I remember the first time I visited Skåne, in the south of Sweden. I flew to Malmö airport and boarded the bus to the city. As I boarded, the driver looked up at me and spoke. Now, I thought I could speak Swedish, but I didn't understand a word the driver said.
I asked him to repeat. He repeated. And I still didn't understand a thing.
You see, he wasn't speaking Swedish. Well not as I know it. He was speaking Skånish -the dialect they have in this part of Sweden. And to me, it was indecipherable.
He might as well have speaking Swahili.
Now many years later, after 3 years of living in Skåne and very many visits, I can understand the dialect a little better. But still, it is really difficult. I always get my partner to make phone calls to plumbers, electricians and the like when we need help around the house. I know I probably won't be able to understand a thing they say to me.
To help me in my language development, a friend gave me a dictionary. It is a Swedish-Skånish dictionary, and I recommend it to anyone venturing into this part of the country and to anyone who thought they could speak Swedish.
Here are some gems:
Potato
Potatis (Swedish), Pantoffel, Pantålla (Skånish)
Penis
Penis (Swedish), Koddastake (Skånish)
Strong coffee
Starkt kaffe (Swedish), Rävegift (Skånish)
Garden
Trädgård (Swedish), Have (Skånish)
Clothes
Kläder (Swedish), Töj (Skånish)
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