Ye Olde Pub (The English Pub)

[Slimda]

We have the same joke about swedes. And I bet they have it too, about norwegians and/or danes. It's that typical sibling-humour that we've got going.

[jjkoggan]

We have the same joke about swedes. And I bet they have it too, about norwegians and/or danes. It's that typical sibling-humour that we've got going.

 

Yes Scandinavians like to poke fun at each other and because the culture and languages are similar they play on similar stereotypes. I grew up in a very Polish American area and the jokes there were different than the Scandinavian jokes or the Italian or German or Asian osv except that stupidity is central to them all. British American jokes, though are very uncommon, which is interesting... I have to think about why a bit

[( )]

Somebody should write something here.

 

I think...

[jjkoggan]

Somebody should write something here.

 

I think...

 

I thought about writing just the word "Something" but thought it too juvenile. So I'll start with some questions:

• Know any good jokes?
  
• How's the weather?
  
• Will Norway go to the World Cup 2014?
  
• Where do you live and what is good and bad about it?
  
• Why the interest in speaking English?
  
• I was in Oslo this summer and could not believe how expensive everything was. How do y'all survive? Do you never go out to eat?
  
• Can you teach me a word or phrase unique to your dialect?
  
• What is the wierdest thing you have read about the USA
  
• Does Norway still have rules on naming your children?
  

 

Just trying to kick start some conversation with some good mojo.

[Slimda]

Good jokes?

The Past, The Present and The Future walked into a bar.

It was tense.

 

Weather? I have no idea. It's pitch black outside, but usually it's just moderately cold. Haven't rained or snowed in a couple of days (as I've seen at least). Though, I've mostly been sitting in my living room, using the computer.

 

World Cup in what? E-sport? If only E-Sports got public TV appearance, as it can be quite fun for those interested.

 

I live in Oslo. It's good, it's bad and it's ugly. Central, and access to basically everything I would need. It's a large city and that very fact makes it "bad". You know, crime and beggars go hand in hand with the populace.

 

Yeah, it's quite expensive all around, actually. Then again, with nearly half a million in income before taxes, I make do. Alcoholic beverages, tobacco and other "toxic" substances aren't something I spend money on either, and I do not possess a car. Quite a large amount of money saved there.

 

A word AND a phase. It comes from the fjords and valleys of northwestern Norway, in the area called "Møre og Romsdal".

 

Word: "Brennsteikjar". "Brenn" is pronounced the same way as "pen", only with "br" in front. "stei" is pronounced like the "sta" in "stake". The "kj"-sound is the same found in "ch" as in chocolate. And the "ar" is similar to "are". In short, "Brennsteikjar".

It's a word with many meanings. It's most common use comes when implying we "do" something. Example my dad used 15-20 years ago:

"When the drawer's stuck like this, you just grab the handle, apply a bit of brennsteikjar and rip the drawer out. And voila!". Of course, he broke the bloody drawer in the process, but me and my cousin were giggling and laughing like kids usually do.

 

Sentence: "Årre du heitande det". It's hard to explain how to pronounce it, but a very similar version of it is mentioned in

video. I've linked directly to when he says "Årre du heite det", which doesn't have the "heitande"-part. But I imagine you can figure it out by listening to the video. He's from roughly the same area as where I was born and raised.

It's usually used in a "By golly"-fashion, or "god-damn".

Example:

"Mom, I want more cake!"

"Årre du heitande det, didn't you just have three servings of dinner?"

 

Weirdest thing I've read about the USA? Oh dear. Religion. Now, I know that religion's a "problem" elsewhere in the world too, and that America is in no way the only country with the problem but... The sheer amount of religious people in America, compared to other western(*) civilizations, is quite mind-boggling. And the whole "teach-creationism-in-school" is frightening.

That said, I've never been in the states, so I try not to judge the entire USA on certain groups of society. That's like saying that all of Norway live in desolate ice-covered landscapes and eat nothing but reindeer.

 

Rules on naming our children? Well, that depends on what kind of rules you're talking about. There are government-forced rules, that stop you from naming your child some certain names I believe. That way we won't have another Quisling. On the other hand, it's generally frowned upon to call your child gender-specific names when it's the wrong gender. Like calling a boy "Lisa", or a girl for "peter".

