Your name is what? Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Apr 21, 2017
Hva heter du? (What’s your name?) Jeg heter… (My name is…) Talking about navn (name/s) is important when making new friends. Let’s look at Norwegian naming traditions! Ola & Kari Nordmann are like the Norwegian versions of Uncle Sam – a man and a woman representing the ”typical” nordmann (Norwegian). Like all nordmenn, they have a…
Norwegians are not ashamed of Skam Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Mar 31, 2017
Eva har startet på videregående. (Eva has started at High School.) Hun har ei mor som aldri er hjemme, og kjæresten Jonas, som hun er veldig glad i. (She’s got a mother who’s never at home, and her boyfriend Jonas, whom she loves very much.) Men hun har ikke så mange venninner. (But she hasn’t…
Are Norwegians Equal? Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Mar 9, 2017
I går var det kvinnedagen (yesterday it was the Women’s Day), and kvinner (women) and menn in Norway and other countries tok til gata (”took to the street”) to feire (celebrate) and demonstrere for likestilling (demonstrate for equality). Compared to most other countries, Norge is a very egalitarian land – only Finland and Iceland are…
Norwegian Stress Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Feb 28, 2017
If you want to talk with the natives, you have to hit an uttale (pronunciation) that is not too far off. 🙂 Of course, having a bit of accent is okay, as long as people don’t need to guess whether you meant hat or head. Stress is one of those little details that do matter…
Reading a Norwegian Cafe Menu Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Feb 25, 2017
Liker du å gå på kafé? (Do you like going to cafés?) Although Norway is not Italia (Italy), you can find koselige kaféer in most byer (towns and cities). Even in very small bygder (Norwegian-style villages), there often is a place where you can buy kaffi med noko attåt. Yes, that is usually written in…
Verbs in the Mirror Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Jan 31, 2017
Koser dere dere? (Are you enjoying yourselves?) No, the double dere (you guys) isn’t a mistake – it’s a fun reflex of the Norwegian system of refleksive verb (reflexive verbs). There is a difference between I wash myself and I wash the dog, so speakers of many languges found a way to refer back to…
8 Norwegian Proverbs Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Jan 27, 2017
Before the Internet, proverbs were like offline memes that anybody could throw into a conversation to make a point! 🙂 Even though our communication has changed, ordtak (proverbs, literally ”word-grips”) still exist in many communities, including Norway. I think proverbs are a great window into the original ”mood” or setting of any language, so even…