Swedish is part of a language family with roots that go back over a thousand years. It belongs to the North Germanic branch of the Indo-European language family, which also includes Danish, Norwegian, Icelandic, and Faroese. All these languages evolved from Old Norse, which was once spoken throughout Scandinavia. In fact, at one time, people in Sweden, Norway, and Denmark all spoke the same language! That’s one reason modern North Germanic languages are still fairly mutually intelligible today and why Swedish Speech and Language Development is so interesting to study.
With around 10 million native speakers, Swedish is the most widely spoken of the North Germanic languages. Swedish has six major dialect groups: Norrland, Svealand, Gotland, Götaland, South Swedish, and East Swedish. These dialects differ in vocabulary, phonology, and even in how consonants are pronounced.
In this article, you’ll get insights into the vocabulary, phonology, and consonants of the Swedish language. This information will be helpful in diagnosing and treating children who are native Swedish speakers.
Interesting Facts About Swedish Speech and Language Development
- Swedish is the official language of Sweden, but also one of two of the official languages of Finland.
- The Swedish alphabet consists of the English alphabet plus three additional letters– å, ä, and ö.
- Swedish is considered one of the easier languages to learn for native English speakers!
- Swedish is a tonal language, using pitch accent to distinguish words, especially in the “acute” and “grave” accents. This tonal system makes Swedish particularly rhythmic and melodic sounding.
- Swedish includes complex consonant structures, for example in the word “sjuksköterska” (nurse).
- Swedish children show early sensitivity to pitch contrasts, as the pitch can change the meaning of a word!
Swedish Speech and Language Development
Swedish Consonants in Comparison to English
| Swedish Consonants Not Shared with English | /ɕ/ /ɧ/ Rhotic /r/ |
| Consonants Shared With English | /m/ /n/ /ŋ/ /p/ /b/ /t/ /d/ /k/ /g/ /f/ /v/ /s/ /h/ /j/ /l/ |
| English Consonants Not Shared with Swedish | /z/ /ʃ/ /ʒ/ /tʃ/ /dʒ/ /ð/ /θ/ /ɹ/ /w/ |
Swedish Vowels in Comparison to English
| Swedish Vowels Not Shared with English | /iː/ /ʏ/ /yː/ /ʉː/ /uː/ /eː/ /øː/ /ɵ/ /oː/ /ɛː/ /ɑː/ |
| Vowels Shared With English | /I/ /ʊ/ /e/ /ɛ/ /æ/ /ɔ/ /a/ |
| English Vowels Not Shared with Swedish | /ɑ/ /u/ /o/ /ə/ /i/ /ʌ/ /ɚ/ |
The Use of Phonotactic Constraints in Swedish Speakers
Phonotactic constraints refer to the rules that govern permissible combinations of sounds in a particular language. When Swedish-speaking children learn English, their speech patterns may be influenced by the phonotactic rules of Swedish. This can result in differences in how they produce English sounds or syllables. These differences are not necessarily indicative of a disorder, but rather a language difference.
Here are some phonotactic constraints of Swedish phonology that may influence speech production in English:
- Final voiced obstruents (like /b/, /d/, /g/, /v/, /z/, /ʒ/) are often devoiced in Swedish. A child may say “bat” for “bad” or “pick” for “pig.”
- Consonant clusters at the beginning or end of words may be simplified. For example, “street” may become “sreet” or “desk” may become “dek.”
- Initial /s/ + stop clusters (like /sp/, /st/, /sk/) are permitted in Swedish, but often with a preceding prothetic vowel (like [ə]). A child might say “estreet” for “street.”
- Swedish does not allow /ŋ/ (as in “sing”) at the beginning of words. Swedish speakers may avoid this pattern or substitute it when producing English.
- Swedish distinguishes between long and short vowels and consonants, often based on stress patterns. A Swedish speaker might produce longer or shorter durations for sounds in English that seem unusual to native English listeners.
