Archive for 'Culture'
Valborgsmässoafton Posted by Transparent Language on Apr 30, 2009
It’s April 30th and we all know what that means in Sweden – it’s Valborgsmässoafton or Valborg. In English this celebration is better known as Walpurgis. This year it also marks the start of a really long weekend. Tomorrow – Friday is Första Maj (May Day), then come Saturday and Sunday, and the world will…
Swedish Gifts – Dala Horses Posted by Transparent Language on Apr 15, 2009
Thank you all who contributed suggestions for gifts from Sweden. Your ideas were great! I tend to buy gifts that I would like to get myself, and hence, they are not always very representative of the region, and certainly do not take into account the tastes and preferences of other people. Since I am not…
Special Easter Mission for You Posted by Transparent Language on Apr 11, 2009
Easter day is almost upon us and pretty soon the church bells will go crazy and wake everybody up. But before that happens, here are a few things to remember about Påsk in Sweden. It’s a two day holiday. Easter Monday is known as Annandag Påsk. What are some traditional Easter foods? This being Sweden…
Swedish Easter Traditions Posted by Transparent Language on Apr 7, 2009
So, as most of you probably know, this is the week of Easter, known in the Christian tradition as Holy Week. In Swedish, it’s Stilla veckan or Passionsveckan. And this is how the days of the Holy Week are known in Swedish: Monday – blåmåndag or svarta måndag Tuesday – vita tisdag Wednesday – dymmelonsdag…
Deconstructing Swedish Stereotypes – Blue-Eyed Blondes Posted by Transparent Language on Apr 3, 2009
Before I begin to talk about those Nordic blondes (or non-Nordic non-blondes, as the case may be), I want to thank you for your emails. It’s really touching to see that so many of you took the time to write to see if I was OK. Some of you heard or read about the chicken…
Immigration to Sweden – A Few Thoughts Posted by Transparent Language on Mar 28, 2009
Last time we talked about Swedish emigration to the US, but what about foreign immigration to Sweden? This is a subject that everybody has an opinion about and when discussing those opinions, tempers can run high, even among normally very reserved Swedes. I don’t know if as an immigrant myself, I should be even discussing…
Vilhelm Moberg and Swedish Emigration to the US Posted by Transparent Language on Mar 25, 2009
A couple of days ago I stumbled upon the Immigration Explorer on The New York Times website and I’m ashamed to admit, I’ve been playing with it like a little kid since. A few things surprised me, though. One – that the Norwegian and Swedish data have been divided into two groups. Why is it…