ITALIAN Man Tries To Learn NORWEGIAN | Mediterranean VS Nordic

Links to the video tutorials in order of appearance

The Norwegian language, known as "norsk" in Norwegian, stands as a fascinating testament to Scandinavia's rich linguistic heritage. Descended from Old Norse, Norwegian evolved alongside its Nordic siblings Swedish and Danish, yet followed its own unique path shaped by historical and political forces.
Norwegian exists in two official written standards: Bokmål and Nynorsk. This unusual situation emerged from Norway's complex political history, particularly its long union with Denmark. Bokmål, used by about 85-90% of Norwegians, developed from the Danish-influenced written standard used by urban elites during the Danish rule. Nynorsk, on the other hand, was created in the 19th century by Ivar Aasen, who sought to create a written standard based on rural Norwegian dialects that had maintained more of their Old Norse characteristics.
The language features several distinctive characteristics that set it apart from its Germanic relatives. Unlike English, Norwegian maintains a system of grammatical gender for nouns, with most dialects using three genders: masculine, feminine, and neuter. However, the language has largely shed the complex case system of its Old Norse ancestor, retaining only vestiges in pronouns and certain fixed expressions.
One of the most striking features of Norwegian is its remarkable dialect diversity. Unlike many European nations where standardization has led to dialect leveling, Norway embraces its dialect variations. It's completely normal and accepted for Norwegians to use their local dialects in all contexts, from casual conversation to professional settings. This acceptance of dialect diversity reflects Norway's egalitarian social values and its respect for regional identity.
The tonal aspect of Norwegian adds another layer of complexity. Like Swedish, Norwegian is a pitch-accent language, meaning that words can have different meanings depending on their tonal pattern. For example, "bønder" (farmers) and "bønner" (beans) are distinguished primarily by their pitch accent in many dialects. This feature, relatively rare among European languages, traces back to the prosodic system of Old Norse.
Norwegian vocabulary reveals much about the language's history and cultural connections. While it shares many cognates with other Germanic languages, it has been influenced by Low German (during the Hanseatic period), Danish (during the union with Denmark), and more recently, English. Yet Norwegian has also maintained a tradition of creating new words from native elements rather than borrowing foreign terms. For instance, "datamaskin" (computer) literally means "data machine," and "mobiltelefon" is often shortened to "mobil."
The language's syntax is notably straightforward compared to many other European languages. Like English, Norwegian follows a Subject-Verb-Object word order in main clauses. However, it employs the V2 rule, meaning the finite verb must be the second element in main clauses, leading to inversion when another element begins the sentence. This creates constructions like "I går spiste jeg brød" (Yesterday ate I bread), where the verb maintains its second position.
Modern Norwegian continues to evolve, adapting to new social and technological realities while maintaining its distinctive character. Recent decades have seen debates about gender-neutral language, the integration of English loanwords, and the future relationship between Bokmål and Nynorsk. Some linguists argue for an eventual merger of the two written standards, while others maintain that linguistic diversity remains a cultural asset worth preserving.
The vitality of Norwegian in the face of increasing global English influence demonstrates the language's resilience. While many Norwegians speak excellent English, Norwegian remains the preferred language in most domestic contexts. This linguistic confidence, combined with Norway's strong educational system and cultural institutions, suggests that Norwegian will continue to thrive as a modern, dynamic language while preserving its unique heritage.
The story of Norwegian illustrates how language reflects and shapes social identity. Its dual written standards, embrace of dialect diversity, and ongoing evolution mirror Norway's journey from Danish rule to modern independence, and from rural agrarian society to prosperous technological nation. As Norway continues to change, its language will undoubtedly continue to adapt while maintaining its distinctive character.

#norwegian #languages #metatron

[metatronacademy]

Links to the video tutorials in order of appearance

[martingundersen]

You speak Norwegian very well, and you spoke the Oslo dialect very well which is the one of our primary southern dialects. It's a amazing to hear how good you are your first time practices to speak Norwegian.

