The Norwegian language
According to researchers, the Scandinavians spoke Early Scandinavian (also called primitive Norse) from before Christ until around 600-700 A.D. The best-known examples of an early Norwegian language are runic inscriptions that were carved into stone, this was Early Scandinavian. On their travels in Europe, the Norwegians became familiar with another way of writing, with quill pens and parchment, and together with Christianity and the Latin alphabet, the entire European literary tradition was accessible. Norse disappears as a written language in the late Middle Ages. Close to two thirds of the population die during the Black Death (1349-50), and most of the people who knew how to write, the clerical and secular upper classes vanished. In addition to this, Hanseatic merchants settled in Bergen and in other Norwegian towns. The Hanseatic merchants dominated trade in the 13th and 14th century and this meant a strong influence from the German language. From the 14th century Norway is in a union with Denmark and Sweden. As a consequence of all this, Norse disappeared, as a written as well as a spoken language. During the 15th century, Danish increasingly influenced the Norwegian written language, and during the period from 1550 until around 1750 Danish was to dominate totally in Norwegian society. Danish was the language of the administration. The Bible was translated into Danish, textbooks at school were Danish and Norwegians studied at the university in Copenhagen.
From the end of the 18th century many Norwegian writers started to use Norwegian words and Danish-Norwegian words written in a Norwegian way. The idea of a Norwegian written language of its own was born in this period. The interest in a Norwegian national language was strengthened at the beginning of the 19th century, and the demand for a Norwegian written language became more common. The two most important reasons for this, was the Romantic Movement and the end of the union. The romantic ideas were very closely associated with the ideas of what was national, and the language was considered the most significant feature of an independent people. The interest for the Norwegian dialects and the real Norwegian was strong. In addition to this, the union with Denmark ended, and in the new union with Sweden (1814-1905) Norway obtained a much freer cultural and political position than it had experienced in the union with Denmark.
In the 1840s the development of a new written Norwegian language based on several dialects started, this language was also to some extent related to Norse. In the 1870s the language dispute was turned into a political issue, especially the question about which language should be used in schools and whether the children should be allowed to speak in their regional dialect. In 1885 two written languages were officially accepted in Norway. At the time they were called Riksmål and Landsmål, but since 1929 they have been named Bokmål and Nynorsk. Nynorsk is reconstructed from the original Norse language as well as from several Norwegian dialects, while Bokmål has its origins in Danish.
A striking feature of the language situation in Norway today is the fact that we have two official versions of the Norwegian written language that are almost similar to one another. Both versions have various accepted varieties with alternative spelling and conjugations and they are both very close to the spoken language. Because of continuous changes in the orthography, one can claim that hardly anyone in Norway knows Norwegian orthography correctly. An important trend is the fact that Nynorsk is approaching Bokmål more than the other way around. Bokmål and Nynorsk resemble each other more today than any of them resembles their origin. Today approximately 11 % have Nynorsk as their first language, while Bokmål is dominating the rest of society. Immediately after the Second World War, around 43 % had Nynorsk as their first language. Today it is perfectly acceptable to use your dialect in the media and otherwise in official contexts.
Norwegian is a small language in a world context. With 4,5 million people speaking Norwegian as their mother tongue, it is a small language also in a European context. Norwegian belongs to the Germanic branch of the Indo-European language family, more precisely the North Germanic part. In the transition from Norse to Norwegian, Norwegian was particularly influenced by German. Today Norwegian is mainly influenced by American English.
The official minority Sami languages are not related to Norwegian.
Syntax
Today Norwegian can be characterized as a SVO language (subject, verb, object). This means that in normal sentences, the subject comes first, the verb second and finally the object or other parts of a sentence. What is particular in Norwegian is the fact that the verb always comes second, but any of the others may come first depending on what we want to emphasise. If the subject does not come first, it always comes immediately after the verb.
An example:
Ola bought a car today = Ola kjøpte en bil i dag
Subject Verb Object Adverb
Ola kjøpte en bil i dag
Object Verbal Subject Adverb
En bil kjøpte Ola i dag
Adverb Verb Subject Object
I dag kjøpte Ola en bil
Morphology
The most distinctive feature in Norwegian from a morphological point of view is the composition of long words. In this Norwegian resembles German. An example: A person working with the validation of prior learning may be called a realkompetansemedarbeider. Like some other European languages, Norwegian has three genders. We decline a noun definitely and indefinitely which is quite uncommon in European languages.
Phonology
In Norwegian the meaning of different words can be distinguished by the help the intonation. An example: The words bønder/bønner mean farmers/beans are pronounced in the same way with the exception of what is called the pitch accent. Norwegian is also characterized by the amount of vowels. English and Spanish have five vowels, while Norwegian has nine and these can be long or short. An example: tak (long vowel) means ceiling but also grip, while takk (short vowel) means thank you.
