A Hitchhiker’s guide to easy swedish learning

Do you find it hard to find time to learn Swedish while studying in Sweden? Through three easy steps you´ll learn more than at regular Swedish lessons. And it never gets boring.

To learn a foreign language while you are studying abroad is the ideal vision of most of the international students. Above all it facilitates your everyday life and eliminates those awkward moments when you try to look cool even though you don’t understand a single word in a shop or any other place. But learning the language happens not to be so easy.

Classes absorb too much time, partying is physically consuming and honestly, in the spare time just a few of us want to study foreign languages. But there is also another option than just staring into the books and cramming vocabulary.

You can connect your favorite free-time activities with learning a new language plus as a bonus get to know the local culture. Since we are studying in Sweden, let’s learn Swedish through their very own culture. Follow our best music, theatrical and movies tips.

Music: You don’t necessarily need to sing in a choir. You don’t necessarily need to sing at all. Nor play any musical instrument. All you have to do is to listen. Sweden is the country of music.

Plenty of the most famous bands come from Sweden and you might not know it. It’s nothing but true that most of them have their lyrics in English, nevertheless, there is a bunch of singers that are faithful to their mother tongue.

All you have to do is to listen to those singers and their songs carefully, read the lyrics and translate them. There’s no need to memorize them. Just listen as much as you can and the pronunciation together with the meaning comes to you very easily in a non-violent way.

Here are some tips for really good music with wonderful lyrics in Swedish:

• Mando Diao´s new album Infruset, the lyrics are poems written by the Swedish poet Gustaf Fröding. (His books are available in Lund University library as well.)
• The singer called Säkert! has interesting lyrics, easy to understand while listening, containing many useful vocabulary and phrases.
• Of course, Håkan Hellström or Lars Winnerbäck are the classic ones. Melodic, easy and necessary to know if you live in Sweden. Pontus de Wolfe is also definitely worth the try.
• Naturally, among the last tips we should mention Veronica Maggio or one of the greatest groups of Swedish music scene called Kent.

Theater: Not so far from Lund lies the city called Malmö. There, not so far from the central station, lies Malmö Stadsteater that offers wide scale of interesting plays, all of them not that surprisingly in Swedish. You may think that visiting theater to see a Swedish play is useless, but in this point you’re wrong. If you invest your money and go to see the play more than once, every time you’ll learn and understand more. Regular ticket in Malmö Stadsteater costs about 300 SEK, but you can definitely find cheaper ones. From all the places in the theater there is a nice view to the scene, so don’t be afraid to buy the cheapest tickets. Go and see for example the play Yarden based on the book by Kristian Lundberg. The book is also available in every regular bookshop. Another tip: try to read a little bit in advance and then watch the play. 

Movies: There’s nothing new in the statement that watching movies in original version is helpful. That’s why 99 percent of foreign movies on Swedish television leave original sound with Swedish subtitles. Even small children get used to the sound of English or any other foreign language and learn it easily later. That’s also one of the reasons why Swedes speak English so well. Let’s be like them then. Watch Swedish movies and let’s improve it a little bit. Add also Swedish subtitles. In this way, not only will you hear but also see some Swedish. That means a double pleasure. Twice more Swedish. Amazing, don’t you agree?

• In Stadsbiblioteket there is the possibility to loan many Swedish or foreign movies with Swedish subtitles on DVDs. The access to the library is free; all you have to do is to request the loan card in the reception. Opening hours to be found here.
• In case going to the library is way too complicated, having a television at home is sufficient. In Sweden you can add Swedish subtitles via text-TV page to television shows, which makes picking up the language easier.

And a bit of advice in the end. Don’t be afraid of Swedish! Don’t be afraid to use your Facebook in Swedish, read Swedish newspapers and the most important of all Talk, talk and … talk! Next time you order your beer or coffee, do it in Swedish, give yourself a chance to learn this exciting new language.

Text:  Veronika Opatřilová