kareina: (stitched)
[personal profile] kareina
Back in the summer of 1989 I attended the Oslo International Summer School, where I took a class in basic Norwegian. One of the things I still remember from that class was a children's song. That song also exists here in Sweden, and I find it interesting to compare the two different versions. Since I am not the only person here on LJ who enjoys looking at language, I thought I would share:

The Norwegian version is:

Der bor en baker

Der bor en baker I Østre Aker
There lives a baker in east Aker
Han baker kringler og julekaker.
he bakes pastries and Yule cakes
Han baker store han baker små
he bakes large, he bakes small
Han baker noen med sukker på.
he bakes some with sugar on

Og i hans vindu står rare saker,
and in his window stand wonderful things
Tenk hester, griser og pepperkaker.
think: horses, pigs, and spice cookies
Og har du penger så kan du få,
and if you have money you can have some
Og har du ikke, så kan du gå.
and if you have none, you can go

and the Swedish version:

Sockerbagaren

En sockerbagare här bor i staden
a desert baker lives here in the city
han bakar kakor mest hela dagen.
he bakes cookies most of the day
Han bakar stora, han bakar små
he bakes large, he bakes small
han bakar några med socker på.
he bakes some with sugar on
Och i hans fönster hänga julgranssaker
and in his window hang Christmas things
och hästar, grisar och pepparkakor.
and horses, pigs, and spice cookies
Och är du snäller så kan du få
and if you are sweet/kind/nice you can have some
men är du stygger så får du gå!
but if you are bad/misbehaving you may leave

I am amused to see how alike some of the lines are--only the spelling of those words changes as one crosses the border, but other bits are totally different. I wonder if it is a sign of cultural difference that in Norway one needs cash in hand to get holiday cookies, but in Sweden just being a good kid will get you them.


Wow, three posts in one day, one can tell that [livejournal.com profile] lord_kjar is on his computer this evening. I often think of that many things to say, but it is rare these days that I actually sit down and type them. (If you saw only two you aren't on that filter; ask if you want to be.)

(no subject)

Date: 2013-09-30 01:49 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] lifeofglamour.livejournal.com
Wow that's really interesting. I too found myself wondering what sort of cultural differences were signified by the two versions.

(no subject)

Date: 2013-09-30 06:06 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] aryanhwy.livejournal.com
Awhile back I had fun collecting different versions of "baa, baa black sheep". In Dutch, for example, the sheep doesn't have any color, and the third bag of wool is for the little boy who shivers in the cold, rather than the little boy who lives down the lane.

(no subject)

Date: 2013-09-30 04:18 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] kareina.livejournal.com
Cool! Just in case you don't already have Swedish:

Bä, bä vita lamm

Bä, bä vita lamm har du någon ull?
Ba, ba white lamb, have you any wool?
Ja, ja, kära barn jag har säcken full.
Yes, yes, dear child, I have a sack full
Helgdagsrock åt far och söndagskjol åt mor,
a holdiay frock for father, a sunday skirt for mother
och två par strumpor åt lille lille bror.
and two pairs of stocking for little little brother

So, like the Dutch, rather different from the English version.

(note: Bror is also a given name in Sweden; [livejournal.com profile] lord_kjar's father is named Bror.)

(no subject)

Date: 2013-09-30 05:35 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] aryanhwy.livejournal.com
How cool! I didn't have this version yet, and it's very different. Only one sack? And the things that can be made from it are so different!

(no subject)

Date: 2013-09-30 10:14 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] kareina.livejournal.com
Not only one sack, I didn't quite translate it correctly--the "en" at the end means it is "the sack" (and I am guessing a rather large one too, given the inventory).

(no subject)

Date: 2013-09-30 10:22 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] kareina.livejournal.com
And David tells me that father's frock is a coat, probably about knee length...

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