The year's new Swedish words
The Local Sweden - [email protected]
Published: 30 Dec, 2005 CET.
Updated: Fri 30 Dec 2005 13:06 CET
The year's end heralds one of the more spirit-crushing days for students of Swedish: the annual announcement by the Swedish Language Council of the new words which have become part of Sweden's linguistic currency over the past twelve months.
Not all of the words were first used in 2005, but to make it to the prestigious list they must have increased significantly in use or been particularly relevant during the year, said the council.
What follows are a few examples - with The Local's best effort at a translation. Some may be more useful than others - and one or two may have a hint of familiarity about them.
- Blinga: adorn oneself with glittery items, such as jewellery, with the intention of displaying wealth.
- Gala in: collect a large amount of money for charitable causes via a celebrity-studded gala event.
- Industrisafari: a tour of old industrial areas to look at the architecture and soak up the atmosphere of how work used to be.
- Kollektomat: a machine for contributing to church collections with a bank card rather than cash.
- Nätfiske: computer fraud in which an individual is lured into logging into a fake web site where they then provide, for example, their bank account details. From the English phishing.
- Plusjobb: temporary work within the public sector, set aside for the long-term unemployed. An example of the kind of work is hanging up curtains for elderly people. Hence the opposition's alternative word, curtain-hanger job (gardinhängarjobb).
- Podda: download music to an mp3 player, such as Apple's Ipod, and then organise and listen to that music. Also: poddare, one who engages in such activity.
- Snackis: a current subject of discussion.
- Sudoku: a popular and infuriating number puzzle.
- Tjock-tv: a television which is not of the flat screen variety. Literally 'fat TV'.
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Not all of the words were first used in 2005, but to make it to the prestigious list they must have increased significantly in use or been particularly relevant during the year, said the council.
What follows are a few examples - with The Local's best effort at a translation. Some may be more useful than others - and one or two may have a hint of familiarity about them.
- Blinga: adorn oneself with glittery items, such as jewellery, with the intention of displaying wealth.
- Gala in: collect a large amount of money for charitable causes via a celebrity-studded gala event.
- Industrisafari: a tour of old industrial areas to look at the architecture and soak up the atmosphere of how work used to be.
- Kollektomat: a machine for contributing to church collections with a bank card rather than cash.
- Nätfiske: computer fraud in which an individual is lured into logging into a fake web site where they then provide, for example, their bank account details. From the English phishing.
- Plusjobb: temporary work within the public sector, set aside for the long-term unemployed. An example of the kind of work is hanging up curtains for elderly people. Hence the opposition's alternative word, curtain-hanger job (gardinhängarjobb).
- Podda: download music to an mp3 player, such as Apple's Ipod, and then organise and listen to that music. Also: poddare, one who engages in such activity.
- Snackis: a current subject of discussion.
- Sudoku: a popular and infuriating number puzzle.
- Tjock-tv: a television which is not of the flat screen variety. Literally 'fat TV'.
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