It’s a Numbers Game Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Aug 28, 2021
How often do you need to do number tricks in a foreign language? Det står nok ikke øverst på lista (it probably isn’t on top of the list), but still, if you’re a little bit like me, you’ll sometimes find yourself in situations where simply counting is not enough… In Norwegian, saying basic calculations out…
Norway says never again Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Jul 22, 2021
Ten years ago Norwegians experienced one of the saddest days i manns minne (in living memory, literally ”in man’s memory”). I don’t want to repeat the tragedy here – that’s the job of aviser (newspapers). Suffice to say that 77 innocent human beings lost their lives to the terrorist Anders Breivik on Utøya (an øy…
A Sip of Norwegian Comedy Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Jun 30, 2021
Gi ungdommen en flaske brennevin før idretten tar dem! (Give the young people a bottle of brandy before they’re possessed by sports!) This quote by Per Inge Torkelsen is very well-known in Norway. A famous comedian and klovn (clown) from the city of Stavanger, Torkelsen passed away eight days ago. Having grown up in the…
Summer Nights in Norway Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on May 31, 2021
Gratulerer med vel overstått! (Congratulations with a ”well passed” [birthday]!) This belated greeting – a handy Norwegian lifeline for forgetful people – will have to do for all you fans of Norway in 2021. Due to technicalities, I was unable to wish you gratulerer med dagen (happy constitution day) on May 17th. Beklager tradisjonsbruddet! (Sorry…
Norwegian Question Words Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Apr 30, 2021
After some musings about Norwegian society, it’s time to get back to what you’re actually learning: språket (the language). I was surprised to discover that neither the previous blogger Kari nor I had written about spørreord (question words), so let’s fill that gap immediately! 🙂 What is a question word? Well, the answer lies in…
Is Norwegian a Happiness Drug? Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Feb 27, 2021
Blir du glad av å snakke norsk? (Does speaking Norwegian make you happy?) Although linguists don’t seem to agree to which degree the language we speak might shape our perception of verden (the world), I’ve often heard comments like: ”Norwegians are always so friendly,” ”Norwegians just sound so happy when they talk,” and even: ”Is…
Fun in the Snow Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Jan 21, 2021
Mange ønsket seg en hvit jul i 2020. (Many people were wishing for a white Christmas in 2020.) Only this month, however, snøen (the snow) decided to grace large parts of Norge. Let’s get outside and have some fun! Det er ikke så vanskelig å gå på skøyter [shoyter]. (Ice skating is not that hard.)…