Norwegian has a unique pronunciation system, which includes a specific set of vowel and consonant sounds, some of which are not found in English. This lesson will cover the basics of the Norwegian alphabet, vowel and consonant sounds, diphthongs, and some silent sounds.
The Alphabet
The Norwegian alphabet consists of 29 letters: 9 vowels and 20 consonants.
- Vowels: A, E, I, O, U, Y, Æ, Ø, Å
- Consonants: B, C, D, F, G, H, J, K, L, M, N, P, Q, R, S, T, V, W, X, Z
Each letter has a distinct pronunciation, often different from English.
- A: /ɑː/ ('a' in "hard")
- B: /beː/ ('b' in "buy")
- C: /seː/ (before front vowels), /k/ (before back vowels) ('s' in "circus", 'k' in "camping")
- D: /deː/ ('d' in "dog")
- E: /eː/ ('e' in "bed")
- F: /ef/ ('f' in "fine")
- G: /geː/ ('g' in "girl")
- H: /hoː/ ('h' in "hat")
- I: /iː/ ('ee' in "see")
- J: /jeː/ ('y' in "yes")
- K: /koː/ ('k' in "kite")
- L: /el/ ('l' in "live")
- M: /em/ ('m' in "map")
- N: /en/ ('n' in "now")
- O: /uː/ (no exact equivalent)
- P: /peː/ ('p' in "pen")
- Q: /kʉː/ ('qu' in "quiz")
- R: /ær/ (Scottish 'r')
- S: /es/ ('s' in "see")
- T: /teː/ ('t' in "tea")
- U: /ʉː/ ('u' in "new")
- V: /veː/ ('v' in "violin")
- W: /2dobeltˌveː/ ('v' in "violin")
- X: /eks/ ('x' in "tax")
- Y: /yː/ (no exact equivalent)
- Z: /set/ ('s' in "zoom")
- Æ: /æː/ ('a' in "bad")
- Ø: /øː/ (no exact equivalent)
- Å: /oː/ ('aw' in "saw")
Vowels and Their Pronunciation
Norwegian vowels can be short or long. The duration of the vowel sound changes the meaning of the word.
Examples of short vowels:
- takk /'tɑk/ (thank you)
- legge /'leɡe/ (put)
Examples of long vowels:
- ta /'tɑː/ (take)
- tak /'tɑːk/ (roof)
- lege /'leːɡe/ (doctor)
Some vowel letters in Norwegian represent multiple sounds depending on the context:
- "o" may sound like "å" in some words: komme /'kome/ (come)
- "u" may sound like "o": nummer /'numer/ (number)
- "e" may sound like "æ" in some cases: er /'æːr/ (am, are, is)
- In the word "de": pronounced as "di" /'diː/ (they)
Diphthongs
Norwegian has five common diphthongs. A diphthong is a combination of two vowel sounds within the same syllable.
- AI: /ɑi/ (kai /'kɑi/ - quay)
- EI: /æi/ (hei /'hæi/ - hello)
- AU: /æʉ/ (sau /'sæʉ/ - sheep)
- ØY: /øy/ (øy /'øy/ - island)
- OY: /oy/ (soya /'soyɑ/ - soya)
Consonants and Their Clusters
Norwegian consonants often appear in clusters that represent unique sounds.
Examples of consonant clusters:
- /ʃ/ (sh):
- Written as "sj": stasjon /stɑ'ʃuːn/ (station)
- Written as "sk" before i, y, ei, øy: skinke /'ʃiŋke/ (ham)
- Written as "rs": kurs /kʉ:ʃ/ (course)
- /ç/ (ch):
- Written as "kj": kjøpe /'çøːpe/ (to buy)
- Written as "k" before i, y, ei, øy: kino /'çiːnu/ (cinema)
- Written as "tj": tjue /'çʉːe/ (twenty)
Silent Sounds
In Norwegian, certain consonants are silent in specific contexts:
- "d": Silent in combinations like ld, nd, rd.
- kald /'kɑl/ (cold)
- "g": Silent in combinations like gj.
- gjøre /'jøːre/ (do)
- "h": Silent in combinations like hj, hv.
- hjelpe /'jelpe/ (help)
- "t": Silent in definite form singular of neuter nouns.
