What’s Up with Danish TV for Kids? Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Jan 22, 2021
For the small size of their country, Danes have really managed to create a lot of outrage. (Remember the prophet cartoon crisis or the killing of the poor giraffe Marius?) This January, Danes did it again – with a children’s tv show about a man and his very long private part. Er intet helligt (is…
Two Ways of Giving Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Dec 17, 2020
Julen er gavernes tid. (Christmas is the time of gifts.) While many of us are still pondering to whom to give what, let’s look at the Danish grammar of giving. The Danish verb at give [at gheew’] is historically related to the English to give. Fortunately, it works in similar ways. Jeg ved ikke hvem…
The Mink Saga Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Nov 30, 2020
”I’m a mink farmer from Hjørring [town in Northern Jutland]!” A man tries to impress a woman with a witty line in a pedestrian city street at night, just before the bars close at 10 PM due to COVID-19. She smiles – it’s early November, and Danish minks are suddenly the talk of the global…
Short and Long Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Oct 30, 2020
Grammar – (quite) easy. Pronunciation – (very) hard. I sometimes wish there was a pill (or rather a caramel) Danish-learners could eat, and boom! they’d master all the vowel shades & stød and could concentrate on fun stuff, like poetry or Danish movies. In lack of a magical shortcut, let’s revisit the topic of long…
What’s Up with Denmark and Vikings? Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Sep 30, 2020
I don’t know if the TV series Vikings created a lot of Danish learners. Still, since it first aired (2013), many people around the world have become curious about the fierce Scandinavian warriors. No, you can’t chat to them. But 2020 Danish wouldn’t be there without their input, so let’s grab a glass of mjød…
If We Talk Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Aug 31, 2020
If you ever tried coding, you may have come across ”if-then-else” (if X happens then Y should happen, else Z should happen). If you haven’t, no worries – you can probably get along for a long while without any if-clauses… But if I were you, I’d still take a look at the little word in…
King Carrot and other Danish Weirdos Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Jul 31, 2020
Danish has two aspects that makes it particularly hard for learners: 1. The sounds, which Danish (!) poet Benny Andersen compared to havregrød i kog (boiling oatmeal porridge). 2. The Danish humour and culture, which is embedded in the language. Where else in the world can you say that something costs ”a dog” (en hund)…