[MaiMChan]

Hello! Norwegian here! i was overly exited seeing you were trying my language! and i have to say! your prononiation is supriengly good! in fact, some of the bether i have heard from a non-norwegian speaker! <3

[BrazenBard]

Doing pretty good - small detail for you, the letter "å" does not have a diacritic or other accentuation - it's a distinct letter, the 29th in the Norwegian alphabet. After Z, we use Æ, Ø, and Å, generally pronounced like the "a" in "bad", the "u" in "burn", and the "a" in "all", respectively. You got the "å" pretty much spot on right away.

[sharaith]

Well done. Second best I ever heard from an Italian, as I once met a guy with pitch perfect ear for languages from Rome. (A truly incredible experience I will never forget. Didn't even think it was possible)

[nosotrosloslobosestamosreg]

Knowing English is a good starting fir Norwegian.

[Antares]

We have three unique letters in the norwegian alphabet: Æ, Ø and Å.

Æ is basically a very wide sound, similar to the way the "a" sounds in the english name "Sam"
Ø is very close to what you did. It's a "uh" sound, but even more clear if that makes sense.
Å is a sound similar to the way "au" sounds in the english name "Paul" (a name which is actually has a norwegian version written like "Pål")

I hope that helps.

[aidi]

NO QUESTIONS ASKED. DID SEE A SECOND OF THIS, I JUST WANT MORE!!! Let me also say that Italian is best from Romance language group :D

[H_e_n_r_i_k]

To be a viking you must master the æ, ø and å

[OleMarthonKarlsson]

As a Norwegan from the west og Norway, we say the Meg with a hard g.

[mxbmvnvmbncmbn]

Great video as always. If you are interested in Norse language, a modern survivor is Norwegian Høgnorsk. It is a conservative form of Nynorsk, one of Norway's 2 official written forms. It keeps cool features like dative nouns and reflexive verbs, as well as pre-Danish vocab. For example Høgnorsk "Ég med bæzta tjódom vandrast". Compare to standard Bokmål "Jeg vandrer med de beste folken". There's barely anyone talking about this beautiful language.

[JohnDoe-jmyb]

In certain Norwegian dialects (all the examples you heard were from Eastern Norway), the sounds -rt, -rd, -rn, -rs, -rl and -lt are retroflex consonants. That was the "not that strong R" you heard in "hvordan", or the "sh" in "norsk".

[JesperMGHatcherArt]

Bra jobba Metatron! Like Italia, Norway has a lot of dialects even tho the population is smaller than the city of London, would be fun to see you look into that and react:D just as a example here are some of the ways the different dialects say I . Jeg, Eg, Jæ, jé, jè, jei, e, æ, æg, æi, æig, jei, ej, i, eig, jæ,

[H_e_n_r_i_k]

You were right about the å and ø, but you have yet to encounter the æ

[MrRabiddogg]

she isn't 50. if she is, I'm moving to Norway tomorrow.

[birdyo]

awesome, now do Danish! very similar but there's way less tongue rolling in the pronunciations !

[Tore]

I think you did pretty well. Norwegian is split in to 2 official written forms: Bokmål and Nynorsk. These are however not what most Norwegians speak, only what they write. What is spoken are Norwegian dialects, these are mostly mutually intelligible for native speakers, which I assume ends up being the most challenging aspect for anyone trying to learn the language.

[pio]

Well, if you're Sicilian, the chances are you're party of Norman descent, as they're the ones who overthrew the Arab rulers. And the Normans in turn were of mixed Frankish and Norse descent. We're all connected in Europe :)

[Casstax]

And now you can learn all the millions of Norwegian dialects. :)

[NyaHaKitty]

A pleasant surprise! You have a very good grasp on the pronunciation of Norwegian. Given you are well-versed in many others languages and are eager to learn others, you have what we call "godt språkøre". Which basically translates to having "good language ear", if I were to translate it literally. A better way of translating it would just to say that you have a very good grasp on it. Another great video from you Metatron.