But I'm not too overly educated on this area. I've got a wholly Norwegian name, and I'm quite fond of it.

 

Phew. That took longer than expected.

[Gjest Slettet-w7DZlO15]

Nice joke.

 

 

[Slimda]

I know, right?

 

Do you know what they called the midget fortune-teller who escaped from jail?

 

A small medium at large.

[jjkoggan]

Good jokes?

The Past, The Present and The Future walked into a bar.

It was tense.

Very clever.

 

 

 

I live in Oslo. It's good, it's bad and it's ugly. Central, and access to basically everything I would need. It's a large city and that very fact makes it "bad". You know, crime and beggars go hand in hand with the populace.

 

Yeah, it's quite expensive all around, actually. Then again, with nearly half a million in income before taxes, I make do. Alcoholic beverages, tobacco and other "toxic" substances aren't something I spend money on either, and I do not possess a car. Quite a large amount of money saved there.

I like Oslo alot, except for the cost of living. I live in a city a little bigger than Oslo that has a strong german heritage but no scandinavians. THe cost of living is quite different though, I can get better pizza than Pepes for 5 times less and the average house in my neighborhood costs $200.000 for about 280 square meters of space. Its more boring than Oslo though and harder to drive in the winter because there is alot of freezing rain/ice on the roads.

 

 

 

A word AND a phase. It comes from the fjords and valleys of northwestern Norway, in the area called "Møre og Romsdal".

 

Word: "Brennsteikjar". "Brenn" is pronounced the same way as "pen", only with "br" in front. "stei" is pronounced like the "sta" in "stake". The "kj"-sound is the same found in "ch" as in chocolate. And the "ar" is similar to "are". In short, "Brennsteikjar".

It's a word with many meanings. It's most common use comes when implying we "do" something. Example my dad used 15-20 years ago:

"When the drawer's stuck like this, you just grab the handle, apply a bit of brennsteikjar and rip the drawer out. And voila!". Of course, he broke the bloody drawer in the process, but me and my cousin were giggling and laughing like kids usually do.

 

Sentence: "Årre du heitande det". It's hard to explain how to pronounce it, but a very similar version of it is mentioned in

video. I've linked directly to when he says "Årre du heite det", which doesn't have the "heitande"-part. But I imagine you can figure it out by listening to the video. He's from roughly the same area as where I was born and raised.

It's usually used in a "By golly"-fashion, or "god-damn".

Example:

"Mom, I want more cake!"

"Årre du heitande det, didn't you just have three servings of dinner?"

Do these phrases get reinvented often like american english by eight graders who reject adult language and want to talk in secret code? I always got the feeling that Norwegians like their ancient idioms.

 

 

Weirdest thing I've read about the USA? Oh dear. Religion. Now, I know that religion's a "problem" elsewhere in the world too, and that America is in no way the only country with the problem but... The sheer amount of religious people in America, compared to other western(*) civilizations, is quite mind-boggling. And the whole "teach-creationism-in-school" is frightening.

That said, I've never been in the states, so I try not to judge the entire USA on certain groups of society. That's like saying that all of Norway live in desolate ice-covered landscapes and eat nothing but reindeer

I always found the Norwegian fascination with evolution in school debate interesting. The intensity of the objection to creationism and religion seems way out of proportion to the problem. Its the kind of reaction I would expect if they were mandating torture in the schools, not mentioning that there are alternative views to evolution. Even if american children don't accept evolution it would have very little bearing on society. Most have similar views to their parents anyway, whatever is said in school is less powerful. Its especially strange reaction to me considering that I experienced the most forbidden event in american schools when I was in Norway- a religious service on campus! Never gonna happen in america.

 

 

That said, religion is on the wane in the USA and it would probably startle you to know that only about 25% of americans are serious church-goers, not exactly a overwhelming majority. Most have a casual relationship with religion and don't go to church at all or maybe on xmas. THis may be hard for you to realize since the Norwegian media loves to find all the religious oddities they can find to feed the shock and awe that Norwegians experience when watching. It feeds nicely into the anti-american narrative and stereotyping.

