Capitalisation in English and Norwegian
Some of the rules of capitalisation are the same in Norwegian and English. For example, you would always capitalise the first word of a sentence.
Cooking can be therapeutic.
Also, you should always capitalise names and other proper nouns.
When Mary was in San Francisco, she went to see the Golden Gate Bridge.
However, English uses capitalisation to a greater extent than Norwegian and there are a few differences that you should be aware of.
Differences in capitalisation
Here are five categories of words where the rules of capitalisation differ between our two languages.
1) Unlike Norwegian, English capitalises nouns and adjectives describing nationalities, world continents, languages, and religions.
She had a Norwegian boyfriend. / Hun hadde en norsk kjæreste.
He came from a Muslim family. / Han kom fra en muslimsk familie.
She is South American. / Hun er søramerikansk.
2) The names of weekdays, months, and holidays are in English classified as proper nouns and are therefore capitalised. This is not done in Norwegian.
I hate Mondays! / Jeg hater mandager!
My birthday is in January. / Bursdagen min er i januar.
Tomorrow is Good Friday. / I morgen er det langfredag.
On Boxing Day, I will visit my grandmother / På annen juledag skal jeg besøke min bestemor.
3) Historic events and time periods are capitalised in English. The exception is centuries, which are not capitalised.
My grandmother was born during the Second World War. / Min bestemor ble født under andre verdenskrig.
The Victorian Period was a peaceful and prosperous time. / Den viktorianske perioden var en fredfull og fremgangsrik tid.
Exception: He lived during the eighteenth century.
4) Titles are capitalised if they are used in front of as a proper noun and refer to a specific person.
Tomorrow, President Biden will give a very important speech. / I morgen skal president Biden holde en veldig viktig tale.
King Olav was the father of King Harald and the grandfather of Crown Prince Haakon. / Kong Olav var far til kong Harald og bestefar til kronprins Haakon.
I met Professor Jones yesterday. / Jeg møtte professor Jones i går.
However, if you talk about the title in general terms and as a common noun it should not be capitalised.
Upon his inauguration, Biden became the oldest president at 78 years and 61 days.
In most countries today, the king has no real political power.
He became professor at the age of 29.
5) In titles of books, poems, and films, you would capitalise all words, except for words that only have a grammatical function (i.e. articles, conjunctions, and prepositions). In Norwegian, you would only capitalise the first word.
The Old Man and the Sea / Den gamle mannen og havet
Lord of the Flies / Fluenes herre
Gone with the Wind / Tatt av vinden
The Perks of Being a Wallflower / Fordelene ved å være veggpryd
In addition to these five categories of words that are capitalised, you will have noticed that the word for the first-person personal pronoun, I, is always capitalised in English. In Norwegian the word for the first-person personal pronoun, jeg, is only capitalised if it appears at the start of a sentence.
When will I see you again? / Når vil jeg se deg igjen?
I want to move to Egypt. / Jeg vil flytte til Egypt.
Task:
How much do you remember? Edit the following sentences using correct capitalisation.
the prince of england enjoys playing polo.
'ode to a nightingale' is a sad poem.
my sister loves to read magazines such as the new yorker.
the house on mango street is an excellent novel written by sandra cisneros.
my physician, dr. alvarez, always makes me feel comfortable in her office.
the battle of trafalgar took place in october 1805.
the first movie of the series is harry potter and the sorcerer’s stone.
the capitals of south africa are pretoria, cape town, and bloemfontein.
we will be meeting every monday in the months of january, february, and march.
this year, i'll be spending christmas with my mother and easter with my sister.
the senators from iowa and florida were not present, but senator feinstein from california was there.
harald fairhair is regarded as the first norwegian king. today king harald v and queen sonja are the reigning monarchs of norway.
the brontë sisters wrote jane eyre and wuthering heights, two wonderful english novels from the victorian period.
Key:
The Prince of England enjoys playing polo.
'Ode to a Nightingale' is a sad poem.
My sister loves to read magazines such as The New Yorker.
The House on Mango Street is an excellent novel written by Sandra Cisneros.
My physician, Dr. Alvarez, always makes me feel comfortable in her office.
The Battle of Trafalgar took place in October 1805.
The first movie of the series is Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.
The capitals of South Africa are Pretoria, Cape Town, and Bloemfontein.
We will be meeting every Monday in the months of January, February, and Mars.
This year, I'll be spending Christmas with my mother and Easter with my sister.
The senators from Iowa and Florida were not present, but Senator Feinstein from California was there.
Harald Fairhair is regarded as the first Norwegian king. Today, King Harald V and Queen Sonja are the reigning monarchs of Norway.
The Brontë sisters wrote Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights, two wonderful English novels from the Victorian era.