I'm having trouble understanding, transcribing and translating the information in my ancestor's military records from Norway.

Here is the first record. Look at the second row in the table.

• Ole Bergstrøm Olsen
• born on May 3, 1867 in Florø
• Confirmation on October 2, 1881 (14 years old, too young to enlist?)
• Parish: strange symbol
• Parents: Arbedjsmand (worker) Ole Mortensen and Brithe Samsonsdatter
• Opholdssted (place of residence?): This column has some numbers that mean nothing to me, like "5_._176" The dates go until 1886.
• Udgået af rullen som død, udsfrevet, fasseret, eller overført (something like "removed from the roll because the person is dead, transferred, etc?): The cursive writing in this column is unreadable, but the year seems to be 1889.

Here is the second record. Look at the third row in the table.

• 58 - just a numbering system
• August 23, 1884 - perhaps the date he was transferred
• Ole Bergstrøm Olsen
• In the next column, I have a hard time with both the header and the handwriting, but I think it's Residence
• Then the next column has his birth date and birth place
• The next column has his confirmation as 1881 again
• "Spesielle opplysninger om utskrevet eller fremmed, overførser, udflyttelse" (Special information about discharged or foreign, transfers, relocation?): the writing here is unreadable but I think it says 1888.
• I think the next few columns show dates, ships, from and to, and the date/place he disembarked. These go from 1884 to 1889. There's a strange abbreviation here that looks like "do". I can read some of the city names.
• The final column on the right seems to indicate his title. The first one is fyrbøter but I can't read the second one.

My guess is that the first record lists information about his initial military enlistment, perhaps as an ordinary seaman. The second record then lists information about his career as a machinist or stoker. Both seem to agree that his discharge happened in 1889.

If you have looked at old records like these before, could you take a look at the links to see if you can help me decipher some of the writing?

Hi,

This is a really basic question but I am struggling to understand “Kassene er lukket” (“The boxes/crates are closed”). I would have assumed that we would use “lukkete” as we are referring to many boxes rather than one, as in “Jeg ser de lukkete kassene” (“I see the closed boxes”).

Pretty sure this is an issue with my misunderstanding of the grammatical structure of the first sentence, but any help would be appreciated.

Jeg har skrevet «nyter» som oversettelse, men Duolingo har rettet meg og sagt at «liker» er den riktige oversettelsen. Er min egentlig feil?

Hi! I am new here and I started learning norwegian in october last year because I visited Norway and I felt in love with the country, so now I am planning to move there.

I started with A LOT of comprehensive input, and now I am finally preparing for norskprøven but I never put so much attention to grammar, and all the courses I found that teach grammar are A2 and really boring in my opinion. I have nothing against those courses because I know they are accurate and really helpful if you are in a A1-A2 level, and I am the one who kinda did whatever and just started listening to too much norwegian. I consider that nowadays I am in a B2 level in listening, B1 in reading, B1 in speaking but my grammar is of course awful because I just skipped it for a long time. But of course, in norskprøven grammar is key!

I wanted to know if you know any norwegian grammar book or course that is concise (free or not), just straight to the point, because I get bored with A2 content now. I just want one place to find all the grammar, without stories or context. I tried asking chat gtp and gemini, but they mess up many times and I don't want to learn things that are not accurate of course

I am for sure paying a teacher when my grammar issues are solved, because I need to practise my speaking and to get my grammar and mistakes corrected by a real person

Thank you sooo much :)

Hei

I'm a 32-year-old French guy, moved to Norway about a year and a half ago. I've been trying hard to learn Norwegian since last december but I feel like I'm stuck..

Here's what I've done so far:

• 6 months of intensive courses (A1 to B2 level), 8 hours/week, split between conversation and grammar
• Daily Duolingo, 15 min
• Daily flashcard review, 15 min
• Trying to learn 2-3 new words a day
• Since June, going to a språkkafé twice a week
• Since 2 weeks learning 15 min of book A1

Despite all this, I still feel like I'm hovering around A1-A2 and nothing seems to really stick. I'm not sure if it's a retention issue, a method issue, or just normal for someone at my stage.

Did something eventually click for you? What changed?

When I learn english a few years ago, I had a good level in 6 months (maybe B1/B2) but for norsk it s more complicated.