- flyet /'flyːe/ (the plane)
- det /'deː/ (it, that)
Word Order
Main Clauses
Main clauses are independent clauses that can stand alone as a complete sentence. The word order in main clauses typically follows the Subject-Verb-Object (SVO) structure. However, Norwegian also employs V2 word order, meaning the verb is always in the second position.
Basic SVO Structure
• Subject (S) + Verb (V) + Object (O)
- Jeg (S) ser (V) en film (O).
- I am watching a movie.
V2 Word Order
If the sentence begins with an adverbial or another element, the verb must still be the second element in the sentence.
- I går (Adverbial) så (V) jeg (S) en film (O).
- Yesterday, I watched a movie.
Word Order with Modals and Auxiliary Verbs
When using modal or auxiliary verbs, the main verb comes after the subject and modal/auxiliary verb.
- Jeg kan (Modal) spise (Main Verb) epler (O).
- I can eat apples.
Subordinate Clauses
Subordinate clauses cannot stand alone and are dependent on a main clause. They are often introduced by conjunctions like “at” (that), “fordi” (because), “hvis” (if), “når” (when), etc.
Basic Structure
• Conjunction + Subject (S) + Object (O) + Verb (V)
- Jeg vet (Main Clause) at (Conjunction) du (S) liker (V) sjokolade (O).
- I know that you like chocolate.
Inversion in Subordinate Clauses
Unlike main clauses, the verb does not move to the second position but stays after the subject.
- Jeg spiser (Main Clause) fordi (Conjunction) jeg (S) er (V) sulten (O).
- I eat because I am hungry.
Subordinate Clauses with Adverbs
When an adverb is present in a subordinate clause, it typically comes after the subject.
- Han sa (Main Clause) at (Conjunction) han (S) ofte (Adverb) leser (V) bøker (O).
- He said that he often reads books.
Word Order in Questions
In questions without a question word, the verb comes first.
- Studerer han på Oslo Universitet? (Does he study at Oslo University?)
- Vil han ikke spise kake i kantina i dag? (Doesn’t he want to eat cake in the canteen today?)
For questions with a question word, the order is question word + verb + subject.
- Hva studerer han? (What does he study?)
- Hvorfor vil han ikke spise kake i kantina i dag? (Why doesn’t he want to eat cake in the canteen today?)
Common Conjunctions
Some frequent subordinating conjunctions and their examples are:
- fordi (because)
- Peter er stresset fordi foreldrene kommer. (Peter is stressed because his parents are coming.)
- at (that)
- Peter sier at han ikke kan ta en pause. (Peter says that he cannot take a break.)
- hvis (if)
- Peter blir glad hvis Eva hjelper ham. (Peter will be happy if Eva helps him.)
- om (if – together with the verb å spørre (to ask))
- Eva spør Peter om han ikke liker kake. (Eva asks Peter if he does not like cake.)
Inverted Sentences
In inverted sentences, the subject follows the verb.
- I dag vil ikke Peter spise kake i kantina. (Today, Peter does not want to eat cake in the canteen.)
Subordinate clauses can also be placed in the front field of the main clause, moving the subject after the verb.
- Hvis Eva hjelper ham, blir Peter glad. (If Eva helps him, Peter will be happy.)
- Fordi foreldrene hans kommer, er Peter stresset. (Because his parents are coming, Peter is stressed.)
Comma Rules
1. Use a comma in front of "men" (but).
- Example: Anna bor i Trondheim, men hun kommer fra Italia. (Anna lives in Trondheim, but she comes from Italy.)
2. Use a comma in front of the conjunctions "og" (and), "for" (because), and "så" (so) when the following sentence is a complete main clause.
- Han har bodd i Norge i tre måneder, og han jobber på Oslo Universitet. (He has lived in Norway for three months, and he works at Oslo University.)
3. Use a comma before and after a parenthetical clause.
- Peter, som kommer fra Tyskland, jobber på Oslo Universitet. (Peter, who comes from Germany, works at Oslo University.)
4. Use commas by enumeration.
- Ken spiser vanligvis kylling, laks, pasta, ris og grønnsaker til middag. (Ken usually has chicken, salmon, pasta, rice, and vegetables for dinner.)
5. Use a comma after the subordinate clause when it is placed in front of the main clause.
- Hvis Eva hjelper ham, blir Peter glad. (If Eva helps him, Peter will be happy.)
6. Use a comma after direct speech.
- ”Vil du ha hjelp”, spør Eva. (”Would you like some help”, Eva asks.)
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