If you’ve ever gotten the idea that Sweden is a cold country, you’re wrong for three months of the year—June, July, and August. Although sometimes it’s warm in the second half of May and sometimes in the first half of September, so I guess we can call that four months. During the remaining 8 months of the year, though, at least in the majority of the country, temperatures go from 10°C (50°F) to as low as -25°C (-13°F).

Right now as I write this at 19.00 on 21 October, 2011, the temperature in Stockholm is about 3°C (37°F). In Göteborg/”Gothenburg” it’s 10°C (50°F), in Malmö 9°C (48°F), and up in Umeå it’s 2°C (36°F). In other words, for most Swedes the time has already come to go shopping for winter clothing! So, I’ve made a list of some of the most important clothing words of the season. I’ll start from head to toe.

(Example: word(definite/’the’-form) /pronunciation/ – translation. Plural form.)

mössa(n) /`mös:ˌa/ – hat. Differs from ‘hatt’ and ‘keps’. Plural: mössor.

pannband(et) /`pan:ˌban:d/ – headband, the kind you wrap around your forehead. Plural: pannband.

halsduk(en) /`hal:sˌdu:k/ – scarf. This is a very popular piece of clothing in much of Europe and especially in its colder areas. Both men and women wear these. Plural: halsdukar.

jacka(n) /`jak:ˌa/ – jacket. Plural: jackor.

rock(en) /råk:/ – overcoat. Plural: rockar.

tröja(n) /`tröj:ˌa/ – sweater, but also a general word for torso clothing. Plural: tröjor.

tjocktröja(n) /`tjåk:ˌtröj:a/ – sweatshirt. Plural: tjocktröjor.

kofta(n) /`kåf:ˌta/ – cardigan, sweater. Used by women, and probably some men too. Plural: koftor.

lusekofta(n) /`lu:seˌkåf:ta/ [spellt ‘lusekofte’ in Norwegian] – traditional Norwegian sweater from the 19th century. Plural (Swedish): lusekoftor; plural (Norwegian): lusekofter.

vante(n) /`van:ˌte/ – mitten. Plural: vantar.

handske(n) /`han:dˌske/ – glove. Plural: handskar.

strumpbyxor(na) /`strum:pˌbyk:sor/ – pantyhose. Used by women, and probably some men too.

långkalsonger(na) /`lång:kalˌsång:er/ – long underwear.

strumpa(n)/socke(n)/socka(n) /`strum:ˌpa/`såck:ˌe/`såck:ˌa/ – sock. All of these words mean the same thing, but one is more commonly used than the other two in certain parts of Sweden. For example, in Stockholm/Uppsala, we use ‘strumpa’. Certain other parts of the country use ‘socke’ and others, such as Umeå (in northern Sweden), use ‘socka’. Plural: strumpor, sockar, sockor.

känga(n), stövel(n) /`tjeng:ˌa/´stöv:el/ – boot. The difference here is that stövlar are tall while kängor are not. Click on the words to see the difference on on Swedish Wikipedia. Plural: kängor, stövlar.

toffla(n) /`tåf:ˌla/ – slipper. Plural: tofflor.

And that’s all I can think of right now. If there is a word you think I should add to this list, please write a comment! 🙂