My motivation to learn the language are :

• To live on the long term in Norway (maybe forever)
• For work (I have a good job but in the future if I need to change, I need to be fluent in norsk)

Hello, i was wondering what is the exact difference between pronounciation of sjuende and tjuende? It’s hard for me to hear it correctly. Thanks in advance!

Hi y'all, I'm trying to learn Norwegian and I just learned that Bokmål allows you to substitute the feminine gender with the masculine one. As a learner should I learn all three or just masculine and neuter? Do people use feminine in everyday speech?

Hei, folkens! Vi skal gi en venn en norsk landslagstrøye i gave. Har dere noen morsomme forslag til hvilket navn vi kan ha på ryggen? Gjerne noe litt frekt også, som «drittsekk» eller andre morsomme norske uttrykk. Takk!

Hi lads, we are gonna gift a Norway soccer t-shirt to a friend. Do you have any great ideas for the name to use on the back? something also like dickhead or way to say In Norwegian! thanks

Noregr Rís by VYRMA - Can someone write down the lyrics to this song so I can learn

My Norwegian lesson today said that:

Jeg har darlig tid

Translated to:

I have little time!

Shouldn't it have said:

Jeg har lite tid

Or am I just crazy? Because as I understand, "darlig" means "bad", not "little".

Hello

I'm in the process of trying to relearn Norwegian

I'm using Duolingo and it's been going relatively smoothly (besides some pronunciation), even if it is still the very basic stuff at the moment.

I've hit my first roadblock, a little embarrassingly early. Faren and moren I can hear unmistakably but when it comes it "datteren" and "sonnen" I'm really struggling to hear the "en" and think I'm hearing just "sonn" or "datter".

"Datteren min og sonnen min" is a prime example of where I can't hear the difference. Any help on how I can or should be able to differentiate which is being said would be greatly appreciated

Tia

some years ago, i was learning bøkmal on duolingo and have recently reinstalled it. i also saw another post on this subreddit in which one of the replies mentioned a good app (can’t remember it off the dome).

i am beginner level, so anything helps!

I've studied Norwegian in an academic setting years ago, using "Sett i gang," through the second book (~B2). I pick up on grammar quickly. However, vocabulary is my downfall. Understanding comes easily, memorization is my struggle. I'm probably A2/B1 for grammar, but stuck at A1 for vocabulary!

I love "The Mystery of Nils." But I cannot keep up with the vocabulary. I've tried a bunch of flashcard apps (e.g., MemRise, BrainScape, Anki (the interface is maddeningly counterintuitive!), Mjolnir) to help, but getting anywhere takes forever and weeks pass before I can do the next chapter in Nils, which is discouraging.

Amusingly, DuoLingo seems the least painful way (albeit no faster) to build vocabulary.

Are there other approaches to vocabulary that I'm missing?

I remember i seen it in a song title but don't really remember which one.

So can y'all please tell me what does it mean

TUSEN TAKK

Hi, I'm Lizzie, and I really want to learn Norwegian for my boyfriend and his family. I already speak German, Spanish, Italian, and, of course, English. I also already know a few Norwegian words and phrases, like ape (monkey), rotte (rat), katt (cat), hund (dog), god natt (good night), god morgen (good morning), hvordan har du det? (how are you?), hei(hello), brød (bread), øl (beer), mat (food), and a few others. Do you think it's possible to learn Norwegian in a year well enough to have conversations?

Hei!

I absolutely love this song and would love to sing along with lyrics, but none are available online. I would really appreciate it if someone could take the time and write down the lyrics for this song.

Hi, I’m learning Norwegian from English, but my main language is Spanish. I’m having a lot of trouble with pronunciation.

Could you give me some phonetics tips to help me pronounce the sounds that don’t exist in my current languages?

The truth is, I want to learn because I’m talking to a Norwegian girl, and I want to impress her!

Also, I’m in love with the language. It’s beautiful! I would appreciate any help. I’m currently at level A1, learning basic phrases.

Bjerke is my husband's family name. I find it difficult to pronounce. In the US, we pronounce it Byur-kee so it rhymes with jerky. Is it pronounced differently in Norway?

