Swedish word of the day: läslov
If you have children in your life, today's Swedish word of the day is for you. It's a recent addition to the dictionary, only coined in 2016.
Läslov is the new-ish name for Sweden's autumn break, formerly known as höstlov (literally 'autumn break').
It literally means 'reading break' and the idea was introduced by the government back in 2016. The goal of the rebrand was to draw attention to the importance of reading and literacy, and encourage Swedish children to spend at least some of the week off reading, in a similar way to the February break which is known as sportlov (sport break).
The government invested five million kronor ($562,000) in initiatives aimed at promoting reading, following declining scores in international literacy tests.
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Lov is related to the English noun 'leave', and the link to vacation is clear if you think about 'leaving a place' or the noun 'a leave of absence', In Swedish, lov has two main other meanings: praise and permission.
In the video below, one Swede explains why lov is one of her very favourite words in the language.
Examples
Läslovet kan vara ett tillfälle för elever att hitta sin läslust
The reading break can be an opportunity for students to find their love of reading
Vi har läslov nästa vecka
We have reading break next week
Comments
See Also
Läslov is the new-ish name for Sweden's autumn break, formerly known as höstlov (literally 'autumn break').
It literally means 'reading break' and the idea was introduced by the government back in 2016. The goal of the rebrand was to draw attention to the importance of reading and literacy, and encourage Swedish children to spend at least some of the week off reading, in a similar way to the February break which is known as sportlov (sport break).
The government invested five million kronor ($562,000) in initiatives aimed at promoting reading, following declining scores in international literacy tests.
INTERVIEW: 'In Sweden no kid should ever be left behind'
Lov is related to the English noun 'leave', and the link to vacation is clear if you think about 'leaving a place' or the noun 'a leave of absence', In Swedish, lov has two main other meanings: praise and permission.
In the video below, one Swede explains why lov is one of her very favourite words in the language.
Examples
The reading break can be an opportunity for students to find their love of reading
Vi har läslov nästa vecka
We have reading break next week
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