 

 

Rules on naming our children? Well, that depends on what kind of rules you're talking about. There are government-forced rules, that stop you from naming your child some certain names I believe. That way we won't have another Quisling. On the other hand, it's generally frowned upon to call your child gender-specific names when it's the wrong gender. Like calling a boy "Lisa", or a girl for "peter".

But I'm not too overly educated on this area. I've got a wholly Norwegian name, and I'm quite fond of it.

You do have laws on naming children I have read anyway and that information is about as shocking to americans as creationism in schools is to Norwegians. The idea that the government can limit this personal and sacred individual freedom is inconceivable in the american mind. It cuts right to the basic cultural difference between us- you accept rules to create a safe, prosperous, cohesive society where all can participate- we want the freedom to choose our own course not as a cohesive society but as individuals. The only reason to have naming laws is to have a conformist culture, to create cultural norms, antithetical to american culture.

 

 

Thanks for the good jokes and interesting conversation.

[Slimda]

I like Oslo alot, except for the cost of living. I live in a city a little bigger than Oslo that has a strong german heritage but no scandinavians. THe cost of living is quite different though, I can get better pizza than Pepes for 5 times less and the average house in my neighborhood costs $200.000 for about 280 square meters of space. Its more boring than Oslo though and harder to drive in the winter because there is alot of freezing rain/ice on the roads.

That's almost 1.2 million NOK, which is the price of the last apartment I owned, at a total of 30 square meters... Actually, it cost 1.3 million, and I'm selling it now for 1.5 million.

It's quite, quite expensive...

Do these phrases get reinvented often like american english by eight graders who reject adult language and want to talk in secret code? I always got the feeling that Norwegians like their ancient idioms.

They're not often in use, sadly. They're mostly used when you're acting a bit... extreme in terms of dialect and behavior, usually coupled with facial expressions and humor. Most of my friends from the village do not use these words at all, which is a bit sad. So in a sense, my usage of this brings it forward to the next generation.

I always found the Norwegian fascination with evolution in school debate interesting. The intensity of the objection to creationism and religion seems way out of proportion to the problem. Its the kind of reaction I would expect if they were mandating torture in the schools, not mentioning that there are alternative views to evolution. Even if american children don't accept evolution it would have very little bearing on society. Most have similar views to their parents anyway, whatever is said in school is less powerful. Its especially strange reaction to me considering that I experienced the most forbidden event in american schools when I was in Norway- a religious service on campus! Never gonna happen in america.

I believe it's mostly due to the fact that Norwegians in general are hardly religious at all, and thus find the religious fanaticism amongst some Americans really abhorrent.

As with Evolution, it's been a pinnacle of Science and Biology for over 150 years without being disproved. It's as "true" as the Germ Theory of Disease, or the Theory of Gravity. It's one of the most rigorously-tested theories in science.

That said, religion is on the wane in the USA and it would probably startle you to know that only about 25% of americans are serious church-goers, not exactly a overwhelming majority. Most have a casual relationship with religion and don't go to church at all or maybe on xmas. THis may be hard for you to realize since the Norwegian media loves to find all the religious oddities they can find to feed the shock and awe that Norwegians experience when watching. It feeds nicely into the anti-american narrative and stereotyping.

I always try my best to view the source material for articles, or to view multiple viewpoints for each research-case.

For example, This article from the Huffington Post, ends up with 60% of the US-population being religious, while only 5% are atheists.

Then there's this article, which states that people would rather vote for a gay person, than an atheist (67% vs 49%), and that atheists are as trusted as rapists.

 

Now, these aren't facts, merely opinion-polls taken from a select number of individuals in a gigantic country. Still, if a large number of opinion-polls agree, there might be a cause for concern.

You do have laws on naming children I have read anyway and that information is about as shocking to americans as creationism in schools is to Norwegians. The idea that the government can limit this personal and sacred individual freedom is inconceivable in the american mind. It cuts right to the basic cultural difference between us- you accept rules to create a safe, prosperous, cohesive society where all can participate- we want the freedom to choose our own course not as a cohesive society but as individuals. The only reason to have naming laws is to have a conformist culture, to create cultural norms, antithetical to american culture.