- Certain diphthongs in English are not present in Swedish. Diphthongs like /aɪ/ (as in “bike”) or /oʊ/ (as in “go”) may be produced as monophthongs or altered (e.g., “bike” might sound like “bick”).
- Swedish does not have the /θ/ and /ð/ sounds (as in “thin” and “this”). These may be replaced with /t/, /d/, or /s/, /z/, respectively.
- Word-final clusters such as /-ld/, /-nd/, or /-st/ may be reduced (e.g., “cold” → “col”).
- Stress placement may differ. Swedish tends to stress the first syllable of words, which might transfer to English and result in atypical prosody or rhythm.
Language Specific Differences Between English and Swedish
Swedish and English, both Germanic languages, share several grammatical features, such as the Subject-Verb-Object (SVO) word order. However, Swedish exhibits a stricter adherence to the Verb-Second (V2) rule, where the verb consistently occupies the second position in main clauses, even when the sentence begins with an adverb or other element. Additionally, while English uses separate words for definite articles (“the”), Swedish typically attaches definite suffixes to the ends of nouns (e.g., “bok” [book] becomes “boken” [the book]). In terms of verb conjugation, Swedish verbs do not change form based on the subject, simplifying verb usage compared to English. Moreover, Swedish nouns are classified into two genders: common and neuter, influencing article usage and adjective agreement.
| Language Feature | Swedish (L1) | English (L2) |
|---|---|---|
| Sentence Word Order | Subject-Verb-Object (SVO) with strict Verb-Second (V2) rule; the verb appears in the second position of main clauses, even when the sentence begins with an adverb or other element. | Subject-Verb-Object (SVO); flexible word order in questions and emphasis. |
| Adjectives/Noun Modifiers | Adjectives precede nouns and agree in gender, number, and definiteness with the noun. | Adjectives precede nouns and do not change form. |
| Possessives | Possession is indicated by adding “-s” to the possessor noun (e.g., “Peters bok” for “Peter’s book”). | Possession is indicated by adding “‘s” to the possessor noun or using “of” (e.g., “Peter’s book” or “the book of Peter”). |
| Possessive Pronouns | Possessive pronouns agree with the gender and number of the possessed noun (e.g., “min bok” [my book], “mitt hus” [my house]). | Possessive pronouns do not change form based on the noun’s gender or number (e.g., “my book,” “my house”). |
| Verb Inflection | Verbs are not conjugated for person or number; the same form is used regardless of the subject (e.g., “jag går,” “du går,” “han går” all mean “I go,” “you go,” “he goes”). | Verbs are conjugated for person and number (e.g., “I go,” “he goes”). |
| Pronouns | Pronouns include “jag” (I), “du” (you), “han” (he), “hon” (she), “vi” (we), “ni” (you all), “de” (they). | Pronouns include “I,” “you,” “he,” “she,” “we,” “they,” etc. |
| Pronoun Gender | Pronouns reflect natural gender: “han” (he), “hon” (she), and the gender-neutral “hen” is also used. | Pronouns reflect natural gender: “he,” “she,” and “they” (singular “they” is used as a gender-neutral option). |
| Subjects of Sentences | Subjects are typically required; subject pronouns are used even when the subject is clear from context. | Subjects are required in sentences; subject pronouns are always used. |
| Regular Past Tense | Regular verbs form the past tense by adding “-de” or “-te” to the stem (e.g., “arbeta” becomes “arbetade”). | Regular verbs form the past tense by adding “-ed” to the base form (e.g., “work” becomes “worked”). |
| Irregular Past Tense | Irregular verbs have unique past tense forms (e.g., “gå” becomes “gick”). | Irregular verbs have unique past tense forms (e.g., “go” becomes “went”). |
| Negatives | Negation is formed by placing “inte” after the verb (e.g., “Jag går inte” for “I do not go”). | Negation is formed by using “do not” or “does not” before the verb (e.g., “I do not go”). |
