Introduction to Swedish/Spelling

The ng-sound
Normal case: tung, tvinga, sväng

Spelled gn when the ng-sound is followed by a n-sound: regn, lugn, ugn, inhägna

An exception to above is tvungna as the ng-spelling of this word is herited from the adjective tvungen.

The tj-sound
English examples of the tj sound: wash, fish, flush, shallow, ship

Before hard vowel (at the beginning of words), the tj-sound is spelled tj.

tjusa, tjäna, tjalla, tjog

Before soft vowel (at the beginning of words), the tj-sound is often spelled k, but sometimes tj.

Kina, kela, kind, kärlek, kyrka, körsbär¨ Tjej, tjäna, tjära

Exceptions with tj-sound kjol, kiosk

The skj-sound
Due to the development of the spoken language since the Middle Ages, this sound is complex, not only in terms of spelling but also in terms of pronunciation. In "standard" Swedish, without any strong social or regional marker, this sound is pronounced in a way very similar to German "Buch" or Scots "loch". However, it can also be pronounced in a way midway between the "tj" sound and "sh-" in English, and then carries a strong upper-class social marker, except in Northern Sweden where a similar pronunciation is very widespread without social connotations. The social marker can elicit mildly to violent reactions, whereas the regional marker is usually thought of as attractive.

The standard spelling is sj.

sju, sjö, sjal, sjåpig, själ

Before soft vowel the skj-sound is often spelled sk.

skepp, skinn, sky, skärm, sköld

Before 'o' and 'u' the skj-sound is sometimes spelled skj.

skjorta, skjul, skjuta

Before the soft vowel ä the skj-sound is sometimes spelled stj.

stjärna, stjärt, stjälk

''In central and northern Sweden, the combination rs is also pronounced this way, except in formal recitals and by some elderly speakers. Particularly in Western Sweden (and there more clearly in lower-class sociolects) the combinations "rs" and "rt" are pronounced "s" and "t".''

fors, färsk, kurs

For some exceptions in beginning of loan words, before a soft vowel the skj-sound is spelled g.

generell, generös, giraff

Before hard vowel in some borrowed words spelled ch.

choklad, chock, chans

Before o in some borrowed words spelled ti.

station, situation, aktion

In a few words, the spelling is sch.

schack, schampo; dusch

The j-sound
jord, boj,

djup, djungel, djärv, djur

gärna, ge

gjuta, gjorde

hjärna, hjälp

ljuvlig, ljus

The rd and rt-sounds
Pronounced with soft r and long preceding vowel in a manner reminiscent of Hindi or Urdu ṭ and ḍ; in certain rural dialects "lt" is pronounced in a similar way.

ord, börda

kort, art

The r-sound
This sound depends strongly on the dialect. There are five variants.

The s-sound
sång, stilla, bas

cykel, cyklop, cyanid, Cecilia

Z is pronounced like s. zink, zoo, zon

Example sentences
Många ugnar görs i Kina. Many ovens are made in China.

Hjärnan är jättestor. The brain is huge.

I djungelns djup finns många djärva djur. Deep in the djungle there is a lot of brave animals.

I skjulet finns skjorta. In the shed there is shirt.

Example text
Drottning Kristinas far, Gustav II Adolf, lät bygga regalskeppet Vasa år 1628. Skeppet sjönk på sin jungfrufärd eftersom det var för rankt byggt. Anders Franzén återfann det sjunkna skeppet 1956. Det bärgades och konserverades och finns nu på Vasamuséet i Stockholm.

''The father of Queen Christina, Gustav II Adolf, built the warship Vasa in the year 1628. The ship sank on its maiden voyage as it was too unstable. Anders Franzén found the sunken ship in 1956. It was brought up and preserved and is now exposed at the Vasa museum in Stockholm.''

Exercises
Pronounce these words

A) juni, hjul, jul, djur, gjuta, gubbe, galt, hjort, hjässa, ge, ljuvlig

B) kurva, tjusig, köra, kärv, kär, tjäle, tjockis, varsel, mars, kjol

C) skalle, sjal, stjälpa, skjorta, sko, skinn, generad, gumma, gäst, ljus

D) vart, färd, fart, hord, rabbla, borra, bura in, barrikad

E) vagn, dunge, djungel, ting, stygn, tvungna, ringla

F) bastu, vass, central, Barsebäck, morsning, kross, brons

Translate into English 1. Ett skepp med körsbär kommer från Kina. 2. Cecilia är en schackspelare. 3. Djur ska inte tvättas med schampo. 4. Giraffer och zebror är afrikanska djur. 5. Kring jul tänder man många ljus.

Translate into Swedish 6. You will gain on it! 7. There is a shot giraffe in the shed. 8. Venus is bright, but it is not a star! 9. I bought two skirts in a kiosk. 10. A lot of species have brains.

../Answers to exercises/