The resolve of the naming dispute between Denmark, Norway and Sweden over the sea name Skagerrak has always been hailed as a prime example of how a naming dispute between countries over joint geographical name features should be handled and solved. This is a search into the story behind the scenes of the dispute and how the geographical name Skagerrak came to named, disputed and finally settled for national and international use.

The solving of the naming dispute did not come directly from the national geographical names committees, although their deliberations paved the way for the final resolve by the national mapping agencies.
Practical Implications: Useful for institutions seeking name dispute resolution.

Building on the extensive correspondence of almost fifty letters in the Danish Place-Name Commission’s journal archive, this naming dispute is shown to be of a rather different nature and resolve than has hitherto been believed. The findings have important implications for how international naming disputes have been perceived and should be undertaken in the future.