{"id":2725,"date":"2021-02-27T16:29:38","date_gmt":"2021-02-27T16:29:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/norwegian\/?p=2725"},"modified":"2021-02-27T16:34:18","modified_gmt":"2021-02-27T16:34:18","slug":"is-norwegian-a-happiness-drug","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/norwegian\/is-norwegian-a-happiness-drug\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Norwegian a Happiness Drug?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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(Free image from<\/a> Pixabay; no copyright.)<\/p><\/div>\n

Blir du glad av \u00e5 snakke norsk?<\/strong> (Does speaking Norwegian make you happy?) Although linguists don\u2019t seem to agree to which degree the language we speak might shape our perception of verden <\/strong>(the world)1<\/a><\/sup>This is also known as the Sapir\u2013Whorf hypothesis<\/a>.<\/span>, I\u2019ve often heard comments like: \u201dNorwegians are always so friendly,\u201d<\/em> \u201dNorwegians just sound so happy when they talk,\u201d<\/em> and even: \u201dIs it even possible to be angry in Norwegian?\u201d<\/em> (of course it is, just go to the North and tell them they have no swear words!) Both Danes and Swedes2<\/a><\/sup>and Icelanders, it seems.<\/span> seem to suffer from this stereotype of the super-optimistic Norwegian (who\u2019s always skiing and smiling). So is there some truth to it?<\/p>\n

A tonal<\/a> language, Norwegian does sound very melodic to many people3<\/a><\/sup>Swedish has tones, too, but maybe Norwegian does sound more \u201dsingsong\u201d than Swedish, at least the Eastern Norwegian dialects near Oslo?<\/span>. One could argue that the falling and rising tones nicely match the fjell og daler<\/strong> (mountains and valleys) of the country. (Some people from Eastern Europe, if I remember correctly, told me they felt Norwegian sounded like Elvish; a Ukrainian girl had been learning norsk<\/strong> just because of how she liked the sound of it.)<\/p>\n

What do you think \u2013 er norsk et optimistisk spr\u00e5k? Er nordmenn optimister?<\/strong> (Is Norwegian an optimistic language? Are Norwegians optimists?)<\/p>\n

Here are some \u201dhappy bits\u201d you can throw into your Norwegian conversations to let go of your national gloom:<\/p>\n

Det h\u00f8res veldig spennende ut! <\/strong>(That sounds super exciting!)<\/p>\n

S\u00e5 flott!<\/strong> (That\u2019s so nice!)<\/p>\n

S\u00e5 g\u00f8y!<\/strong> (That\u2019s so fun!)<\/p>\n

Herregud, det er jo helt fantastisk!<\/strong> (Oh my God, that\u2019s totally awesome!)<\/p>\n

Jeg bare digger stilen din!<\/strong> (I really \u201ddig\u201d your style!)<\/p>\n

Helt konge!<\/strong> (Totally cool, literally \u201dtotally king\u201d!)<\/p>\n

Gode greier!<\/strong> (Good stuff\/That\u2019s great!)<\/p>\n

Dette var jo veldig trivelig.<\/strong> (This really was very cosy\/pleasant.)<\/p>\n

Kjempebra!<\/strong> (Very good, literally \u201dhugely good\u201d!)<\/p>\n

Ha\u2019kke peiling\u2026<\/strong> (I\u2019ve no idea\u2026)<\/p>\n

Stilig!<\/strong> (Neat!)<\/p>\n

Bare hyggelig! <\/strong>(My pleasure!)<\/p>\n

Ha det bra!<\/strong> (Goodbye, literally \u201dhave it good\u201d!)<\/p>\n

Tusen takk!<\/strong> (1000 thanks!)<\/p>\n

A very Norwegian thing is to \u201dseal\u201d your phrase with an echoing \u201dconfirmation\u201d word at the end \u2013 like the then<\/em> in \u201dIt\u2019s a deal, then\u201d. To my ears, at least, these small words create a very Norwegian, and perhaps also optimistic, vibe. \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n

Det er ikke s\u00e5 verst, da.<\/strong> (It\u2019s not so bad, then.)<\/p>\n

Har ikke sett den tv-serien, nei.<\/strong> (Haven\u2019t seen that TV series, \u201dno\u201d.)<\/p>\n

N\u00e5 skal vi v\u00e6re lykkelige, liksom.<\/strong> (Now we\u2019re supposed to be happy, \u201dlike\u201d.)<\/p>\n

Det er farlig, det!<\/strong> (That\u2019s dangerous, that! \u2013 the timid hedgehog Ludvig\u2019s famous oneliner in the film Fl\u00e5klypa Grand Prix<\/a>.)<\/p>\n