Peiskos! (Photo courtesy of Sigrun & Ragnar at Flickr, CC License.)
Nå skal vi kose oss! (Now let’s cozy up/enjoy ourselves!)
In Iceland, I’ve been told, they have this vits (joke) about the stereotypical Norwegian being a hyperactive sportsman: Always trekking, skiing or running around in the most expensive and chic sportswear! Well, it’s certainly true that mange nordmenn elsker friluftsliv (many Norwegians love outdoor life). And people in Norway often joke about being født med ski på beina [furt meh shee paw BYEnah] (born with skis on their legs). But sometimes, especially when it’s høst (autumn) and cold outside (and no snow yet, mind you!), even serious athletes like å kose seg (to cozy up, to enjoy oneself) indoors.
Kos (coziness) is a nice little word. You can attach it to almost any other noun to describe a social setting where you’re relaxing and having a good time with vennene dine (your friends) or familien din (your family). Peiskos means enjoying life in front of a peis (open fireplace). A pleasant barbecue session can be described as grillkos – and so on! 🙂
Kos can be turned into the adjective koselig (cozy, nice). If you’re the expressive kind of person and your friends and you are enjoying some tv-kos (”television coziness”) with a spennende tv-serie (exciting tv serial) and a bowl of snop (candy) and some glasses of brus (lemonade), you may exclaim: Å, så koselig! (Oh, how cozy [it is]!)
Det er veldig koselig på hytta (it’s very cozy in the cabin). Especially when it is dark and rainy outside and you can light some candles, drikke en kaffetår (take a sip of coffee), lese ei god bok (read a good book), legge kabal (play solitaire) or spille kort (play cards). Should all this hjemmekos (”stay-at-home-coziness”) make you feel just a little bit suffocated, there’s no need to worry: Naturen (Nature) is just outside døra (the door), and soon snøen (the snow) will be there! 🙂
Comments:
Nancy:
I am a 71-year-old who very much enjoys your Norwegian blog that I get as an e-mail. Although I may never get to Norway (let alone speak Norwegian!), it is a delight to read about Norway and to see just how similar our languages are.
Thank you!
Bjørn A. Bojesen:
@Nancy Hello Nancy. I’m very
pleased to hear that you’re enjoying this blog. I hope you’ll still get the chance to go to Norway! All the best, Bjørn
Matt:
Hey I was wondering if blø til kjære. Means. Bleed for loved ones
Bjørn A. Bojesen:
@Matt Hey Matt, that would be ”blø for mine kjære”. Good luck! 🙂 Bjørn
Matt:
blø til min kjære
Is this translation correct?
Bleed for my loved ones
Keri:
Greetings Bjorn,
I am really enjoying your blog! I’ve been trying to find the correct Norwegian way to say, “Let’s make this day koselig.” I know I’m commenting on an old post, but hoping you might see my comment and be able to help. None of my Norwegian relatives are quite sure…
Kindly,
Keri
Bjørn A. Bojesen:
@Keri Greetings Keri,
I’m glad you like the blog. 🙂 Your phrase would be ”La oss gjøre denne dagen koselig”.
Kind regards, Bjørn
M:
I love the word ‘Kos’ can can you help me with the pronunciation? I’ve heard it as ‘kooos’ or even ‘hooos’
Bjørn A. Bojesen:
@M @M 🙂 The correct pronunciation is ’kooos’. Hear it here: https://translate.google.com/#no/en/kos