[naitkris]

Svenska (Swedish):
Hej alla boards.ie medlemmar och välkommna till den Skandinaviska (Danish / Norwegian / Swedish) forum för allt med det tre Skandinaviska språk att göra.

Den här forum är för alla som vill snacka på en av det Skandinaviska språk eller också lära sej en av dem. Det kan också vara en platts att möta andra Skandinavier i Irland eller tala om saker med Irland eller Skandinavia att göra. Därför Engelska kan också användas om du ej talar en av det tre språk.

Som alltid, kom ihåg att vara vänlig när du snackar på den här forum som med nån annan forum, och också försok stanna på ämnet så mycket som möjligt.

-naitkris

Engelska (English):
Hello and welcome all boards.ie members to the Skandinaviska (Danish / Norwegian / Swedish) forum for everything to do with the three Scandinavian languages.

This is a forum for anyone who wants to chat in one of the Scandinavian languages or also learn one of them. It is also a place to meet other Scandinavians in Ireland or to chat about things to do with Ireland or Scandinavia. Therefore English can also be used if you do not speak one of the three languages.

As always, please remember common courtesy while posting in this forum as with any other, and also to try and stay on topic as much as possible.

-naitkris

[superconor]

hello.
i am in 3rd year at school, and was wondering if you could give me the name of the best site for learning Skandinaviska, or is it 3 different languages? if it is, which would you say is easiest?
or could you post some lessons?
thanks

[Elem]

It's 3 difrent lanuages, my grandmother is from Norway so norweign is simuliar to swedish Not sure about finish.

Hej, laget? JAG ALSKA DIG naitkris!

[Elem]

And also theres no point in learning any lanuage in SCA, cause 99% of the population speak english =) I just grew up with it guess.

[even]

Afaik Scandinavia only consists of Norway, Sweden and Denmark. I might be wrong though, allthough I'm born in Norway and lived in Sweden for three years.

Danish is a language you have to speak like you have a potato stuck down your throut (at least it sounds like it). In writing it's very close to Norwegian. That's because Norwegian is actually a "sophisticated" version of Danish that was introduced during Norways union with Denmark from 1523 to 1814.

In 1814 Norway went into a Union with Sweden, so the Norwegian language is closely related to Swedish too. This union ended in 1905, and Norway was then free.

Norwegians understand both Swedish and Danish without problems. Swedes are a bit ignorant, but if you speak slowly they will understand both the other languages. Danish people will understand both the other languages too.

Finnish is a strange language. It's in no way related to either of the Scandinavian languages. I believe it's actually related to Hungarian, and it sounds a bit like Russian. In many parts of Sweden they speak Swedish too (at least close to Helsinki, their capitol). It's an official language; in example all signs are presented in both languages.

There is a couple of other languages that exist in the Scandinavian countries too.

You have "New Norwegian" that is the Norwegian language. It is the language that was spoken in Norway before the Danish came. This is used some places in Norway, and all government publications have to be published in both languages. They are pretty close to each other, so if you understand one you will probably get the meaning of the other.

There is also "Old Norwegian". This is not spoken in Norway any more; they use it on the island of Iceland (the main language there). It is ofcourse a modernized version of the old language of "old norwegian". I believe it was used in Norway around the viking times.. Not 100% sure though. What is kind of special with Icelandic is that they do not import many words from English; they create (or use) their own instead. So the words like hamburger and telephone isn't used in Iceland (by the hardcore people atleast.. the youth probably use them), they have their own words to describe these items.

And up north in Norway, Sweden and Finland you have a language called "Sami". This is used by the native people up there. They migrate across the northern parts of all three countries.

So... that concludes today's lesson

Ha en god dag!


// Even

[Jannemi]

Hi ya there

The old scandinavia consisted Sweden, Danmark and Norway. That was up until the around 1950's. After, that Finland has been also counted as part of Scandinavia, even if we are not 'original' scandinavian country.

There was some agreements with the governments in 1950's, that gave Finland a sort of a back door to be part of scandinavia.

And about the finnish language. It actually originates in Asia, and closest related languages in Europe are hungarian and estonian. ( and it doesn't sound anything like russian )

And also the part, that swedish is spoken in Finland is correct.
6 % of finnish people speak swedish as their mother language, main areas are on the swedish coast starting from Turku (Åbo ) to Vaasa ( Wasa )
And also it is true, that swedish is official language in Finland and all the signs has to be in finnish and swedish.

- Janne

[even]

Ok. I have learned something new today too Good I got some of it right anyway.

...and by the way: Finnish still sounds Russian to me!