| Double Negatives | Double negatives are generally considered incorrect and are avoided in standard Swedish. | Double negatives are generally considered nonstandard and are avoided in formal English. |
| Question Formation | Questions are formed by inverting the subject and verb or by using question words (e.g., “Går du?” for “Do you go?”). | Questions are formed by inverting the subject and auxiliary verb or by using question words (e.g., “Do you go?”). |
| Definite Articles | Definite articles are suffixes attached to the noun (e.g., “bok” becomes “boken” for “the book”). | Definite articles are separate words placed before the noun (e.g., “the book”). |
| Indefinite Articles | Indefinite articles are “en” for common gender nouns and “ett” for neuter gender nouns (e.g., “en bok” for “a book,” “ett hus” for “a house”). | Indefinite article is “a” or “an” placed before the noun (e.g., “a book,” “an apple”). |
| Prepositions | Prepositions are used similarly to English, indicating relationships in time and space (e.g., “på” for “on,” “i” for “in”). | Prepositions are used to indicate relationships in time and space (e.g., “on,” “in,” “at”). |
| Present Progressive Verb Form | Swedish does not have a distinct present progressive tense; the present tense is used to indicate ongoing actions (e.g., “Jag äter” for “I am eating”). | Present progressive is formed using “to be” + verb-ing (e.g., “I am eating”). |
| Modal Verbs | Modal verbs include “kan” (can), “måste” (must), “ska” (shall/will), and are used similarly to English. | Modal verbs include “can,” “must,” “shall,” “will,” and are used before the base verb. |
| Copula/”To Be” Verbs | The verb “vara” (to be) is used as the copula and is conjugated as “är” in the present tense (e.g., “Jag är lärare” for “I am a teacher”). | The verb “to be” is used as the copula and is conjugated as “am,” “is,” “are” in the present tense (e.g., “I am a teacher”). |
| Auxiliary Verbs | Auxiliary verbs such as “har” (have) and “ska” (shall/will) are used to form compound tenses (e.g., “Jag har ätit” for “I have eaten”). | Auxiliary verbs such as “have,” “will,” “do” are used to form compound tenses (e.g., “I have eaten,” “I will go”). |
| Passive Voice | Passive voice is formed by adding “-s” to the verb or using “bli” + past participle (e.g., “Boken läses” for “The book is read,” “Boken blir läst” for “The book is being read”). | Passive voice is formed using “to be” + past participle (e.g., “The book is read”). |
| Direct Object Pronouns | Direct object pronouns include “mig” (me), “dig” (you), “honom” (him), “ | me, you, him, her, it, us, them |
| Pronouns | Two grammatical genders: common and neuter | Replace noun with pronoun (noun or pronoun is always required) Personal pronouns include subject, object, and reflexive. Masculine, feminine and neutral pronoun used 2nd person plural pronoun doesn’t exist No differentiation in gender for 3rd person plural pronoun Indefinite (i.e. each, somebody), demonstrative (i.e. this, those), interrogative (i.e. who, what), possessive (mine, his) and relative pronouns (i.e. that, which), are also used |
| Adverbs | Suffix is added to the end of the adjective, often -t | Adverbs occur in various positions according to rules |
| Comparative and Superlative | Add -are to the adjective for comparative Add -ast(e) for the superlative | Uses –er with comparative and –est with superlative More (comparative) and most (superlative) are used with adjectives of more than two syllables Irregular forms (i.e. worst, furthest) |
Sources:
Holmes, P., & Hinchliffe, I. (2013). Swedish a comprehensive grammar. Routledge.
Koyfman, S. (2018, April 29). How many people speak Swedish, and where is it spoken?. Babbel Magazine.
Wagner, Dr. J. (n.d.). Swedish word order. ielanguages.com.
Wiki, C. to D. (n.d.). Swedish skill: possessives. Duolingo Wiki.
Contributors:
A special thanks to Hannah Lange with Concordia University- Wisconsin for data compilation and research that went into this article!
