Thursday, June 6, 2024

Pronunciation of Word-Final d in Norwegian

In many Norwegian words, the word-final d is not pronounced. This is also the case with many words in Danish, a language that is closely related to Norwegian. In Swedish, however, the final d is pronounced in these words. In one particular Norwegian dialect, however, a dialect that is spoken in western Norway and includes the city of Ålesund, the word-final d is pronounced.

Norwegian words with a word-final silent d include bord (table) fjord (fiord) hard (hard) hund (dog), jord (earth), hånd (hand), land (country), ord (word) sand (sand), and strand (beach). Only a few dialects of western Norway pronounce the word-final d. The pronunciation of the word-final d reflects an earlier pronunciation.

In many Norwegian words, the final d is silent. This is the case with words such as hund (dog), land  (country) and ord (word). These words are identical in Danish and Swedish. In Danish, the final d is silent, but in Swedish it is not. A few dialects of western Norway pronounce the word-final d and thus use the same pronunciation as in Swedish.


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