// Even

[pepsiman]

Hei Even. Not very keen on correcting a fellow Norwegian, but corrections are due :-)

Originally posted by even
Afaik Scandinavia only consists of Norway, Sweden and Denmark. I might be wrong though, allthough I'm born in Norway and lived in Sweden for three years.

This has been up in another post; Scandinavian Scandinavia is Norway, Sweden and Denmark. The geographic Scandinavia is Norway and Sweden. Outside Scandinavian Scandinavia, it's not uncommon to include the other Nordic countries Finland and Iceland. A Scandinavian would never include Finland and Iceland in "Scandinavia". But we're happily together as the Nordic countries!

Originally posted by even
Danish is a language you have to speak like you have a potato stuck down your throut (at least it sounds like it). In writing it's very close to Norwegian.

I'll leave the kartoffel (Danish for potatoe) down the throat to itself, but truth be said; in ye olde times you had the Norse language. This evolved into two languages; west Norse and East Norse. Today's Icelandic is close to the old west Norse. Swedish and Danish evolved from the east Norse. The Norwegian we have today, called "bokmål" ("written language") is a variety of a language based on Danish (in Norwegian called "riksmål").

Originally posted by even
That's because Norwegian is actually a "sophisticated" version of Danish that was introduced during Norways union with Denmark from 1523 to 1814.

It wasn't as if the Norwegians had any choice. The Danes introduced Danish as an administrative language when they annexed (!) Norway and with that the Norwegians lost their own language.

Originally posted by even
In 1814 Norway went into a Union with Sweden

As if we had a choice... The Danes gave Norway to Sweden as part of a peace agreement with Sweden. A curiosity: In 1814 Norway got its own constitution, still in use today and it is the second oldest constitution still in use, after the U.S. constitution. This is still marked with parades on 17 May... world wide (by Norwegians that is :-) There's a parade up Grafton Street too! )

Originally posted by even
Norwegians understand both Swedish and Danish without problems. Swedes are a bit ignorant [...] Danish people will understand both the other languages too.

I'm not so sure about this one. You might hurt the Swede's feelings saying so... The Swedish language isn't quite like the Norwegian. Take a Norwegian from the western parts of Norway (speaking close to the "bokmål") and they wouldn't understand. Why? Some say it's because in the south-eastern parts of Norway we've had Swedish telly while they haven't on the west coast. How strange that may seem anyway...

Norwegians understand Danish better when written than spoken. I've lived with two Danish lasses and it took me well over two weeks to understand what they were on about. At work I've a Danish colleague, and she's English only - but that's because she doesn't (or don't want to) understand me (or my other Norwegian colleague).

Another curiosity is that a few words in Danish is pretty much the opposite in Norwegian. Danish "grine" means "laugh, smile", while Norwegian "grine" (slang) means "cry, sob".

Originally posted by even
Finnish is a strange language.

Not so sure the Finns agree :-)

Originally posted by even
It's in no way related to either of the Scandinavian languages. I believe it's actually related to Hungarian, and it sounds a bit like Russian. In many parts of Sweden (sic; Finland) they speak Swedish too (at least close to Helsinki, their capitol). It's an official language; in example all signs are presented in both languages.

Finnish is a Baltic-Finnic language belonging to the Uralic language family, along with Estonian and east-Baltic regional languages. Hungarian is also in the Uralic language family, but it's resemblance (?) to Finnish is like Norwegian resembling German - it's of the same language family (germanic).

Originally posted by even
There is a couple of other languages that exist in the Scandinavian countries too.

There are actually quite a few languages other than the official ones. Take Jämtland, an area of Sweden, a Norwegian region surrendered to Sweden by the Danes. They've a language of their own - which have many similiarities with the dialect they speak in the "midlands" (that is; the Trondheim region of Norway).

Originally posted by even
You have "New Norwegian" that is the Norwegian language. It is the language that was spoken in Norway before the Danish came.

As a matter of fact, nynorsk (the English name for this is "nynorsk", and directly translated it's as Even said; new Norwegian). It's a soup of dialects boiled into one common language. Like Norwegian ("bokmål") it's a written language. There's only one area of Norway where they actually speak as they write, and that's in Finnmark - the northern most county of Norway, where they speak "bokmål". Anywhere else they speak some form of dialect. Even in Oslo, where most people come from other parts of Norway. There aren't many Oslowegians (as they're called, honest!) but I can pride myself as being a 4th generation one :-) (if that's of any value...)

Originally posted by even
This is used some places in Norway, and all government publications have to be published in both languages. They are pretty close to each other, so if you understand one you will probably get the meaning of the other.

