Choices since 2008 have been finanskrise ('financial crisis'), svineinfluensa ('swine influenza'), askefast ('ash stuck'), rosetog ('rose march'), nave (referring to living on benefits from NAV, the public welfare agency, without really needing it) and sakte-TV ('slow-TV'). In addition, the language council mentions other notable words of the year; since 2012 it has listed ten words.
Background and methodology
The Language Council of Norway has named Årets ord since 2008. Since 2012, the language council has co-operated with word researcher Gisle Andersen at the Norwegian School of Economics.[1]
The methodology is based on new words that the language council manually picks up from the media during the year. The evaluation of such new words appears most frequently in electronic media text bases and suggestions from the public. The word of the year does not need to be a completely new word, but must have had an increase in use and a special relevance during the year. The committee also evaluates the language quality, in particular whether the word (or if international origin) works well in Norwegian. In addition, the committee considers whether the word is likely to stay in use.[1]
2008
Finanskrise ('financial crisis') was named word of the year. The word was not new – between 1947 and 1988, the word was used on average one to four times yearly in Norwegian media according to the search engine Atekst/Retriever. Later, the use of the word increased; in 1988, it was used 598 times and in 2007 it was used 218 times. In 2008, the word was used 10,732 times in newspapers, mainly after October.[2]
2009
Svineinfluensa ('swine influenza') was named word of the year. While the word had been used 17 times in Norwegian media until 23 April 2009, it was used more than 8,500 times during the rest of the year. Pandemi ('pandemic') was another notable word of the year. The words tvitre and tvitring, which relate to the use of Twitter, were also mentioned as notable new words, as was snikislamisering ('stealth Islamization').[3]
Rosetog ('rose march') was named word of the year. This referred to marches held in Oslo and other places in Norway following the 2011 terror attacks. Other notable words of the year also related to the terror attacks: kontrajihadisme ('counterjihadism') and ytringsansvar ('speech responsibility'). Other notable words of the year were gjeldskrise ('debt crisis') and eurokrise ('Euro crisis') referring to the situation in Europe, while smørkrise ('butter crisis') referred to the Norwegian butter crisis at the end of the year. Jasminrevolusjon ('jasmine revolution') also received mention.[5]
2012
Nave (verb) (and the noun naving) was named word of the year. The word refers to living on pension or welfare from the Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration, a government agency called NAV in Norwegian. The word is primarily used for youth who stay out of work for some time. The word was used among youth themselves in 2012, but also among commentators and politicians who expressed worry that young people were abusing the system and not trying hard enough to get a job or start studying.[6][7] Critics of the choice claimed the word was derogatory and added to the stigmatisation of people who receive welfare benefits.[8]
Number
Word
Translation
Explanation
1
nave (naving)
To live on welfare from NAV for a time without really needing it. Mainly used about youth.
Sakte-TV ('slow TV') was named word of the year.[11] The word refers to a series of popular NRK live "marathon" coverage of events like rail trips and cruises, starting with Bergensbanen –minutt for minutt in 2009, continued with Hurtigruten –minutt for minutt and National Firewood Night as well as National Knitting Night in 2013. The high ratings for NRK's live broadcast from the World Chess Championship 2013 have also been seen as part of the slow-TV trend. The word and concept have been picked up internationally and it was named 2013 Best New Format by Television Business International.[12][13]
Fremmedkriger, meaning 'foreign fighter', was named word of the year. The choice reflected much focus in the Norwegian society on Norwegians who fight in the Syrian Civil war and related conflicts, mostly for ISIL. The word was used in Norwegian media for the first time in 2010 by the terrorism expert Brynjar Lia who had gotten the word from fellow terrorism expert Thomas Hegghammer.[14]
Number
Word
Translation
Explanation
1
framandkrigar/fremmedkriger
'foreign fighter'
Norwegians fighting in the Syrian Civil War and related conflicts
Person who gets rich providing accommodations to asylum seekers and refugees
2016
Hverdagsintegrering/kvardagsintegrering was chosen as the 2016 word of the year. Then-Prime Minister Erna Solberg popularized the term through using it in her annual New Year's speech. It refers to the work done by the public to help integrate refugees and immigrants into Norwegian society, showing that integration is not simply a governmental effort but also one undertaken by the average person.[16]
Number
Word
Translation
Explanation
1
hverdagsintegrering/kvardagsintegrering
'everyday integration'
Public effort to integrate refugees and immigrants
2
lø
Popularized in the series Skam, meaning 'dumb, bad'
Referring to monthly rollover of unused data in mobile phone subscriptions
10
oktoberbarn
'October child'
Referring to Afghani asylum seekers who would be turning 18 in the fall of 2017 and returned to their country
2018
The 2018 word of the year was skjebnelandsmøte 'destiny meeting'. Used in late autumn, when the Christian Democratic Party (KrF) would decide on which government alternatives they would negotiate to.[19]
The 2019 word of the year was klimabrøl 'climate roar'. Related to the high engagement among youth regarding climate change, Greta Thunberg is named as an example of this movement.[20]
Number
Word
Translation
Explanation
1
klimabrøl
'climate roar'
2
bunadsgerilja
'Bunad guerrilla'
Combination of Bunad and Guerrilla. Refers to a nationwide movement for good availability to maternity care, in reaction over a closing of a maternity ward in Kristiansund. The name is refers to the clothes worn by the activists.
3
kjøttskam
'Meat shame'
The feeling of shame or bad conscience about consuming meat, especially from an environmental perspective.
Traditional Norwegian beer brewing using Kveik yeast. The term came to prominence in Norway after being mentioned in the New York Times in an article of 52 places in the world to visit in 2019.
Portmanteau of the words skrøne (folk tale) and krønike (chronicle). Was used to describe a theatre play held at Trøndelag Teater, meant to name a new potential genre of historic retellings with less restrictions to following historical fact.
