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A Danish Quiz Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Sep 21, 2015
How much do you know about Danish culture? Here’s a quick quiz to speed up your brain… 1. Danes are said to talk with a … in their mouth. Æ. frø (frog) Ø. kartoffel (potato) Å. rugbrød (rye bread) 2. LEGO is short for Æ. leg godt (play well) Ø. lev godt (live well) Å…
Danish for Librarians Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Aug 31, 2015
Talking is king, but sometimes en god bog (a good book) may be your best friend in your struggle to absorb the charming Danish language! Finding a bibliotek [beebleeohTEHK] (library) is never a problem in Denmark, as even smaller towns use to have a public library. Most often, however, you will need a Danish address…
Strong verbs are not random Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Aug 27, 2015
It’s time to take a look at grammatik (grammar) again. (I bet you’ve savnet – missed – it!) If you … a certain kind of very active words, you can hardly … a sentence. In other words: Verbs are a necessary evil! :-] Kaja spiser en is. Per spiste en is. Ungerne har spist en…
Party Chitchat Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Aug 19, 2015
You’re at a fest (party) with Danes. You’re a begynder (beginner). Your ability to stitch together phrases is so-so. Men du vil meget gerne tale dansk! (But you really want to speak Danish!) Below are a few made-up examples of party smalltalk or småsnak (both: smalltalk), also known as sludder (’rubbish’). To some people it’s…
Danes and alcohol Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Aug 13, 2015
Skål! [scawl!] (Cheers!) Toasting in Denmark can be an unforgettable everyday experience: Alle løfter deres glas, kigger hinanden i øjnene og skåler højt. (Everybody raises their glass, looks each other in the eyes and toasts loudly.) The roaring skååål animates the whole room, even beyond the table of the celebrants. Then everybody takes a sip…
Denmark and the Bluetooth Connection Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Aug 7, 2015
Did you know that each time you turn on Bluetooth on your computer or mobil [mohBEEL] (cellphone), you’re actually calling the name of a Viking konge (king)? For some reason, the Bluetooth inventors decided to use the øgenavn (nickname) of Harald Blåtand (Harold Bluetooth), who ruled Denmark at the end of the 900s. The Bluetooth…
Danish summer phrases Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Jul 31, 2015
Undervejs (On the way) Hej, kan du sige os hvor banegården ligger? (Hi, could you tell us where the central station is?) Vi leder efter et billigt hotel. (We’re looking for a cheap hotel.) Hvor ligger den nærmeste tankstation? (Where is the closest petrol station?) Hvor kan man leje cykler? (Where can you rent a…