Nordström was born in Helsinki, the capital of Finland during the time when Finland was part of Russian Empire). He studied at University of Helsinki and completed his dissertation in 1908. Before this, he studied for some time in Göttingen where he met the world's best scientists. After this, he became a professor at the university. In 1910, he started his trip in Europe. He visited at Zürich, Berlin, Vienna, and Leyden. During his time in the Netherlands, he married Cornelia van Leeuwen. They had three children. 