Swedish Tongue-Twisters. Part Two. Posted by Marcus Cederström on Nov 25, 2015 in Pronunciation, Swedish Language
Have you mastered the tongue-twisters from last week? Personally, I think “sex laxar i en laxask” is the trickiest. If you haven’t had a chance to practice yet, take a look at Swedish Tongue-Twisters. Part One. If you have, get ready for a new set of tongue-twisters. These are a little bit harder and maybe a little bit more challenging.
![Turns out cats also love tongue-twisters! By Trish Hamme (Flickr: Tongue-Twister ~~~~~) [CC BY 2.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0], via Wikimedia Commons](https://blogs.transparent.com/swedish/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2015/08/6836003241_3af579f1b7_o-300x300.jpg)
Turns out cats also love tongue-twisters! By Trish Hamme (Flickr: Tongue-Twister ~~~~~) [CC BY 2.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0], via Wikimedia Commons
Just like before, you just need to click on the links to hear examples.
First, Sotaren Selma samlar semlor. Se så många semlor Selma samlat. = Selma the chimney sweep collects semlas [sweet rolls eaten during Lent]. See how many semlas Selma’s collected.
Then, Farfar, får får får? Nej, får får inte får, får får lamm. = Grandpa, do sheep have sheep? No, sheep don’t have sheep, sheep have lambs.
Next, Knut satt vid en knut och knöt en knut. När Knut knutit knuten var knuten knuten. = Knut sat by a corner and tied a knot. When Knut had tied the knot, the knot was tied. (This one gets me every time.)
And finally, the one you’ve all been waiting for: Sju skönsjungande sjuksköterskor skötte sjuttiosju sjösjuka sjömän på skeppet “Shanghai”. = Seven beautifully singing nurses cared for seventy-seven seasick seamen on the ship “Shanghai.” (There are plenty of versions of this tongue-twister, but this is a pretty challenging variant.)
I’m choosing to not tell you how many times I had to record those last two to get them right. Just pretend I nailed them both on the very first try. But now you’re ready. Hopefully you were able to improve your Swedish pronunciation just a bit with these Swedish tongue-twisters, while having some fun.
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About the Author: Marcus Cederström
Marcus Cederström has been writing for the Transparent Swedish Blog since 2009. He has a Bachelor's Degree in Scandinavian Studies from the University of Oregon, a Master's Degree in Scandinavian Studies from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, and a PhD in Scandinavian Studies and Folklore from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He has taught Swedish for several years and still spells things wrong. So, if you see something, say something.
Comments:
JohanIII:
The “semla” sweet rolls are *not* eaten *during* Lent.
Well, OK, it is, nowadays, but traditionally shouldn’t be.
It is eaten on the “fat-Tuesday”, the last day before “ash-Wednesday”, when you rub ash in your hair, don a horse-hair shirt, and start fasting. 😉
Marcus Cederström:
Good point, but traditions change (luckily!) and now folks eat them well before Fat Tuesday.
Marlon Knabben:
Hey, Marcus!
For the past 2 months I’ve been studying swedish on my own and have read all entries of this blog so far.
I particularly enjoy the grammar stuff and the posts about swedish culture. Very addictive indeed!
But these posts where we can have an actual grasp of the pronunciation… to me they´re the best! My native tongue is Brazilian Portuguese, so it´s quite a challenge for me to say words with sk, sj, tj and those soft ks of yours.
I really like this post. Keep up the nice work!
And please send my best regards to Stephen and Tibor!
Ps: you have a really nice voice!
Marcus Cederström:
@Marlon Knabben Glad it was helpful! We’ll try to add a few more with pronunciation as we go along.