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Archive for August, 2012

Crazy Norwegian Band Names Posted by on Aug 29, 2012

Many bands have strange names, and Norwegian ones are no exception! Since Morten Harket and the rest of a-ha were big stars in the 1980’ies (with global hits such as ”Take On Me”), a large number of Norwegian bands have hit the world with their music … and their names. Below are a few of…

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After the Verdict Posted by on Aug 25, 2012

Yesterday Norwegian mass murderer and bomber Anders Behring Breivik finally got his dom (verdict): 21 years of prison, which is the maximum straff (punishment) you can get at a Norwegian rett (court). Only 21 years for killing 77 mennesker (humans, human beings)?? This seems to be the common outcry in the internet. I know that…

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Fjellvettreglene Posted by on Aug 21, 2012

Hiking in the Norwegian fjell [fyell] (mountains) can be a dangerous enterprise, especially when it’s late høst (autumn, fall), vinter and early vår [vor] (spring), and været (the weather) can’t make up its mind… All of a sudden, you can be trapped by a snøstorm (snowstorm, blizzard), or forced to climb on rocks that are…

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Norway at the 2012 Olympics Posted by on Aug 14, 2012

Heia Norge! Go Norway! Cheering is easy in Norwegian. This Saturday, heiaropene (the cheers, literally ’the cheer shouts’) resonated at full throttle in London’s Basketball Arena, as the Norwegian håndball [HONbahl] (handball) team beat the ladies from Montenegro 26–23. The reigning verdensmestre (world champions) and Europa-mestre could now call themselves Olympic champions as well. Besides…

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The Third Gender Posted by on Aug 1, 2012

No, this isn’t about LGTB people in Norway, but about an aspect of Norwegian grammar that ocassionally creates confusion, even among Norwegians: the feminine gender. Norwegian comes in thousands of dialect shades, so in order to write it, two orthographies or “written languages” have evolved: nynorsk (which will be the topic of a future blog…

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