Some tips about learning the language

Before an adult starts learning a new language, they should ask themselves the following questions:

Why do they want to begin learning the language? What is their motivation?

Depending on their goal and motivation, how much time can they dedicate into studying?

Norwegian is a quite demanding language because it has a difficult pronunciation and many dialects. It also has a very concise way of thinking and expression. By this, I mean that they have numerous compound words and verbs with prepositions and their their meaning can change according to the preposition used. This does not align at all with Greek grammar and syntax.

Usually, most of my students start learning the language to immigrate and live in Norway or to study there. Among them, some just want to communicate by learning basic Norwegian, while others aim much higher. Regardless, given the difficulty of the language I mentioned above and the lack of exposure to stimuli from the environment like it is in the case of English, where we are exposed to the language through various means like songs, movies, series, etc., students will need to actively seek contact with the language parallel to their courses.

First and foremost, I always recommend beginners to listen and re-listen to the audio files I provide them until they memorize the pronunciation of the alphabet, diphthongs, and intonation. They can listen to the audio files on their headphones in the bus, car, or anywhere. In other words, those who don’t do this consistently, end up having difficulty in their pronunciation and constantly mispronounce letters, making communication much more challenging. For instance, the expression “på vei” is pronounced “p/ɑ/ vai” and not “pa vai”. The letter “å” is pronounced as an “o”, so it would be perfect if somebody avoids making these mistakes when reaches the end of the book.

Mastering pronunciation is a difficult task, especially for adults who are migrating. However, they can approximate to be understood and communicative by thorough reading. It doesn’t matter if someone aims to reach level B1 or C1; the essential part is to be understood when speaking.

Regarding studying, one should allocate at least a productive three-hour studying during every week and listen to the audio files for at least half an hour to an hour every day. As they progress, I can advise them to listen to podcasts or watch series on platforms like Netflix with Norwegian subtitles in order to become more familiar with the language.

The points I mentioned above are relevant to learning any language in general. Although this specific language has some peculiarities, it helps a lot if one already knows English or German. For those who do not know these languages, they should simply remain consistent with their study. Effort is always recognized because it essentially shows consistency towards oneself.