If you’re planning on moving to Sweden, you have to start learning Swedish. Yes, Swedes are very good at English, but you really have to know Swedish for many small things! You probably saw the term SFI often, or svenska för invandrare, on many websites. These are free Swedish courses provided by the government, however, […]
language
Are Swedish curse words punchy enough?
Jävlar! Fan! Helvete! Sitting around a table of fellow Newbies the topic of Swedish curse words came up. Not everyone shared my opinion that this set of Swedish words can be a fun and useful addition to our vocabulary. A common complaint being that they were not really that useful or forceful enough for a […]
Instant fluency with conversation fillers
Every language has its very own way to stall a conversation. When the speaker suddenly comes to a halt because the brain can’t keep up, there is this short buffer time, which gets filled with a set phrase. In this case I’m not talking about uhms and ehs. But about actual words or sentences that […]
Svenska for Children, Immersion or Bilingual Education?
English is the language my entire family speaks. Only English. I know a smidgeon of French from high school, but that is it. My husband speaks both his primary language as well as English, which he learned from an early age. He came to the United States for college and in our home, he exclusively […]
Moving to Sweden from Italy – Cristina’s Story
Cristina is from Italy and came to Stockholm as an au pair in November 2015 and has experienced her first Swedish winter.
What to expect from a Swedish visitor
Although you might see Swedish cities full of cafés and bars that are frequented all day and night, many Swedes would argue that the best place to meet and hang out with friends is still at home. I would even say that many otherwise seemingly reserved Swedes warm up a little bit in a nice, […]
No cow on the ice and other confusing Swedish expressions
Every country has its fair share of weird expressions and Sweden is no different. As a Newbie who speaks Swedish you will soon encounter Swedish expressions that will make you a bit confused. And if you don’t speak Swedish yet, don’t worry – it is quite common that Swedes will take their expressions and just […]
