Swedish Language Blog

Hi there all readers. How are your nyårslöften coming along? Kämpa på! (For the translation of these phrases and words see Jan 3rd’s post).

Just one bridge away from one of the most southern tips of Sweden is Denmark. The bridge connecting Sweden and Denmark is called Öresundsbron and is 7.85 Km long. The project was started in 1995 and the bridge was officially opened 2000. 30 years ago, when the only way for people to get to Denmark was by ferry, it wasn’t easy to be a Swede living in Denmark. There was a lot of discrimination against Swedes and snide and mean remarks were not unusual. One of the main reasons Swedes crossed the water to the shores of Denmark was for the cheap alcohol and tobacco, products which the Swedish state had put high taxes on. Therefore the image of Swedes was one of drunkards lying on the street no longer able to stand straight. However, talking to Danes today that image seems to have almost disappeared completely.

Many people think that the building of the bridge has opened up the two countries and improved their relationship with each other. In just the past couple of years a new term has even arisen: Öresundsmänniskan, Öresund is the name of channel between Denmark and Sweden, and människa is person. Öresundsmänniska therefore is a new term for people who constantly cross the boarder between the two countries, maybe working in one and living in the other.

While most would say that the relationship between the countries has gotten considerably better since the bridge was built others would say that the cultural differences between them have gotten stronger. People on the Swedish boarder want to keep their Swedish customs and the people in Denmark theirs. So in general there isn’t a feeling of a “joint culture” even though the two countries are very close to each other. But that having been said many people in the most southern parts of Sweden are geographically closer to Copenhagen than they are to Stockholm, and have most likely gone shopping or on holiday there.

What to begin with only seems to be a bridge connecting to pieces of land is actually a whole lot more. Something effecting two nations identities, to say the least.

The city of Göteborg, perhaps better known as Gothenburg outside of Scandinavia, is Sweden’s second-largest city with just over 500 000 inhabitants. It is a beautiful city with a lot to offer, from an indoor zoo called Universeum to the Scandinavia-wide famous Liseberg amusement park. There are also several churches to be observed around the city. The people of Göteborg, known by Swedes as göteborgare, are famous for their easy-going attitude and pleasantness. Of course, this is only a generalization, but on my trip there in late October 2012, the rumors really seemed to be true about several people I met. It was a fantastic trip to what is now my favorite city in Sweden.

Gothenburg is located on Sweden’s west coast, just east across the Kattegatt from the northern tip of Denmark. It lies about half-way between Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark, and Oslo, the capital of Norway. The city has two highly-ranked universities, Göteborgs universitet or Gothenburg University and Chalmers tekniska högskola, the Chalmers University of Technology. Chalmers is particularly known for offering a very competitive degree in architectural design, a program that takes five years to complete.

The city was originally founded by King Charles IX of Sweden (known as Karl IX in Scandinavia) on the island of Hisingen, just north of today’s Gothenburg. Eventually the island was overtaken by the Danes in 1611, but ten years later the city was able to be refounded by the Swedish King Gustavus Adolphus II (known as Gustav Adolf II in Scandinavia). From that point on, it prospered.

Gothenburg is a fantastic city, and during my travels there I made a point of filming around the city to share with all of you loyal readers. Here it is:

In case any of you are wondering, the view at the end of the video is from Svenska Mässan, or the Swedish Exhibition and Congress Centre, just accross from Universeum in an area known as Evenemangstråket in Gothenburg.

Enjoy!

[Source for statistics above: goteborg.se, Wikipedia]

This post will not be about how to say so many rude things as possible even though rude words seem to be some of the first people learn in a new language. The aim of this post is to give you phrases you can use when looking for a bathroom or you need to excuse yourself from an engagement to pay a visit to the ladies/mens room. Everybody has been in the situation where you really need to go, desperately needing to find a toilet quickly. That is why these phrases might help you reach your destination a little bit more quickly.

You might have heard, if you are a speaker of the English language, many Swedes say “Can I borrow your toilet?”. Did you also think on reflection “Are you going to give it back?”. It isn’t strange however that Swedes often make this mistake because in Swedish the most common phrase to use is:

Kan jag få låna toaletten? 

The main verb used being “borrow”.

Ursäkta, var finns toaletten?                          (Excuse me, where is the toilet?) 

It is not uncommon to say, “may I use the bathroom?” using “bathroom” instead of “toilet” to be more polite in English. In Swedish this is however not so good. We just don’t say “badrummet” instead of “toilet”, but this does not make you rude, even though it might feel that way in the beginning. So just remember not to use the two phrases below.

Kan jag låna badrummet? 

Var finns badrummet?

After having asked where the bathroom is you often want to thank the person. Here come some phrases of thanks to help you. They all mean just about the same thing.

Tack så mycket!

Tusen tack!

Tack tack! 

Tack så jättemycket! 

There are also a couple of different words, synonyms for “toilet” which can be very useful to know. In everyday conversations you might hear the word “toalett” be substituted by; muggen, toa, dass. 

One final pointer about public toilets in Sweden is that you have to pay to use them, so a piece of advice is to keep some loose change on you whenever you go out and see the city. You usually have to pay about 10 Swedish crowns but consequently they are clean and in good shape. To avoid paying many people started using the public toilets in fast food restaurants, so it is not uncommon to have to pay to use the bathroom at places like McDonald’s or Frasse.