Any Norwegian speakers here? + language nerd?

[cosmospanda]

I've been back to brushing up on my Norwegian recently and have a tutor. I was curious: does anyone else here speak Norwegian? Is anyone else a language nerd?

[katrine2309]

I speak Norwegian Not so much a language nerd as I am Norwegian though

What about you? It’s not really a common language to learn. Do you have any connections to Norway?

Oh, and just ask if I can help with anything- I am also a teacher

[cosmospanda]

I speak Norwegian Not so much a language nerd as I am Norwegian though

What about you? It’s not really a common language to learn. Do you have any connections to Norway?

Oh, and just ask if I can help with anything- I am also a teacher

Hei! I can read upwards of a B1 level, but speaking and listening are still a bit rough for me. I've noticed it's not entirely that common, because resources are few and between, especially when trying to find a dictionary at the bookstore. I was curious about Norwegian when I was a kid, because my sister had a friend from Norway, and I wanted to learn some of it. But I didn't start till like...four years ago? And now I'm hooked. It's such a pretty language and Frozen feels better watching it in Norwegian. Idk. I'm just weird  Edit to add: Do you mind if I message you?

[katrine2309]

I speak Norwegian Not so much a language nerd as I am Norwegian though

What about you? It’s not really a common language to learn. Do you have any connections to Norway?

Oh, and just ask if I can help with anything- I am also a teacher

Hei! I can read upwards of a B1 level, but speaking and listening are still a bit rough for me. I've noticed it's not entirely that common, because resources are few and between, especially when trying to find a dictionary at the bookstore. I was curious about Norwegian when I was a kid, because my sister had a friend from Norway, and I wanted to learn some of it. But I didn't start till like...four years ago? And now I'm hooked. It's such a pretty language and Frozen feels better watching it in Norwegian. Idk. I'm just weird  Edit to add: Do you mind if I message you?

Sure! I don’t mind PMs

I always like movies best in their original language, so I like Frozen in English - but I think it is nice that you like it in Norwegian as the movie finds a lot of its inspiration from here.

I usually watch all movies texted instead of dubbed. I’m not really fluent in anything other than english and norwegian (and I understand swedish and danish), but I find the experience of watching so much better when it is in its original language. Of course, animated movies are a lot different

Even though I don’t speak many different languages, I do like language! I love to play with words and have a rich language speaking. And of course, I love to write!

[ridi]

Hi! I am also a native Norwegian speaker. I am not a teacher, but I can probably help with conversation.

[katrine2309]

Hi! I am also a native Norwegian speaker. I am not a teacher, but I can probably help with conversation.

Oh, awesome! Not noticed a lot of Norwegians still on the forum

[Griffin]

Language nerd - yes, Norwegian speaker - no. I speak Swedish and can understand some basic written Norwegian (and Danish). Spoken is way too difficult for me to follow, though!

My best tips for language learning and expanding your vocabulary:
- Watch tv/movies with subtitles (i.e. Norwegian audio + Norwegian subtitles in this case) whenever possible
- Read books (you can start with books you've already read in your native language, and/or children's/YA books, and move on to more complex stuff when you feel comfortable)
- Read magazines or comics, or watch Youtube videos (anything with a visual component to support comprehension)
- Listen to music and study the lyrics
- If you cook, look up recipes online
- To practice production, join online communities like Facebook groups, or try a more traditional approach and find a penpal Or a PM pal here on the Arena

[Taffeta]

My sister has been teaching herself Norwegian on Duolingo, alongside German. I don't really know why, because she was never into languages as a kid.

I'm a language geek, for sure, though I don't speak any Norwegian and have sadly never visited Norway . I've been to Sweden, Finland and Denmark and managed to get by with Danish and Swedish ticket machines but I don't know how different Norwegian would be.

I have very rusty French from my years of school-college. The first language I wanted to learn was Welsh, though, when I was 9. I did dabble with it during lockdown but then got a bit distracted. Still, it's a language I love and have always regretted that, growing up so close to the border, we didn't get instruction in it on the English side.

I'm a native English speaker and my only other really competent language is Japanese. I taught myself to begin with and then finished it off during my MA. I've done modern and classical Japanese, and taught the classical language for the first time in the spring, but I would never dare try to teach a modern language, although I've done a fair bit of translation for anime communities (mostly live dramas, sometimes manga or short story snippets). I understand what's being said, and the grammar as I read it, but I find it really hard to explain to someone else how that works :/ I think it's because here in the UK schools are very bad at teaching even English grammar. My understanding of grammar rules in general is entirely based on what I learned in year 9 French :/

Second all of Griffin's tips for language learning. Music is supposed to be especially good as it taps into an area of the brain more easily in terms of remembering structures and things. When I began learning Japanese back in 2007, this was definitely something that I did. I admit to not having a very conventional way of learning languages, but it's definitely true that you learn more if you're watching/reading/listening to something that interests you in that langauge.

When I did my A Levels in French and Spanish, we were told to listen to 15-20 mins of the language each day to help improve listening and stuff. While Japanese is obviously very different, the estimate was that it took 8 years to be able to understand a native speaker at normal speed. I did it in five, though, because I was constantly watching stuff with native speakers at normal speed, often without subtitles. I'd just rewind and listen over until I got it. There was one anime that wasn't subtitled which I watched annually until I could understand all of it

I normally pick up some vocabulary wherever I go, or whatever I watch, but there's no substitute for immersing yourself in the language in as enjoyable a way as possible. I used to write out kanji and vocab while waiting for my train home from work, which helped, but frankly, I find it hard to study grammar rules on their own. I pick them up much more easily by hearing them used.

[katrine2309]

@ Taffeta: Norwegian is similar to Swedish and Danish. Very similar to Danish. We’ve been in unions with both countries throughout the years (only got our independence in 1905), so our languages has strongly influenced each other.

I find it very interesting how you learned Japanese. I am a language teacher, and use many of the same strategies for my students. It’s very few of us who thinks about grammar rules in languages we speak fluently. But we hear it immediately if someone speaks incorrectly. We often just know. To achieve fluency you have to use the language, listen to it.