Tuesday, June 12, 2007

Vackraste svenska ordet har blivit korat:

Forsta plats (1st place): Sommarvind (summer wind)
Andra plats (2nd place): Solregn (sun rain)
Tredje plats (3rd place): Dagsmeja (no idea what this is in English)
as per this article.

I didn't even know that there was a phenomenon called solregn? Vad ar det? I love sommarvind of course. Dagsmeja (photo) is in the spring when the sun warms up the snow so it melts on top, just to freeze again at night. But I don't think dagsmeja is a very pretty word in itself, even if depicts a nice, pleasant thing.

Do you have any pretty English words? I love the words sunset and dawn, and also foxglove, because it is an unexpected combination of two words.

10 comments:

O.K. said...

Sun rain is when the sun is out while it is raining.

I think the top three words show some lack of fantasy. I actaully prefer the most beautiful german word "Habseligskeiten", meaning "small belongings", to these three. They sound like names of kids with hippie parents. Ok, perhaps not "Dagsmeja".

Sommarvind is the equivalent of a Macmansion; "prettified". IMHO..

EH said...

There´s a big difference between a beutiful word, in it self, and a word meaning something beautiful.

Beautiful things are like snöflinga, solstråle, åskdunder, nattsvart, glaskonst. (snowflake, sunbeam, thunder, nightblack, glass art).

But the most beautiful word in swedish that must be änglamark eller trollskog! (angels ground or trolls forest) For what could be more imaginative than that, and better describe a feeling of the diversity of the nature at this time of year. I´m amased by diversity, just as L.S., and enjoy all the details nature things have.

Another beutiful word: mångfald (diversity)

By E.H

EH said...

Man kan också tycka som så att 5000 röster på 10 olika ord inte är en undersökning!....

Egentligen kanske det är nåt helt annat, som måndagmorgon, som är det vackraste ordet!

LS said...

måndagmorgon? (Monday morning)

That is not my most beautiful word :)

EH is right, there is a big difference between the meaning of the word and the beauty of saying it. In the article there was a lot of talk that Swedes love nature words because they love nature, and I think that is true.

Trollskog is definitely a beautiful word, as is tuvstarr, but only because of that they mean, not how they sound. Words that sound beautiful are lova, guldkant, and smile.

LS said...

I have another favorite Swedish word:

gullunge!

LS said...

And PP reminded me of another one:

vattenpuss!

O.K. said...

No beautiful english words yet? I admit I don't have any strong candidates, but I think "Law" sounds nice. However not everyone might like what it means... ;)

LS said...

HEre are some beautiful English words:

sweet

golden

pawpaw (but I guess it has an American Indian origin)

slippery (because it sounds slippery too)

onion (say it, it lays right in the mouth)

LS said...

What is the translation of Habseligskeiten into Swedish? "Smapryttlar?"

O.K. said...

Don't know really, "småpryttlar" doesn't really indicate that they belong to someone. Insignificant in some way.
I really like this explanation: “the kind of possessions collected by a six-year-old which he joyfully displays when he turns out his pockets”.