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Norwegian: An Essential Grammar

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Norwegian: An Essential Grammar is a reference guide to the most important aspects of contemporary Norwegian as used by native speakers.
The Grammar presents a fresh and accessible description of the language. Explanations are clear, free from jargon and often accompanied by exercises. The book gives a simple, step-by-step presentation of the grammatical systems of Norwegian and demonstrates and explains usages which have proved difficult for those learning the language in the past. It is clearly laid-out for easy reference making it accessible for those at a beginner/intermediate level.
This is the ideal reference source for all learners, whether studying independently or in a class.

208 pages, Paperback

First published December 15, 1994

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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
Profile Image for Giovanna Castano.
32 reviews
March 11, 2021
This is a really good grammar.
This is a really good grammar, written for those who can use a little bit of comparative grammar.
And know some German as well.
Profile Image for Spencer R.
287 reviews37 followers
January 23, 2017
To read the full review, you can go to my Wordpress blog, "SpoiledMilks."

Learning a new language is exhausting. Reading, writing, listening, recognizing, speaking – it will make you tired, frustrated, and overwhelmed. You don’t understand the road signs, you can’t tell if your neighbor is a gentleman or a shyster, and when you try to relax with some TV, even the children shows seem to be mocking you. Åse-Berit and Rolf Strandskogen are professors at the University of Oslo, Norway, and they teach Norwegian as a foreign language. Thankfully, from their experience has come a book for us foreigners (utlandinger).

You don’t think much about prepositions until you have to learn another language. In Norwegian, the word “om” means “about” in English. So the phrase “Boka handler om en stor hval” would mean “The book is about a great whale.”

Yet propositions are tricky.

In English, you can sit "in" a chair or you can sit "on" a chair, but books always go "in" a bookcase and "on" a shelf.
Maybe you were born "in" 1990 "on" July 4th, but you wouldn’t say you were born "on" 1990 "in" July 4th.

When you hear a foreigner mix up their prepositions you know they’re either still new to the country, and if you want to impress your new norsk friends and family, you'll learn your prepositions (and everything else for that matter). Reading this book as you continue in your Norsk immersion will help you to nod your head and laugh right along with everyone else, and [as well as] it will help you avoid sitting in a corner alone eating the rest of the lefse at the next juletrefest. The authors not only provide many examples, but they also provide plenty of subtle, idiomatic phrases. You’ll never need another Norwegian grammar (though others would be beneficial as well).

Recommended?
The Stranskogen’s aim has been to provide the non-Norwegian with a “simple, step-by-step presentation of the grammatical rules and systems of Norwegian” (Preface). It is a “practical guide to modern Norwegian as it is used in an every day context” (Preface). Grammar is essential to learning a foreign language, and this book is essential if you are learning on your own, if you want to be ahead in class, or if you just want to understand what your mail says. And for me, if I ever want to be able to express the gospel to anyone, it’s best to learn their mother tongue or else I”ll be just another American with wacky ideas.

You won’t want to have only this book on hand. While slowly working through this book you should also be going through workbooks such as Norwegian in 10 Minutes a Day, Teach Yourself Norwegian, and Colloquial Norwegian. A good website is also Norwegian on the Web.
1 review
August 31, 2011
Rolf and Ase-Berit Strandskogen ("Mr. & Mrs. Norwegian Language," in Norway) are today's premiere, published experts with respect to contemporary Norwegian grammar, sentence structure and word pronunciation. Their resources are written at a level that allow them to be used effectively by the self-learner of a foreign language, but yet are widely used and stocked by university libraries and bookstores. This book is an absolute requirement for any student of the Norwegian language, at any level from beginner through advanced.
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