Norway
Why am I talking about Norway?
• I’m Becky Gjendem. I
am married to Trond
Gjendem.
He grew up in Norway
We lived in Norway for two years
We travel to Norway often
Cousins
More cousins
Extended family
Jendemfjellet
• That means Gjendem
Mountain.
• Fjell = mountain.
• Trond grew up on a
dairy farm at the base
of the mountain.
On top of Jendemfjellet
• Trond, Andy, Beth & Katie
hiked to the top of
Gjendem Mountain in
2012.
• Varden = stone marker.
That’s the tower behind
them. You can find a
“varden” on every
mountaintop, along with
a book to sign your name
and the date you made it
to the top.
• Here we are this year.
More pictures from Norway
• Strand = beach.
• Fjord = inlet of sea.
• This is the beach on the
fjord near Jendem,
where Trond’s parents
live.
Seilbåt
• Seilbåt = sailboat.
• This is from Bjørnsund,
a group of islands
across the fjord from
Jendem.
Bjørnsund
• Bjørn = bear.
• Sund = channel or
strait.
• This is the statue of a
polar bear on
Bjørnsund.
Norge = Norway
Norway is part of Scandinavia
• Scandinavia is made up
of Norway, Sweden and
Denmark.
Scandinavia is part of Europe
Norway’s flag
• Norway’s flag is red,
white and blue like the
United States, but
Norway’s is based on
the Scandinavian cross,
which is used
throughout
Scandinavia.
Norway’s national anthem
Ja, vi elsker dette landet
Ja, vi elsker dette landet,
som det stiger frem,
furet, værbitt over vannet,
med de tusen hjem, —
elsker, elsker det og tenker
på vår far og mor
og den saganatt som senker
drømmer på vår jord.
Og den saganatt som senker,
senker drømmer på vår jord.
Yes, we love this country
Yes, we love this country
as it rises forth,
rugged, weathered, above the sea,
with the thousands of homes.
Love, love it and think
of our father and mother
and the saga night that sends
dreams to our earth.
And the saga night that sends
dreams to our earth.
Constitutional monarchy
• Norway is
a constitutional
monarchy with King
Harald V as its head of
state.
• Kong = king.
Norway’s royal family
King and Queen visit Iowa
• In October 2011, we got
to see Queen Sonja and
King Harald in Decorah
when they were on
their USA visit.
Princess Ingrid Alexandra
• Second in line to the
throne is Princess Ingrid
Alexandra, who is 10.
Her father is Crown
Prince Haakon, and her
mother is Crown
Princess Mette-Marit.
• Prinsesse = princess.
Royal palace in Oslo
• Slott = castle.
Parliamentary democracy
• Norway is a
parliamentary
democracy with Erna
Solberg as its prime
minister.
Parliament building in Oslo
• Storting = parliament
• This is where Norway’s
parliament meets,
much like our Congress
meets in Washington,
D.C.
Midnight sun
• The midnight sun
happens in the summer
when the sun never
sets behind the horizon.
• On the other hand, you
almost never see the
sun in the winter.
Midnight sun
• I took this photo when
we were in Norway. It
was about 11 p.m.
Money
• Penger = money.
• Krone = crown.
• Norway’s currency is
the krone. The
exchange rate changes
a lot, but right now 100
NOK (Norwegian
kroner) = $16.25 U.S.
Norway is not in the
European Union so
does not use the euro.
50 NOK bill
• Norwegian money
features Norway’s
famous artists and
scientists.
• Peter Christen
Asbjørnsen is on the 50
NOK bill. He was a
writer and scholar.
100 NOK bill
• Kirsten Flagstad was a
famous opera singer.
She also has a star on
the Hollywood Walk of
Fame in California.
200 NOK bill
• Kristian Birkeland was a
famous scientist who
figured out the aurora
borealis (also called the
Northern Lights). He
also had several
inventions and was
nominated for the
Nobel Prize seven
times.
Nordlys
• Nordlys = Northern
Lights or aurora
borealis.
500 NOK bill
• Sigrid Undset was a
Norwegian novelist,
who was awarded the
Nobel Prize for
Literature in 1928 for
Kristin Lavransdatter, a
trilogy about life in
Scandinavia in the
Middle Ages.
1000 NOK bill
• Edvard Munch was
painter. His most
famous painting is
called The Scream.
• Skrik = scream.
Language
• Norway has two official
written languages: Bokmål
and Nynorsk.
• Most Norwegians also
speak many dialects.
• The Norwegian alphabet
has three more letters than
the English alphabet: Æ (æ),
Ø (ø) and Å (å). They are all
vowels.
• The main foreign language
taught in Norwegian
elementary school is
English.
Ææ
Øø
Åå
Bunad
• Bunad = folk costume
• This is my niece Kamilla
and her mother, Rigmor,
in their bunader on
Kamilla’s confirmation
day 2012.
Bunad
• Here is Kamilla in her
bunad when she was
younger. Her brother
Martin is also wearing a
bunad.
Let’s learn some Norwegian!
Norsk
• Hallo!
• Flink
• En, to, tre …
• Skole
English
• Hello!
• Clever or smart
• One, two, three …
• School
Kaketine
• Cake container
Ost
• Cheese
Ostehøvel
• Cheese slicer
Juletre
• Christmas tree
Adventskalendar
• Advent calendar
God Jul!
• Merry Christmas!
Godt Nytt År!
• Happy New Year!
Tusen takk!
• Thank you!
Ha det bra!
• Good-bye!