Sources:
Aksnes et al: I språket, Gyldendal, 1998
Simonsen, Endresen, Hovdhaugen: Språkvitenskap, Universitetsforlaget, 1994
According to researchers, the Scandinavians spoke Early Scandinavian (also called primitive Norse) from before Christ until around 600-700 A.D. The best-known examples of an early Norwegian language are runic inscriptions that were carved into stone, this was Early Scandinavian. On their travels in Europe, the Norwegians became familiar with another way of writing, with quill pens and parchment, and together with Christianity and the Latin alphabet, the entire European literary tradition was accessible. Norse disappears as a written language in the late Middle Ages. Close to two thirds of the population die during the Black Death (1349-50), and most of the people who knew how to write, the clerical and secular upper classes vanished. In addition to this, Hanseatic merchants settled in Bergen and in other Norwegian towns. The Hanseatic merchants dominated trade in the 13th and 14th century and this meant a strong influence from the German language. From the 14th century Norway is in a union with Denmark and Sweden. As a consequence of all this, Norse disappeared, as a written as well as a spoken language. During the 15th century, Danish increasingly influenced the Norwegian written language, and during the period from 1550 until around 1750 Danish was to dominate totally in Norwegian society. Danish was the language of the administration. The Bible was translated into Danish, textbooks at school were Danish and Norwegians studied at the university in Copenhagen.
From the end of the 18th century many Norwegian writers started to use Norwegian words and Danish-Norwegian words written in a Norwegian way. The idea of a Norwegian written language of its own was born in this period. The interest in a Norwegian national language was strengthened at the beginning of the 19th century, and the demand for a Norwegian written language became more common. The two most important reasons for this, was the Romantic Movement and the end of the union. The romantic ideas were very closely associated with the ideas of what was national, and the language was considered the most significant feature of an independent people. The interest for the Norwegian dialects and the real Norwegian was strong. In addition to this, the union with Denmark ended, and in the new union with Sweden (1814-1905) Norway obtained a much freer cultural and political position than it had experienced in the union with Denmark.
In the 1840s the development of a new written Norwegian language based on several dialects started, this language was also to some extent related to Norse. In the 1870s the language dispute was turned into a political issue, especially the question about which language should be used in schools and whether the children should be allowed to speak in their regional dialect. In 1885 two written languages were officially accepted in Norway. At the time they were called Riksmål and Landsmål, but since 1929 they have been named Bokmål and Nynorsk. Nynorsk is reconstructed from the original Norse language as well as from several Norwegian dialects, while Bokmål has its origins in Danish.
A striking feature of the language situation in Norway today is the fact that we have two official versions of the Norwegian written language that are almost similar to one another. Both versions have various accepted varieties with alternative spelling and conjugations and they are both very close to the spoken language. Because of continuous changes in the orthography, one can claim that hardly anyone in Norway knows Norwegian orthography correctly. An important trend is the fact that Nynorsk is approaching Bokmål more than the other way around. Bokmål and Nynorsk resemble each other more today than any of them resembles their origin. Today approximately 11 % have Nynorsk as their first language, while Bokmål is dominating the rest of society. Immediately after the Second World War, around 43 % had Nynorsk as their first language. Today it is perfectly acceptable to use your dialect in the media and otherwise in official contexts.
Norwegian is a small language in a world context. With 4,5 million people speaking Norwegian as their mother tongue, it is a small language also in a European context. Norwegian belongs to the Germanic branch of the Indo-European language family, more precisely the North Germanic part. In the transition from Norse to Norwegian, Norwegian was particularly influenced by German. Today Norwegian is mainly influenced by American English.
The official minority Sami languages are not related to Norwegian.
Syntax
Today Norwegian can be characterized as a SVO language (subject, verb, object). This means that in normal sentences, the subject comes first, the verb second and finally the object or other parts of a sentence. What is particular in Norwegian is the fact that the verb always comes second, but any of the others may come first depending on what we want to emphasise. If the subject does not come first, it always comes immediately after the verb.
An example:
Ola bought a car today = Ola kjøpte en bil i dag
Subject Verb Object Adverb
Ola kjøpte en bil i dag
Object Verbal Subject Adverb
En bil kjøpte Ola i dag
Adverb Verb Subject Object
I dag kjøpte Ola en bil
Morphology
The most distinctive feature in Norwegian from a morphological point of view is the composition of long words. In this Norwegian resembles German. An example: A person working with the validation of prior learning may be called a realkompetansemedarbeider. Like some other European languages, Norwegian has three genders. We decline a noun definitely and indefinitely which is quite uncommon in European languages.
Phonology
In Norwegian the meaning of different words can be distinguished by the help the intonation. An example: The words bønder/bønner mean farmers/beans are pronounced in the same way with the exception of what is called the pitch accent. Norwegian is also characterized by the amount of vowels. English and Spanish have five vowels, while Norwegian has nine and these can be long or short. An example: tak (long vowel) means ceiling but also grip, while takk (short vowel) means thank you.
Sources:
Aksnes et al: I språket, Gyldendal, 1998
Simonsen, Endresen, Hovdhaugen: Språkvitenskap, Universitetsforlaget, 1994