Gunnar is a male first name of Nordic origin (Gunnarr in Old Norse[1]). The name Gunnar means fighter, soldier, and attacker, but mostly is referred to by the Viking saying which means Brave and Bold warrior (gunnr "war" and arr "warrior"). King Gunnar was a prominent king of medieval literature such as the Middle High German epic poem, the Nibelungenlied, where King Gunnar and Queen Brynhildr hold their court at Worms. Gunder is a nordic variant, Günther is the modern German variant, and Gonario is the Italian version. Some people with the name Gunnar include:
- Gunnar Asplund (1885–1940), Swedish architect
- Gunnar Bärlund (1911–1982), Finnish boxer
- Gunnar Berg
- Gunnar Berge (born 1940), Norwegian politician
- Gunnar Berggren (1908–1983), Swedish boxer
- Gunnar Birkerts (1925–2017), Latvian-American architect
- Gunnar Bjurner (1882–1964), Swedish Navy vice admiral
- Gunnar Björnstrand (1909–1986), Swedish actor
- Gunnar Ekelöf (1907–1968), Swedish poet and writer
- Gunnar Eklund (1920–2010), Swedish Army lieutenant general
- Gunnar Fant (1919–2009), Swedish phonetician
- Gunnar Fischer (1910–2011), Swedish cinematographer
- Gunnar Friedemann (1909–1943), Estonian chess player
- Gunnar Garbo (1924–2016), Norwegian journalist, politician and diplomat
- Gunnar Garfors (1975-), Norwegian author, traveller and world record holder
- Gunnar Graps (1951–2004), Estonian musician
- Gunnar Emil Garfors (1900–1979), Norwegian poet
- Gunnar Gehl (born 2001), American singer-songwriter
- Gunnar Grandin (1918–2004), Swedish Navy rear admiral
- Gunnar Gren (1920–1991), Swedish football player
- Gunnar Hámundarson (10th century), Icelandic chieftain
- Gunnar Hansen (disambiguation)
- Gunnar Heinsohn (1943–2023), German anthropologist
- Gunnar Helm, American football player
- Gunnar Henderson (born 2001), American baseball player for Baltimore Orioles
- Gunnar Hoppe (1914–2005), Swedish Quaternary geologist and geographer
- Gunnar Höckert (1910–1940), Finnish runner
- Gunnar Jarring (1907–2002), Swedish diplomat and turkologist
- Gunnar Jeannette (born 1982), American racing driver
- Gunnar Jedeur-Palmgren (1899–1996), Swedish Navy vice admiral
- Gunnar Johansen (1906–1991), Danish-American pianist and composer
- Gunnar Johansson
- Gunnar Kaasen (1882–1960), Norwegian-American dog musher
- Gunnar Kangro (1913–1975), Estonian mathematician
- Gunnar Klettenberg (born 1967), Estonian equestrian
- Gunnar Knudsen (1848–1928), Norwegian politician
- Gunnar Korhonen (1918–2001), Norwegian politician
- Gunnar Berg Lampe (1892–1978), Norwegian businessman
- Gunnar Larsson
- Gunnar Larsen (1900–1958), Norwegian journalist, writer, and translator
- Gunnar Larsen (politician) (1902–1973), Danish engineer, businessman and politician
- Gunnar Malmquist (1893–1982), Swedish astronomer
- Gunnar Marklund (1892–1964), Finnish botanist
- Pål Gunnar Mikkelsplass (born 1961), Norwegian cross country skier
- Gunnar Möller (1928–2017), German actor
- Gunnar Molton (born 1993), drummer for Texas Hippie Coalition
- Gunnar Myrdal (1898–1987), Swedish economist
- Gunnar Nielsen
- Gunnar Nilson (1872–1951), Swedish physician
- Gunnar Nilsson
- Gunnar Nordahl (1921–1995), Swedish football player
- Gunnar Nordström (1881–1923), Finnish physicist
- Gunnar Öquist (born 1941), Swedish biologist
- Gunnar Persson (1933–2018), Swedish cartoonist
- Gunnar Randers (1914–1992), Norwegian physicist
- Gunnar Rohrbacher (born 1968), American author
- Gunnar Seidenfaden (1908–2001), Danish diplomat and botanist
- Ole Gunnar Solskjær (born 1973), Norwegian football player
- Gunnar Staalesen (born 1947), Norwegian writer
- Gunnar Stålsett (born 1935), Norwegian theologician and politician
- Gunnar Taucher (1886–1941), Finnish architect
- Gunnar Thoresen (footballer) (1920–2017), Norwegian football player
- Gunnar Thoresen (bobsledder) (1921–1972), Norwegian bobsledder
- Gunnar Heiðar Þorvaldsson (born 1982), Icelandic football player
- Gunnar Uusi (1931–1981), Estonian chess player
- Gunnar Widforss (1879–1934), Swedish-American painter
- Gunnar Wiklund (1935–1989), Swedish singer