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SWEDISH WORD OF THE DAY

Swedish word of the day: deltagande

Today’s word is about participation, partaking, and sorrow.

Swedish word of the day: deltagande
Photo: Annie Spratt/Unsplash/Nicolas Raymond

Deltagande is either one or more participants in an activity, or an expression of participation in someone’s mourning, in other words, condolences. 

Originally from delta (not to be confused with the Greek letter), which is made up of the words del, meaning ‘part’, and ta, meaning ‘to take – to partake, or take part. 

It is said that Swedes love lists, and that Swedes like to be nice. En deltagare is ‘a participant’, a partaker, if you will, and so one of the many types of lists that you will often encounter is a deltagarlista, a list of participants. As for the niceness, if you are in a race in Sweden, like a half marathon for instance, you will notice that often everyone gets a medal just for participating. Alla deltagande får en medalj, ‘All participants get a medal.’ 

You can also ta del av något, as in ‘to partake in something’, which usually refers to information. Har du tagit del av pm:et som skickades ut? ‘Have you read the memo that was sent out?’. You will notice that the way to express this is with the same word broken up into parts. Delta… ta del.

Regretfully choice for the word of the day was not arbitrary or for some funny insight into Swedish culture, but because it is a day of sorrow for many. Today many around the world mourn the passing of their monarch, Queen Elizabeth II. 

In Swedish a formal way of expressing your condolences would be att visa sitt deltagande, literally ‘to show one’s participation’, which really means ‘to show one’s participation in the mourning’. Here is a tweet by the Ambassador of the United Kingdom to Sweden. 

As you can see, Ambassador Gough uses deltagande in thanking Sweden for the condolences offered. Jag vill varmt tacka för deltagandet som Sverige uttryckt. Literally ‘I want to give warm thanks for the participation that Sweden has expressed’, of course meaning she wants to give thanks for the condolences offered by the Swedish people and their representatives. 

In closing, I offer my own condolences to the Queen’s family and her subjects as one would in a more formal Swedish. Tillåt mig att framföra mina kondoleanser till er med anledning av er drottnings bortgång. ‘Allow me to convey my condolences for the passing of your Queen.’

May she rest in peace.

Example sentences:

Med djupt deltagande i er stora sorg.

My deepest sympathies for your great sorrow.

Hur många deltagande har ni i nuläget?

How many participants do you have so far?  

Villa, Volvo, Vovve: The Local’s Word Guide to Swedish Life, written by The Local’s journalists, is now available to order. Head to lysforlag.com/vvv to read more about it. It is also possible to buy your copy from Amazon US, Amazon UK, Bokus or Adlibris.

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For members

SWEDISH WORD OF THE DAY

Swedish word of the day: släkt

Here’s another Swedish word where it’s important to remember the difference between ä and a.

Swedish word of the day: släkt

Släkt is a useful word to know in Swedish, as it’s one of the ways Swedes refer to family. It’s used roughly where you’d say “extended family” or “relatives” in English, and refers specifically to family outside of your core family unit.

If you were visiting family back home, for example, you would say jag ska hälsa på min släkt. If you used the word familj instead of släkt here, it would sound like you were visiting your immediate family – partner and children, or parents and siblings – rather than other relatives.

You can also say jag ska hälsa på mina släktingar. Think of släkt as the collective noun and släktingar as the individuals.

When discussing a royal or noble family, you would use the word ätt instead.

Släkt can also be used as an adjective – vi är släkt (we are related) – and you’ll see it in a number of compound words, like släktforskning (genealogy, literally “extended family research”), släktled (lineage), släktträff (family reunion) and släktskap (relationship or kinship).

You may also come across the phrase släkt och vänner (family and friends), which featured in Björn Afzelius’ 1999 number one single Farväl till släkt och vänner (“Goodbye to family and friends”).

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Another word which is useful for Word of the Day articles is besläktad, used to describe words which are related to each other.

Släkt originally comes from Old Swedish slækt, which has its roots in Middle Low German slecht (meaning family or lineage). 

There are two other Swedish words which look similar to släkt. The first is släckt, which is used to describe a light which has been turned off, or a candle or fire which has been extinguished. The second word, slakt, means “slaughter”, so it’s a good idea to keep an eye on your spelling.

Example sentences:

Har ni några planer för sommaren? Ja, vi ska besöka min frus släkt i Indien.

Do you have any plans for summer? Yes, we’re visiting my wife’s family in India.

Vi brukar ha en stor släktträff minst en gång om året.

We usually have a big family reunion at least once a year.

Villa, Volvo, Vovve: The Local’s Word Guide to Swedish Life, written by The Local’s journalists, is available to order. Head to lysforlag.com/vvv to read more about it. It is also possible to buy your copy from Amazon USAmazon UKBokus or Adlibris.

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