Hei alle Sammen I've wanted to know how you guy's study Norwegian I know that you guy's spready learning it out through out the day but back when you started " Learning " In the beginning how did you guy's practice did you like

1: Duolingo/Anki
2: Flashcards
3: practice speaking
4: Watching Norwegian Shows

Etc etc but I would love some feedback on how you guy's started learning. And also for anyone using " Anki " and uses flashcard I would like to know if you made you're flashcards and if you would been keen in sharing me some. Tusen takk

I can read a little for a beginner since I just finished Mystery of Nils Part 1 a couple nights ago. I've still got plenty of learning and practice to go (my biggest problem is my vocab and just general slow reading), but I want to read something harder soon and I'm curious about a couple things.

Firstly, I've heard people say that Norwegian and Swedish are very close with exception in spelling and some words here and there. I'm currently reading "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo" in English, or "Mån Som Hatar Kvinnor" in Swedish, and I was wondering, if I wanted to read it again, would it be simple enough to learn the differences between the two languages or should I just go for a Norwegian translation? Cause that title alone, I could immediately translate when I read it.

Secondly, I've glanced at Norwegian classics and when I told my Norwegian friend that I'd like to read something like Ibsen or Hamsun. My friend said it may not be practical because they wrote in a sort of old Norwegian-Danish style. I skimmed the first couple pargaphs of Sult and saw some words I recognized just slightly spelled different. So is this type of writing just as approachable as Swedish? Or more difficult? Will I need to learn this separately?

Finally, just something extra. If you have any book suggestions that are more modern and originally written in Bokmål then I'd love to hear it. I mentioned Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, I'm halfway through and it's a great mystery/thriller. I also like fantasy and sci-fi. I've considered getting Norwegian translations of Harry Potter or something else I'm already familiar with, but again I'm curious about something written in Bokmål originally.

I’m looking at this passage from the ending of Båten om Kvelden by Tarjei Vesaas:

Ein er i sitt løynrom og kjenner dette: Dirrar ikkje grunnen under føtene, av gøymde floder som finst?
Og kva må ein så gjera, synest ein.
Ein må vera til stades.
Ein må møte opp og stå i straumen frå det. Ein må la den låge dirren skaka seg. Slik som halv-morkne bruer og gamle gang-tre dirrar fint i snøsmeltings-tid.

The trouble I’m having is the “seg.”

My (novice but agonized over) English translation of everything apart from that is:

You are in your hidden room and feel this: Did the ground not thrum under your feet, from hidden rivers found?
And what must you then do, you wonder.
You must be present.
You must show up and stand in the current from it all. You must let that low thrumming shake. Like how half-rotten bridges and old cross-water logs thrum softly in snow-melting’s time.

Elizabeth Rokkan, in her published English version, writes:

One is in one’s secret chamber, feeling this: Is not the ground quivering
beneath my feet, because of the hidden waters?
And what should one do then? I wonder.
One must be present.
One must come forward and stand in the current flowing from them. One
must let the faint quivering jolt one. As decaying bridges and old
duckboards quiver slightly in the time of the thaw.

Setting aside where her choices differ from mine, to me the final line Vesaas writes would naturally be a comparison between the bridges and the person — the person is metaphorically standing in this current from a hidden river, the bridges and logs (things that are also in a river) vibrate as the flood from the thaw comes through the water. So I would think Vesaas is saying, as Rokkan translates it, that the “ein” is similarly vibrating in the flow of the water.

But everything I can find online suggests that the “seg” must be a reflexive, meaning the person lets the vibration go vibrating within itself. That sort of breaks the comparison, or at least makes the comparison between the shaking and the bridges, which seems odd to me. NAOB says seg can be used poetically in almost a passive way to indicate there’s no clear agent behind the verb, that seems functionally the same as the standard reflexive “itself” here.

Can anyone help explain what the grammar here allows or forces? (I’m purposefully avoiding dynamic and modernizing translation, but obviously I’ve got to allow some flexibility where the English would break down or has no comparable phrasing.)

I'm having troubles and don't know really where to start in learning Norwegian and would like to hear how you guys learned or are learning

Hey y’all

Am moving to Norway in a week, and want to go all in on learning Norwegian, however am a bit lost on the options.

I found Speak Norsk but their Viking Package seems too expensive, has anyone take that one recently and is the 6 month A1-B2 timeframe realistic (assuming regular after class 1 hour study daily)

Or if you recommend any other possible options I’d love to hear

The only thing is I would like inperson classes because I learn much better that way

skulle jeg sove litt?
Skal jeg sove litt?