False Friends – How “ett kiss” in Swedish isn’t “a kiss” in English Posted by Chelsea B on May 13, 2020
Faux amies or false friends are tricky little things for language learners! Called “bilingual homophones” these are words that look or sound similar between two or more languages but differ significantly in meaning. So, you guessed it, while (ett) kiss is pronounced relatively the same in Swedish as it is in English, it’s not a…
Music Blog features Laleh and “Vårens första dag” Posted by Chelsea B on May 5, 2020
Another month gone by, means it’s time for the music blog! This week we’ll meet one of my favorite Swedish artists, Laleh. Although it’s officially spring time, I live in a place where spring is really just getting going now! So, as a tribute to spring, “Vårens första dag / Spring’s First Day,” is the…
Swedish Inventions / Svenska uppfinningar! Posted by Chelsea B on Apr 28, 2020
Sweden is an incredibly innovative country for its size and Swedes have been making history with inventions big and small for centuries. With Carl von Linné creating the taxonomy system in the 1700’s and the Spotify folks are reaching millions of music streamers across the globe today, innovation is a part of the Swedish narrative…
Stream Smarter, Practice Swedish! Posted by Chelsea B on Apr 21, 2020
People are consuming more media online now than ever more. Statistics show us that streaming of media content online is up almost 50% in some countries due to Coronavirus. With that in mind, I thought that I would highlight a couple of Swedish websites with movies and tv shows that are available right now via…
Around the House with Swedish Nouns! Posted by Chelsea B on Apr 14, 2020
People all around the world have been spending a lot more time in their homes. For better or for worse, I thought that we take advantage of this time to review some nouns associated with the home. We’ll cover some basics, as well as touch on a few låneord, borrowed words, from other languages. For…
Learn Edith Södergran with Molly Sandén Posted by Chelsea B on Apr 8, 2020
The first post of each month means it’s time for a music moment! Today I’ll share a song inspired by a poem written by finlandsvensk poet Edith Södergran. She wrote “Vierge moderne” as an anthem to celebrate the coming a modern, independent woman… well as modern as 1916 could get. We’ll read the poem and…
Is Sweden’s Lax Approach to Coronavirus the Right Call? Posted by Chelsea B on Apr 1, 2020
Sweden is making headlines for its handling of the coronavirus pandemic, and it’s not because of their swift action in restricting social behavior and ordering mass closures, rather, it’s the opposite. Sweden’s relaxed approach to this public health crisis is garnering attention and critique on a global scale. What’s the latest in Sweden? According to…