Sweden's government has dropped plans to bring in compulsory language tests for those applying for permanent residency, a spokesperson for Migration Minister Johan Forssell has told The Local.
Every language borrows from its neighbours: English is a proper mongrel, with layers of German, Danish and Norman French interspersed with smatterings of Celtic. Swedish has borrowed liberally from German, French and English, but a few other languages have left their mark, often in a way that tells a story about Swedish history. Here are some of the best.
Swedish-Finnish humour trio KAJ's 'Bara Bada Bastu' has emerged as an unexpected favourite to win the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest. The Local has done a line-by-line translation of the lyrics, so that you know what you're singing about when it's stuck in your head.
Like English speakers, Swedes absolutely love to use fake swear words – and you should too, as they sound gloriously quaint coming from the mouth of a foreigner.
Swedes respond most positively to people speaking Swedish with English, Finnish and German accents, according to a new study from Sweden's Institute for Language and Folklore that took an in-depth look at a dozen foreign accents.
The unusual way some northern Swedes say 'yes' often surprises those unfamiliar with the dialect: a cross between a gasp and a slurp, it's a curious linguistic phenomenon. The Local explores where it comes from and what exactly it means.
