meant an unmarried son still working on his parents' farm1.

Do not confuse with

A statare was married and paid mostly in goods on a large estate2. A torpare (crofter) had his own holding2.

  • piga – A maid – a female servant on a farm, usually hired for one year at a time.
  • statare – A married farm laborer on a large estate, hired for a year and paid mostly in goods, called stat.
  • inhyses – A lodger – someone who lived and ate on a farm, usually not family and not a servant there.
  • Guide: How to Read Swedish Household Examination Records

Sources

Sources in English

  1. Hans Högman, The Old Agricultural Society – hhogman.se
  2. Hans Högman, Statare – hhogman.se

Sources in Swedish

These pages are in Swedish.

  1. Umeå University (CEDAR), Kyrkböcker. 1800-talets kyrkoregister, Ulla Nilsdotter Jeub, 2019 (in Swedish) – umu.se
  2. De Lege (Uppsala University law journal), article on the servant laws, footnote listing the legostadgor (in Swedish) – journals.uu.se
  3. Riksdagen, Lagutskottets utlåtande nr 7, 1895 (in Swedish) – weburn.kb.se
  4. Riksdagen, Lag om upphävande av legostadgan för husbönder och tjänstehjon den 23 november 1833, 1926 (in Swedish) – data.riksdagen.se

Facts checked against sources, November 2026.