Tag: pronunciation

The Swedish month of Mash

Posted on by Neil Shipley's watching the Swedes

We are currently in the month of March, and this brings up an interesting aspect of Swedish pronunciation. The month March is spelled ‘mars’ and pronounced ‘mash’. The same goes for the planet Mars and the chocolate bar – ‘mash’.

In fact, whenever an ‘r’ is followed by an ‘s’ in Swedish, the sound of the ‘s’ changes to ‘sh’ – with some dialectical differences, of course. So, for example, cross – ‘kors’- is pronounced ‘kosh’. Färs (mince) is ’fesh’, Lars (the name Lars) is ‘Larsh’, Vers (verse) is ’vesh’.

In fact, I can’t think of a word that is an exception to this pronunciation. Can you?

Take a breath – and speak Swedish.

Posted on by Neil Shipley's watching the Swedes

Probably ‘antiestablishmentarianism’ is one of the most notorious long English words that exist. However, in general we don’t have so many long words in the English language. This is because we use the space bar to separate words. Unlike Swedish.

In the Swedish language, grammar rules allow many words that would be separated in English to be arbitrarily conjoined, making it one veeeerrry long word. This can be mind boggling for the new language learner trying to get a grip on the linguistic acrobatics of the Swedish language.

Here are some of the longest co-joined words in Swedish. Take a breath. And speak Swedish…

1) nagellacksborttagningmedel – nail polish remover

2) diskrimineringsombudsmannen – ombudsman for discrimination

3) realisationsvinstbeskattning – capital gains tax

4) hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliofobi – fear of long words!

5) blodsockerprovtagningsmaskin- blood sampling equipment

6) användervänlighetsundersökning – enquiry into user-friendliness

7) trafikavspärrningsarbetsupgifter – traffic barrier tasks

8) eurovisionsschlagerfestivalsfinalsdeltagare – eurovision finalist

9) korttidsanställdasommarlovspraktikanter – summer job workers with short term contracts

10) mindervärdighetskomplex – inferiority complex (what one gets trying to pronounce these words!)

And finally… try this one out. According to the Guiness Book of Records the longest Swedish word is nordvästersjökustartilleriflygspaningssimulatoranläggningsmaterielunderhållsuppföljningssystemdiskussionsinläggsförberedelsearbeten.

The top 10 most satisfying Swedish words to pronounce

Posted on by Neil Shipley's watching the Swedes

mumsfillibababba

I’ve spent over 20 years struggling with the Swedish language. Grammar is always a challenge for me – but it is pronunciation that still continues to drag me down.

That said, there are a few Swedish words that I just love to say. They have to be the most fun words in the Swedish language. Here, in no particular order, are my top 10.

  1. Mumsfilibaba – a hysterically satisfying way to say that something is really delicious
  2. Sjuksköterska – the Swedish word for nurse – try saying it after a couple of beers – it’s really fun
  3. Kackerlacka – the Swedish word for cockroach is somewhat onomatopoeic – the perfect way to describe these disgusting little bugs
  4. Sura uppstötningar – horrible to experience acid reflux but really fun to say the word
  5. Smidig – a useful word that’s fun to say and that means everything from easy and adaptable to flexible and pliable and even loose-limbed.
  6. Yxskaft – the handle of an axe – ok not a word that you say very often, but enromously satisfying when you get the chance
  7. Grönsaksbuljongtärning – a long word for a vegetable stock cube. Sometimes I go inte a supermarket and ask a shop assistant where to find them just so I get a chance to say it.
  8. Toppen – an uplifting way to say that all is good
  9. Hjärnsläpp – the Swedish word for drawing a blank. But it doesn’t matter if you can’t remember what you were going to say – because then you get to say ‘hjärnsläpp’ instead.
  10. Bajskorv – childish I know, but the Swedish word for ‘poo sausage’ is just hysterical.

 

Other Swedish words I love are ‘ångestframkallande‘, ‘slickepott’, ‘snöslask’, ‘oroväckande‘, ‘knäckebröd‘, ‘mångata’ and ‘underrättelsetjänsten‘.

What are some of your most satisfying Swedish Words to pronounce?

Let me know in the comments below….