Norwegian for English Speakers
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How to learn Norwegian quickly and easily on your own
In early 2009, I decided to learn Norwegian as a third language. Why Norwegian? I really don't know, probably because I've heard such nice things about the country, had a Norwegian pen-pal back when I was in high-school and my favorite web browser was made in Norway. Here's what happened so far...
This page purely reflects my own personal experience and thoughts. I don't have any affiliation with the products mentioned below, but since Squidoo is an affiliate of Amazon, if you click on product links and make a purchase, a small percentage will be donated to Juvenile Diabetes Foundation.
Courses and Online Lessons...
When it comes to learning Norwegian you're pretty much on your own. There are some courses in U.S.A. and U.K. but if you live elsewhere you're out of luck.Norwegian is spoken by roughly 5 million people on earth. Norwegian is the easiest (yes, the easiest..) language to learn if you are an English speaker, and if you have the tiniest bit of experience with German, it is a piece of cake. I find it hard to see that Norwegian still remains a niche language to learn, while people can easily learn it just to increase the language count on their CV.
If you're after a regular course and can't find anything on Google, check your local university, they do have language programs from time to time. If you're after an online course, you're out of luck again. I did search for a decent way to learn Norwegian online, but all I could find was a few instructors who offered me to charge $40 per hour. So.. that did not work for me.
Your friends will tell you...
They will tell you that it will be hard, that every noun has a gender and you will have to memorize them, and you will burn your brain trying to figure out how to conjugate that verb.. Don't listen to them.Norwegian is a Germanic language. That is enough to scare most people as Germanic languages are known to be hard on your neurons and your throat. That is not valid when it comes to Norwegian. Norwegian verbs have some of the easiest conjugation you can find in Europe. i.e. Present tense is made by adding an -r to the verb, regardless of who's doing it. Sweet!
Unlike German, Norwegian word order is very similar to English. i.e. "I can speak Norwegian" becomes "Jeg kan snakke norsk" in Norwegian. Most sounds are also very similar to English.
Learning Norwegian is mostly about studying words and practicing pronunciation. You will spend very little time on grammar.
Norwegian Pronunciation
How does Norwegian sound like?
Folkehøgskolen
Folk High Schools in Norway
A folkehøgskole (Folk Highschool / County College) is a Nordic phenomenon, an alternative and fun school system. It is important to emphasize that, by law, folk high schools conduct no formal examinations and issue no degrees. The folk high schools do not require specific diplomas, previous education, or occupational experience. As an international student, you are expected to know English well or speak some Norwegian. There are some scholarships for international stutents too. More information can be found at http://www.folkehogskole.no
Here's What I have done..
1- Get Byki for Norwegian
www.byki.comByki is essentially a flash card application. It will not teach you the grammar, but it will teach you the words, sentences and how to pronounce them. Each word is accompanied by a voice recording. Application senses the words you had trouble with and asks these words more frequently. Great!
Byki comes with essential words bundled. You can expand it by adding new Norwegian word lists here.
Byki comes in two flavors the free "Express" and paid "Pro" edition. Pro edition has more word sets and some extra functionality. For the starter, express edition is more than enough. You may want to go pro as you get more confident with the language. Pro version costs about $60, express version is free and has no ads or crapware in it.
2- Get the Book and CD Set
Teach Yourself Norwegian
Amazon Price: $150.89 (as of 06/02/2012)
This book comes with two audio Cd's. Since you will hardly have any chance of face-to-face conversation to practice pronunciation, you should always pick books that come with an audio complement. If you have an Mp3 player rip your cd's to your player and use the original cd's at your car. You will need to rewind and change tracks all the time, so an mp3 player is a must.
Usually ships in 1-2 business days
3- Get the Workbook
NORWEGIAN in 10 minutes a day® with CD-ROM
Amazon Price: $17.41 (as of 06/02/2012)
This product is not actually a workbook. I originally bought this out of curiosity. This book has lots of useful exercises, very good grammar information and some goodies like name stickers. Cd that come with the book is rubbish, just a simple game made with Flash.
4- Get the dictionary
Universal Dictionary Norwegian (Langenscheidt Universal)
Amazon Price: $49.99 (as of 06/02/2012)
No language course is complete without this yellow dictionary. It's small and more than enough for a beginner.
Why are you learning Norwegian?
Everyone has a reason for learning a new language. What's yours?
Reader Feedback
Rants? Raves? Suggestions?
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mycalculadora
Jan 18, 2012 @ 8:32 pm | delete
- really enjoyed your lens :)
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RenaissanceWoman2010
Dec 29, 2011 @ 1:49 pm | delete
- I would like to learn some of the Norwegian language in preparation for a trip to Norway. My mother's side of the family is Norwegian and I would like to visit the family farm and other locations in Norway. Thanks for these tips and resources. Very helpful.
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hassan hamdi
Aug 4, 2010 @ 1:40 pm | delete
- thanks very much your tips are very useful.
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belovedofdeath
Jan 27, 2010 @ 1:25 am | delete
- I am also learning Norwegian, I started about six months ago, and I bought all of those books already! I considered Byki, I might actually do it now, though I have a great standard paper notecard collection setup (and sitting right next to me) right now. :)
My problem with the teach yourself Norwegian by Marg. Danboldt is that it seems that it's written by SEVVVVERAL authors and is NOT consistent in it's vocabulary listings (ie: one chapter will list nouns as the indefinite singular with the gender next to it, and the next chapter will leave them conjugated, among other discrepancies) and I dislike that I have to look up EVERY masculine word I am given in the back of the book because it doesn't list feminine words in the feminine. Grr!
There are some textbooks you can get to learn Norwegian from the UK, but sadly I am in the US.... so shipping is quite steep. :(
Once upon a time I found a drill book in a local Barnes & Noble (or maybe it was Border's?) for Norwegian grammar, but I didn't have money at the time to get it, and I haven't been able to find it online. :( If you find one, please please please comment with it! :D
Much Love,
BoD
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by wizzyfx
I'm a multimedia artist. I like having good time with friends, going to movies and exploring new things.
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