At school you've both languages, much like English and Irish here. Where bokmål is the primary language, nynorsk is the secondary langauage and vice versa. The fail level of the seconday language tells its tale in the areas where bokmål is the primary language... This corresponds to the many politicians (of popular parties that is) that want to make the secondary language optional. On the telly (and radio) the RTÉ of Norway (NRK) have to have at least 25% nynorsk programming (which - irritating!!! - means "all" movies are subtitled in nynorsk... Arghh!!! :-) )

Originally posted by even
There is also "Old Norwegian". This is not spoken in Norway any more

This is the old Norse I mentioned above.

Originally posted by even
they use it on the island of Iceland (the main language there). It is ofcourse a modernized version of the old language of "old norwegian". I believe it was used in Norway around the viking times.. Not 100% sure though. What is kind of special with Icelandic is that they do not import many words from English; they create (or use) their own instead. So the words like hamburger and telephone isn't used in Iceland (by the hardcore people atleast.. the youth probably use them), they have their own words to describe these items.

The Islandic protect their language with swords. No foreign words are to pollute their language. Whenever needed, they make up new words to suit the Icelandic language. They do the same with Norwegian (and I'm sure with Swedish, but not so sure about Danish), but - as "they" like to say - Norway is the 51st state. Implying that anything American is cool, and in particaular: English words are more "cool" than Norwegian ones.

I have to bring forward the word "kringkasting" which was adopted by the Icelandic (translated to Icelandic of course). This Norwegian word is an adaptation of the German "rundfunk", meaning spreading, throwing [something] around (though don't quote me on that). In English it's "broadcasting". It's not everyday the Icelandic adopt Norwegian words... :-) In Sweden they call it "television". How boring isn't that...

Originally posted by even
And up north in Norway, Sweden and Finland you have a language called "Sami". This is used by the native people up there. They migrate across the northern parts of all three countries.

There are actually three Sami languages, all of which are official languages (although not treated as such) in Norway - under the common label of "Sami".

Originally posted by even
So... that concludes today's lesson
Ha en god dag!
// Even

Apologies for correcting so much, but I felt it was needed. "- Ha en god dag" you said :-) ... I like måte!

/T

[even]

Good this forum got some activity

All corrections are welcome as I don't pride myself as being a Scandinavian historian... I have to say I barely paid attention to those kind of subjects in school. But I got the outline correct, ey?

About the 17. of May parade on Grafton... who organizes that and where could I get more info on it?
Is there like a Norwegian community over here? And... most importantly... can you buy some Norwegian food anywhere?

// Even

[pepsiman]

Originally posted by even
About the 17. of May parade on Grafton... who organizes that and where could I get more info on it?

This is the work of ANSA, Association of Norwegian Students Abroad (http://www.ansa.ie/). But, register as a resident at the embassy and you'll get more information in the post late April/early May about the parade, and an invitation to the yearly 17 May reception at the Ambassadors residence (with drinks compliments of the Norwegian state :-) ).

Originally posted by even
can you buy some Norwegian food anywhere?

There's a shop on St. Andrews Lane off Dame Street (opposite the Central Bank) called The Big Cheese Company. They've plenty of German, some Swedish and the occasional Norwegian food stuff - for example the infamous (and delicious!) brown goat cheese. Give it a try. The shop that is.

Or do as I do; stock up on wiener sausages - and what can best be described as tortillas made of potatoes (lomper!) - when in Norway. Or have someone send over those essentials: tubes of mixed caviar, Norwegian mustard, salty sweets (which is IMPOSSIBLE! to find in this country...) and more.

Mmmmmm...salty sweets...

/T

[DadaKopf]

What I wanna know is: where did this "Danes talk as if they had a potato down their throats" come from? *Everyone* says it in Sweden and Norway about the Danes. Do the Swedes and Norwegians think themselves superior or something? And why a potato? Because they grow so many?

[pepsiman]

Originally posted by DadaKopf
What I wanna know is: where did this "Danes talk as if they had a potato down their throats" come from?

It comes from how the Danish language is spoken; plenty of soft sounds - as if they had something down their throat. Norwegian and Swedish have much more hard sounds.

Originally posted by DadaKopf
And why a potato? Because they grow so many?

Danish have a different word for potatoe (which is "kartoffel", from German) than Norwegian and Swedish (who have "potet", from Spanish via English). So it makes it very Danish indeed. Nothing to do with the potatoe itself

/T

[DadaKopf]

Weirdos.

[pepsiman]

Originally posted by DadaKopf
Weirdos.

Nah, just special.

/T

[DadaKopf]

Ah no, I really dig Scandinavia. Rediculous levels of social solidarity and hot chicks. Wow.