This week I did some research on Swedish history and I found that the things I'd learned explained a lot about either Swedish culture or language. For the purpose of this journal I will list the things I've learned along with the significance of these facts for my studies.
Swedish History
-800-1050: The Vikings have a strong exploring presence around the world and discover territories in the Middle East, Russia, and in what is now the northern United States and Canada. The Vikings had their own alphabet and number system which was very sophisticated. They also believed in many gods such as Oden, Thor, and Freja. Now that I know that the Vikings worshiped these gods I understand why Wednesday is called onsdag (Oden's day), Thursday is called torsdag (Tor's day), and Friday is called fredag (Freja's day).
-1520: The Danish invade Stockholm and the Stockholm’s bloodbath commences. Over 100 noblemen and other members of the government are publicly executed in the main square. This is the beginning of the hostility between Sweden and Denmark! For centuries the two countries battled over territory and power. Today there is still some underlying hostility between the two nations (Swedes and Danes can typically understand each others' languages but they refuse to speak the other language due to this deep-seated dislike).
-1523: Gustav (Vasa) Erikson elected King after rebel movement on June 6th. He is referred to as the founder of modern Sweden and father of the nation! This historical date is why June 6th is a national holiday in Sweden that is celebrated and adored by everyone in the country (it's often called "flag day" and is similar to our Fourth of July).
-Peace for 200 years because good at compromise and negotiation in both their personal lives and on a diplomatic scale. In fact, Sweden remained neutral in both of the World Wars in the 20th century. This fact is interesting and controversial because Sweden had resources that could have accelerated the liberation but they chose instead to remain neutral. This makes sense in terms of the Swedes I know because they tend to be people who avoid conflict in their daily lives and don't appreciate drama.
-1921: women are allowed to vote for the first time! This is interesting to me because Sweden today is a much more egalitarian country than the U.S. in terms of culture and policies and yet women in America were given the right to vote BEFORE Swedish women!
I hope these important dates/events are as helpful for you as they were for me in understanding Swedish culture and their language!
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