The Norwegian society is quite fond of protecting people from doing mistakes and similar things. We don't mind restrictions on things we find silly. We do complain a lot when said restrictions prohibit us from regular things though, like the famous waterjet-ban, or the segway-ban.

I wouldn't mind more freedom in Norway though, but on the other hand, too much freedom could cause problems.

Thanks for the good jokes and interesting conversation.

No problem. It's always fun getting to put one's thoughts into written word.

[Netj]

This website is really interesting about the scandinavia and the world.

Wish you like it also

http://satwcomic.com/

[( )]

You do have laws on naming children I have read anyway and that information is about as shocking to americans as creationism in schools is to Norwegians. The idea that the government can limit this personal and sacred individual freedom is inconceivable in the american mind. It cuts right to the basic cultural difference between us- you accept rules to create a safe, prosperous, cohesive society where all can participate- we want the freedom to choose our own course not as a cohesive society but as individuals. The only reason to have naming laws is to have a conformist culture, to create cultural norms, antithetical to american culture.

 

I'm actually not sure what such laws are in force anymore - the general (person-)name law was relaxed a couple of years ago (to the point where I'm not sure whether we have a name law at all....). Having said that, I should say that I'm in two minds about completely removing any restrictions - the sillier problem with that is when somebody might want to name their child some symbol, in obvious reference to that guy Prince... But there is a slightly less ridiculous reason for having some restriction - to keep parents from naming their child something that is quite likely to be a constant source of embarrassment (and, possibly, harassment) for the child...

 

But of course the general problem with "our betters" is, to translate a quote, that "we alone know" - and hence, they keep insisting upon mile after mile of rules, regulations and interventionistic muddle. For which we get the enjoyment of paying, in money, time, blood pressure, &c.

 

You also wrote:

Its more boring than Oslo though and harder to drive in the winter because there is alot of freezing rain/ice on the roads.

 

In other words: You're not allowed to use spiked tires ?

[jjkoggan]

That's almost 1.2 million NOK, which is the price of the last apartment I owned, at a total of 30 square meters... Actually, it cost 1.3 million, and I'm selling it now for 1.5 million.

It's quite, quite expensive...

I agree.

 

 

They're not often in use, sadly. They're mostly used when you're acting a bit... extreme in terms of dialect and behavior, usually coupled with facial expressions and humor. Most of my friends from the village do not use these words at all, which is a bit sad. So in a sense, my usage of this brings it forward to the next generation.

In america, I believe traditions are more easily ignored. We get bored with the old expressions and want new ones. Only certain ideas are held sacred and immutable, often related to personal freedoms.

 

 

I believe it's mostly due to the fact that Norwegians in general are hardly religious at all, and thus find the religious fanaticism amongst some Americans really abhorrent.

As with Evolution, it's been a pinnacle of Science and Biology for over 150 years without being disproved. It's as "true" as the Germ Theory of Disease, or the Theory of Gravity. It's one of the most rigorously-tested theories in science

Religious freedom is one of the immutable principles of personal freedom that will never go away even if we are becoming increasingly less religious every year. The interesting thing to me is that politically progressive americans that would be quite at home with AP politikk in Norway do not possess this fanatical opposition to religion in america that so many Europeans do. Yes they reject christian conservatism and don't believe in creationism but mostly see mainstream religion as a positive thing, as do I. No other group in america does more charitable work to so many needy people both inside and outside the church and provides both a moral compass and solid personal support for each other.

 

What I think is missing in the understanding of religion in america for many Europeans is understanding the actual depth of religious fanaticism. This you cannot get from reading polls asking about evolution or what you believe. Even though almost half of america will say that they don't believe in evolution, this doesn't really tell you whether they actually go to church, read the bible and speak in tongues. Most americans do think they should be religious and when asked about evolution many figure the "right" answer is to say no and to say they go to church often when statistics show that they don't at all. Statistics actually show that when counted(not asked whether they go or not) only about15- 25% of americans attend church very often. Only a fraction of these people that go to church regularly are "fanatical", the rest are casual goers who like the social aspect or think it is the right thing to do, but otherwise act like most secular norwegians.

