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DANISH WORD OF THE DAY

Danish word of the day: Marcipangris

Today's word of the day, 'marcipangris' is apt for those who hog the Christmas party prizes.

What is marcipangris? 

marsipangris, or marzipan pig, is just that: a pig figurine made out of marzipan, often covered in chocolate.

This delicious confectionary animal pops up in various sizes in many supermarkets, confectionery, and speciality shops in Denmark during the festive season, and is also commonly referred to as a julegris (“Christmas pig”).

The marcipangris is popularly used as a prize given to the winner of Christmas games at holiday gatherings. The classic Christmas game with which it is associated is the risalamande challenge. 

Risalamande is a hugely popular cold rice sweet mixed with whipped cream, vanilla and chopped almonds and served with warm cherry sauce.

By tradition, one whole almond is left in the mix, which is then spooned into everyone’s bowls when it’s time to have dessert after Christmas dinner.

Whoever finds the whole almond wins a present (the mandelgave or “almond gift”), which is customarily a julegris. The game is often fixed so that a child (or children) wins the prize.

Why do I need to know marcipangris?

According to Videnskab.dk, the “almond gift” custom originated in France, but risalamande – despite its French-sounding name – is very much Danish.

That is because increasingly creative ways to make meals using rice emerged in Denmark after rice became a more inexpensive ingredient in the 1800s.

Meanwhile, it was tradition to slaughter a pig to give fresh (rather than salted) meat for the Christmas meal, despite the popularity of duck as a Danish Christmas dinner staple in later years.

As such, there is some sense in the link between a pig and a sweet-tasting Christmas treat.

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DANISH WORD OF THE DAY

Danish word of the day: Varmebølge

Here's a Danish word to use when complaining about the hot weather.

Danish word of the day: Varmebølge

What is varmebølge?

Varmebølge means “heatwave” in Danish.

Varme means “heat” or “warmth”, and bølge means “wave”, so it’s an easy translation. You’ll sometimes hear hedebølge used too, using another Danish word for “heat”. The word varme is the more common of the two, and can be used in situations where you might say either “heat” or “warmth” in English. Hede, on the other hand, implies a more extreme type of heat.

For example, the Danish words for “hot water bottle” and “central heating” both use varme rather than heat (varmedunk and centralvarme or just varmen, respectively) and “hot weather” is varmt vejr but the phrase i kampens hede means “in the heat of the battle”. 

Why do I need to know varmebølge?

While the above terms – varmebølge and hedebølge – are synonyms on first glance, there’s an important difference.

Denmark’s national meteorological agency, DMI, defines a varmebølge as a three-day period on which the average highest temperature is over 25 degrees Celsius.

For a hot spell to qualify as a hedebølge, on the other hand, the average highest temperature for the three days in question must exceed 28 degrees Celsius

People from southern parts of Europe might consider either type of Danish heatwave to feel more like regular summer weather – and perhaps this helps explain why extreme weather in southern regions in recent years, related to climate change, has led to speculation Denmark could become an increasingly popular summer destination for foreign holidaymakers.

The phrases also reveal a little about how Denmark’s climate influences language and the way Danes talk about the weather.

READ ALSO: Five Danish phrases you only hear in summer

While almost everyone gets quickly tired of long spells of cool, wet summer weather – like those seen during most of June 2024 – it also doesn’t take much for Danes to begin longing for more moderate temperatures to return once it heats up.

Anything over around 24-25 degrees Celsius is likely to be considered for meget (“too much”) what I would consider a regulation summer temperature of 26 degrees might be described as denne forfærdelige varme (“this dreadful heat”).

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