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SWEDISH LANGUAGE

‘Thai prince said he loved me in Swedish’

YouTube sensation Martin Arvebro has turned the world on to the Swedish language with his funny videos. He tells The Local about his new-found fame, 'Jantelagen', and the north-south divide.

'Thai prince said he loved me in Swedish'
Martin Arvebro strikes a pose for one of his online videos. This one is about fruit by the way. Photo: YouTube

The 35-year-old made rocketed to online stardom in March 2012.

With a little inspiration from, ahem, The Local, his first video on the 10 Swedish words you won't find in English went viral, clocking almost 500,000 views. 

Two years later, he's a bona fide social media star with a plum job as a radio reporter for Sveriges Radio.

"The first video just exploded and I got so much interest from around the world. In a way I was surprised, as Swedish is a minority language, but it seems like a lot of people want to learn and know more about it," Arvebro told The Local.

Determined not to be a one-hit wonder, he has maintained a prolific output, racking up over 50 videos since his debut covering all sorts of themes such as Eurovision and even Swedish swear words.

Arvebro's style is irreverent, and he has no problem having a laugh at himself. As a student in Australia he struck up a rapport with a Thai prince who was also studying there – and enjoyed a bizarre conversation with the royal in his native tongue.

"The prince leaned over and whispered into my ear, 'Jag älskar dig,' (I love you) and we had a chat in Swedish. Turned out the prince had lived in Sweden for a bit. His handlers looked stunned about the whole thing,"

The Skåne native has generated plenty of fans from around the world, but just like any success story, there are pros and cons.

"A lot of the time I am recognised. One day I was walking down the street and a guy singing in the choir shouted out my name and said he knew my face.

"I get people saying they want to Skype with me to learn Swedish, but I don't have the time for that. A few days after my wedding I got a death threat, but I didn't take it that seriously," he said.

Prior to his YouTube glory he worked as a producer in his own company. He told The Local that he has been making videos since 1998 and was an early advocate of VHS blogging.

The Swede also worked as a teacher in a video production, and his very original take on learning the Swedish language has drawn praise from abroad.

"I've had language teaching experts in the Baltic countries getting in contact saying they really like my approach as I am making learning fun. You are picking things up without even noticing it. For me it is about keeping it entertaining," he said.

He quipped that he hasn't received a call yet from the powers that be at SFI (Swedish for Immigrants), which organizes free lessons for foreigners who wish to learn more than just Abba and fika.

"I got a criticism for my accent as I come from the south. People say I don't speak proper Swedish, but I always maintain that my dialect is closer to most of the languages in Europe so there!" he laughed.

Arvebro added; "In Sweden we have Jantelagen so a lot of people don't like it when you speak up. My videos are certainly an example of speaking out that's for sure."

With a steady stream of followers the 35-year-old said he intends to reach his target of making 100 videos and continue to keep it fresh.

"Right now I am approaching number 60, so I just want to keep being creative and doing things are topical which people want to watch," he said.

As for the best thing about his notoriety?

"If I want to go around the world and travel then I never need a hotel room. I've made lots of friends and contacts as a result of the videos."
 

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READER INSIGHTS

Reader’s story: How I slowly fell in love with the Swedish language

What makes a person want to learn Swedish? The Local's reader Sunny Das tries to answer a question that's bigger than quantifiable goals.

Reader's story: How I slowly fell in love with the Swedish language

It was a dark and cold October day as I found myself standing outside Arlanda Airport.

It had been a long journey from Singapore to Stockholm in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic. The first thing I noticed was that most of the pandemic restrictions that applied to people in the rest of the world were not as strict in Sweden. I looked like a real stranger with my face mask on.

But, somewhere in my heart something stirred, and my soul felt a little joy after seeing some form of normality. The taxi driver said something that sounded like “hey” in English, and so I responded in English. Then we started driving towards the centre of Stockholm.

Within 45 minutes, I was in Gamla Stan, and it was already evening. I was tired, but I won’t forget what I felt when I saw the beauty of the city. When the lights sparkled on the water, it was like poetry composing itself.

In the hotel lobby, I heard Swedish being spoken among people, and it was like music to my ears. It had been a long time since I learned a new language, but there was something melodic in the Swedish language that truly captivated me from the beginning.

This article was written by The Local’s reader Sunny Das. Photo: Private

Because there is freedom in Swedish society, it is easy to fall in love with something.

None of the Swedes I met said that I had to learn Swedish to survive in Sweden. As a result, I explored the language in my own way, and slowly fell in love with it.

Of course, attitudes towards language requirements have changed nowadays, but I’m grateful that it wasn’t like that when I started learning Swedish. It could have been very demotivating for me if someone had tried to force the language on me.

Instead, I had the opportunity to enjoy Swedish music, books and the culture in general. There was a song that inspired me to develop my Swedish and delve deeper into my language journey. The song was called Vem tänder stjärnorna by Eva Dahlgren (“Who lights the stars?”). What a beautiful song, just amazing. Evighet (eternity) is my favourite word in Swedish, which I learned from that song.

What is my goal with the Swedish language? A really good question.

But is there a goal in just watching the sunset with your dog on the beach? Or to dim the lights at three in the morning, closing your eyes and listening to “The Midnight” or “The Paper Kites”? Is there a goal when you share “Dad jokes” with your friends on a taco Friday night?

Many people learn French, Japanese or Italian to experience the culture and follow their hearts. I can say that there is no quantifiable goal but to enjoy the language journey, and sometime in the future, I can articulate my thoughts properly in a proper way in the Swedish language.

Yes, indeed, I’m still learning Swedish. There are certain situations when I can’t understand anything or find the right words from my limited vocabulary to explain something. But I’m trying, like many of us who are learning Swedish and love the language.

My grammar is wrong in various ways, and my pronunciation is flawed, and there have been several occasions when Swedish speakers have switched to English, perhaps out of sympathy or sometimes with a bit of a rude attitude.

I can only ask everyone who speaks Swedish not to discourage us but rather to help us learn this beautiful language instead.

Indian by origin, Sunny Das moved to Sweden in October 2020 and works as a software developer. The article was originally published in Swedish and translated to English by The Local. Would you like to share your Swedish story with The Local? Email our editorial team at [email protected] and we’ll get back to you if it’s something we’re able to publish.

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