 

As far as the evolution question goes, I am not sure what terrible things have happened to america as a result of evolution denial, some of the best scientists in the world have come from religious universities and the USA has dominated nobel prizes in science. Other than a few religious zealots who won't study evolution at the university, I am not sure why this question is so important. I would really be interested in you clarifying exactly why this is bothersome. I have an idea that it actually doesn't have much to do with evolution itself.

 

 

I

always try my best to view the source material for articles, or to view multiple viewpoints for each research-case.

For example, This article from the Huffington Post, ends up with 60% of the US-population being religious, while only 5% are atheists.

Then there's this article, which states that people would rather vote for a gay person, than an atheist (67% vs 49%), and that atheists are as trusted as rapists.

 

Now, these aren't facts, merely opinion-polls taken from a select number of individuals in a gigantic country. Still, if a large number of opinion-polls agree, there might be a cause for concern.

As previously stated, opinion polls don't capture nuance and depth very well. They often seem to be designed to shock.

 

 

The Norwegian society is quite fond of protecting people from doing mistakes and similar things. We don't mind restrictions on things we find silly. We do complain a lot when said restrictions prohibit us from regular things though, like the famous waterjet-ban, or the segway-ban.

I wouldn't mind more freedom in Norway though, but on the other hand, too much freedom could cause problems.

 

No problem. It's always fun getting to put one's thoughts into written word.

 

 

Americans are uncomfortable being the protectors of other citizens and Norwegians see it as a moral imperative to minimize risk, even at the expense of personal freedom. Our views on personal freedom come from our pioneering heritage where self sufficiency was absolutely necessary out in the wilderness and the fact that we all came from different places in the world, we don't see ourselves as dependent/interdependent on each other, the individual is primary, society at large is secondary. We don't like rules that protect us from ourselves. We don't trust authority or experts nearly as much as you do.

 

Norwegians, on the other hand have a more common history, language and a culture that stresses conformity. Jante law expresses that principle quite nicely. Stanley Milgram, a social scientist performed some classic experiments on social conformity in Norway.http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=milgram-nationality-conformity

 

This cultural trait makes it easier to establish a welfare state when you feel connected and responsible for each other, and to impose laws that protect each other. Americans find these ideas stifling.

 

Nevertheless, there are positive and negative sides to every culture and personally, I love both.

[B O I]

Canst thou tel me what we doost arn?

[B O I]

Ik thinke we mayst discuss Medieval English grammar! Hense, nat arn myn vocabulary good enough. . .

 

We moste now only taketh hise pronouns onlye!

 

 

 

 

Endret 16. januar 2013 av Zeilond

[( )]

Ik thinke we mayst discuss Medieval English grammar! Hense, nat arn myn vocabulary good enough. . .

 

We moste now only taketh hise pronouns onlye!

 

I do presume you mean Middle English, though...

 

Very well, what are your questions on the subject ?

[jjkoggan]

Perhaps we are Interested in relationship between middle English and old Norse and use of pronouns?

 

Is there a

Linguist in the house?

Endret 16. januar 2013 av jjkoggan

[B O I]

Linguist in the house?

 

Nay! Thu we hadden nat one ealier?

Endret 17. januar 2013 av Zeilond

[Dryasanne]

Why doesnt any one contribute some thing here?

 

Im on my way from a shitty countryside, where I live, to a lively week in Italy. To live out my dreams, walking them streets visiting all the nice churches, castles and have something to eat that tastes lovely, instead of that dreadfful kjøtkak i brun saus. :-)

[Slimda]

This thread is merely hibernating due to the lack of active posters. There's nothing wrong with encouraging a new topic of discussion here, as we all need a bit of English in our day-to-day lives.

[( )]

"Why doesnt any one contribute some thing here?"

 

Good question.

 

It would appear that this is one of those on-again, off-again threads, that sometimes are lively, sometimes as dead as a dodo's doornail...

 

But I'd like to make one comment about those meat balls: Their quality depends on at least two factors, namely the quality of their ingredients and of their cook.

 

As for Italy: Bon Voyage - but where in Italy are you going ?