Archive by Author
Written Danish: a couple of quirks Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Sep 1, 2011
When learning Danish, one of the most confusing things is the huge distance between the written and the spoken forms of the language. In a way it resembles the problem faced by people learning English as a foreign language, who have to get a grip on the strange fact that women in a queue is…
Election Frenzy Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Aug 30, 2011
This friday, journalists got a welcome break from the Danish agurketid – literally ’cucumber time’ (from agurk cucumber + tid time) – the ”silly season” in summer where nothing really happens and newspaper employees spend their time making ice-cream tests and interviewing dogs… So, what happened? Lars Løkke Rasmussen, the Danish statsminister (Prime Minister), went live to…
The Joy of Being a Folk Musician Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Aug 22, 2011
From ’Barbie Girl’ to the upbeat reggae of the late icon Natasja, modern Danish music is as cosmopolitan as ever. For some people, however, nothing beats the groove of traditional folk music. I met passionate fiddlers Maja and Eigil at the dock of the bay… How long have you been playing folk music? Maja…
Getting Connected Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Aug 15, 2011
Learning a foreign language by textbook and audio clips can be a stimulating mental feat. However, once you start using that language in a real-life communicational situation, the fun begins! Getting to know people in Denmark isn’t always as easy as depicted in language courses. Many Danes seem to be a little reserved, perhaps…
Bright Nights Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Aug 8, 2011
Looking at today’s kalender I couldn’t help feeling a bit of nostalgia as it informed me the lyse nætter were coming to an end. Lyse nætter, literally ’bright nights’, usually rendered in English as white nights, are the hallmark of a pleasant summer in Denmark. From about 5th of May till 8th of August there is literally nothing between dusk…
Vikings oho! Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Aug 2, 2011
This weekend, mysterious forces brought the Vikings back to life in Denmark. Between seven and eight hundred persons from all over Northern Europe had put on their Viking costumes, sheathed their swords, saddled their horses and set out for the wide fields by Moesgård Strand (beach) near Århus. Together with a friend I entered the…
Danish Plurals Revisited Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Jul 29, 2011
While Grammar and definitions may not be as interesting as drinking beer at a small café table in the sun while watching for the next attractive member of the opposite (or same) sex, those aspects of Danish are certainly important if one wishes to avoid confusion. (Author Lars Henriksen wrote an entire short story centering…