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Position and Direction continued Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 12, 2009
A couple of posts back we were talking about those little words that denote such important things as position and direction. Boring stuff, yes I know, but very useful nonetheless. So today let’s continue in the same vein and discuss här and där. And hit and dit. You see, in English, it’s all the same…
European Capital of Culture 2014 Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 9, 2009
I really don’t know what to say. Much to my disappointment, it was Umeå, not Lund that became selected as the Swedish candidate for the European Capital of Culture in 2014. The jury made its decision yesterday and when the results were announced during a press conference, I know that the good people of Lund…
Particles of Position and Direction Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 5, 2009
Uhuh, I knew this day would come. I knew that sooner or later someone would email me asking about the difference between “hemma” and “hem” and “hemifrån”. “Ute” and “ut”, and “inne” and “in”. Yeah, you get the picture… It’s not very exciting stuff (hey, I’d much rather write about the lovely city of Lund)…
Anybody’s “man” – another personal pronoun Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 2, 2009
Since we were talking about personal pronouns the other day, and as I see, it has provoked some very interesting comments, I thought it would be a good idea to continue on the subject. “What? There are even more pronouns in Swedish?” I hear you say. Well, not that many more. Actually, just one more…
Buying a Car in Sweden Posted by Transparent Language on Aug 31, 2009
A few days ago one of the readers of this blog asked a question about car dealers in Sweden. He wanted to know whether they are as pushy and obnoxious as their American counterparts. That’s a very good question, but I am not sure whether I am the right person to answer it. Why? I’m…
Dem Pesky Personal Pronouns Posted by Transparent Language on Aug 26, 2009
The other day I got an email asking me to clarify which form of the third person plural personal pronoun (that would be the Swedish equivalent of “they” in English) was correct. The question, of course, was about “de” and “dom”. Hmmm… it’s an interesting question. Both of those words are pronounced the same –…
The End of Apoteket (well, almost) Posted by Transparent Language on Aug 24, 2009
If all goes well, very soon you’ll be able to buy over the counter and prescription medications at your local ICA supermarket! Yay! I’d say it’s about time! You see, until July 1st of this year, Sweden was one of the very few countries left in the world with a state-controlled pharmacy monopoly. That has…