While English increases in popularity, there are words and phrases commonly found in various other languages that will never be directly translatable. We’re here to celebrate these beautiful, strange, and often elaborate expressions that hold importance to their respective cultures.
The Danish language is a beautiful and fascinating North Germanic language, originally derived from Old Norse as far back as the 8th century. Today, over 6 million people around the world call Danish their native tongue. With such close ties to Swedish and Norwegian languages, those who speak Danish can even communicate almost perfectly with speakers of these languages.
In addition to the similarity of these languages, these Scandanavian cultures all have a similar sense of providing comfort and warmth. The Danish word ’hyggelig’ comes from a Norwegian word meaning “well-being.” Often connected to the popularized word “hygge,” meaning coziness, the word “hyggelig” refers to more of a pleasant feeling or atmosphere than of physical comfort. As explained perfectly in this article…
Most often hyggelig is associated with social relations – you get together to have a hyggelig time, but you can also have a hyggelig time alone, as hyggelig is the concept of creating warmth and well-being whether it be with others or for yourself. Being sheltered from the rain while being alone in bed with a hot cup of tea and a good book is hyggelig. Hyggelig is the complete absence of anything annoying or emotionally overwhelming.
See more beautiful, untranslatable words and phrases from languages all around the world!
Want to explore how to reach more Danish speakers around the world? Get in touch with our team to discuss how translations can help.
