Norwegian-Swedish-Danish: The Same

Grëtsçkwiettuk   Sun Aug 20, 2006 6:13 pm GMT
The three are the same.But if you speak Norwegian in Sweden, Swedes will make fun of you.Because you know, "hot potato in mouth" :D
potaato   Sun Aug 20, 2006 11:01 pm GMT
I like Norwegian, it's phoneticly easier then Swedish, now we all know that who sounds as if they have a hot potato in there mouth are the English.
Grëtsçkwiettuk   Mon Aug 21, 2006 6:04 pm GMT
Yes, I am a Norwegian too.And so yes I do speak norwegian and when I speak to a Swede, he makes fun of me too.Swedes think that we speak a bit rough and like hot potato in mouth ;) But according to the Norwegians, Swedish accent is a bit feminine and funny.Swedish men speak like a feminine.And it is better to speak Norwegian because Norwegians can understand both Swedish and Danish.But Swedes and Danes can only understand Norwegian.Norwegian is a bit more complicated and Swedish and Danish are very simple when compared to Norwegian in grammar.
Arthur   Mon Aug 21, 2006 7:30 pm GMT
Hi Grëtsçkwiettuk,

Do you really think so?
I am a bit surprised. Swedish has three different plural endings -ar, -er, -or, whereas Norwegian has only -e, isn't it?

Otherwise are these two languages so alike, that they are to my ears and eyes equally difficult. I am interested in your comment!!

And the factor "hot potato in the mouth" was a saying I knew as the description of Danish, not of Norwegian. I know a very funny one by the way: Danish is how Swedes speak while they sleep..... (no ofense for the Danes, of course).
Querk   Mon Aug 21, 2006 7:46 pm GMT
No Arthur, Swedes use the idiom against Norwegians too.Maybe a kind of taking revenge, huh? ;D
sino   Tue Aug 22, 2006 12:38 am GMT
Norwegian-Swedish-Danish: The Same

I think many Asian don't know this point.
Does that mean that we just need one language translator to trans the books from the three countries?

By the way, what abt finnic?
Tiffany   Tue Aug 22, 2006 3:08 am GMT
Finnish is not related to the other Scandinavian languages, and is indeed in another language family altogether.
Fredrik from Norway   Tue Aug 22, 2006 9:10 am GMT
Arthur:
Norwegian plural endings:
Bokmål: -er (masc. and fem.), - (neut.)
Nynorsk -ar (masc.), -er (fem.), - (neut.)
So in Norway you can get by with only two plural endings, so I think you are right when you say Swedish is more complicated on this point.

sino:
Norwegian, Swedish and Danish are three different languages, but more or less mutually intelligible. That means that if you translate something from English, Chinese or whatever into Swedish, Norwegians (and to a certain extent) Danes will understand it, but they will clearly see that it is Swedish.
Fredrik from Norway   Tue Aug 22, 2006 9:23 am GMT
Arthur:
BTW, the original 19th century Landsmål/Nynorsk created by Ivar Aasen also had -or as the plural for "weak feminine nouns", i.e. feminine nouns ending in -a. The "strong" ones got -er as a plural:
a river - rivers = ei elv - elver
a song - songs = ei visa - visor
This distinction was based on an actual distinction in some Norwegian dialects at that time. Even if there still are a few remote dialects with this distinction around, Nynorsk today has only -er as the feminine plural.
sino   Tue Aug 22, 2006 2:55 pm GMT
Tiffany,

Thanks!

Fredrik from Norway,

They seems as three dialects of one language. In Norway, can you see the books in all three languages in one book sotres? I am just wondering, if the people from the three countries can understand each other, there may be no need to trans books from one language to another.

The unification of the three languages may need some cooperation between governments. For example, in China, madarin is decalred as the only offical language by law and therefore taught in all provinces at primary schools. That greatly improves the communication among people with different dialects.
Arthur   Tue Aug 22, 2006 3:35 pm GMT
Frederik,

Is it possible that this -or ending is a direct descendant of -ur? I think that -ur is still used in Icelandic today.
Real Chinese   Tue Aug 22, 2006 3:45 pm GMT
Sino

Then me explain:

The difference between those three languages are like the difference between American and British English.

Can't u see Americans translate "British books"?
Real Chinese   Tue Aug 22, 2006 3:49 pm GMT
To Sino:

I know what you mean. You mean to make a "Scandinavianish" or what else which may be the lingua franca among these three countries.

Unfortunately, these 3 governments and their ppl seem unlikely to make it because their language(Swedish,Danish,and Norwegian) represents their own characteristics and even their national identity. They can understand each other "without lingua franca", then why do they have to spend more energy in making such an artificial language?
Guest   Tue Aug 22, 2006 4:02 pm GMT
There is a "transliteration rule" among these 3 languages

Verb's change

Swedish infinitive verb always end with "a" like "arbeta","betala", "informera",or "bevisa".

But Danish and Norwegian infinitve verb always end with "e"
like "arbejde"("arbeide" in Norwegian) or" drømme"(in both Danish and Norwegian)

So, generally speaking, you can delete "e" and add "a", then Danish or Norwegian infinitive verbs change into Swedish one

For example, Danish and Norwegian "drømme" become Swedish "drömma"
(P.S. Danish and Norwegian" ø" =Swedish "ö", Danish and Norwegian "æ"=Swedish "ä", Danish,Norwegian and Swedish share the same alphabet "å")
Real Chinese   Tue Aug 22, 2006 4:03 pm GMT
the previous guest is mine