Recommended Reading (rated * - *****)
*****
Från rista till chatta
Jörgen Birch-Jensen © A. Bonnier 2007
(written in Swedish)
A simple yet detailed overview of Swedish language history beginning with the runes.
find this book! (Everyone)
find this book! (UW Affiliates)
*****
How Language Works
David Crystal © Avery 2005 (written in English)
"A user-friendly introduction to the many hitherto-unthought-of aspects of language. Packed with information, memorable anecdotes, and surprising statistics."
- Kirkus Reviews
Discusses virtually all aspects of language including: Spoken language, written language, sign language, language structure, discourse, dialects, language birth, language death, language organization, multilingualism, and language maintainence.
find this book! (Everyone)
find this book! (UW Affiliates)
****
Introduction to Scandinavian Phonetics - Danish, Norwegian and Swedish
Tom Lundskær-Nielsen, Michael Barnes and Annika Lindskog © Alfabeta, 2005
(written in English)
Describes Swedish speech sounds with the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), but is still relatively accessible to readers without a linguistic background. There is a general introduction for those who are interested in the linguistic terms. Then, the book is separated into Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish. Pages 100-119 cover Swedish and even touches on regional variation.
find this book! (Everyone)
find this book! (UW Affiliates)
***
Manual of Swedish Phonology with International Phonetic Transcription
Axel Johan Uppvall (Professor of Scandinavian Languages - University of Pennsylvania)© 1938 (written in English)
Very useful source if you have questions about the length of vowels, and rules for each speech sound. Includes 'kj' 'lj' 'rd' 'rl' 'rn' 'rs' 'rt' 'sj' 'sk' 'skj' 'stj' 'tj' among its consonant sounds and even discusses the Swedish language in musical terms. Good for perspective on stress and intonation, but the text is a bit inaccessible to the non-linguist. Organization and indentation of the text is also a bit messy.
find this book! (Everyone)
find this book! (UW Affiliates)
****
Svenska skrivregler
Svenska Språknämnden © Liber 2002?
(written in Swedish)
A definitive source for Swedish writing conventions straight from the Swedish language. Includes a standarized list of abbreviations, rules for punctuation, and so on.
find this book! (Everyone)
find this book! (UW Affiliates)
*****
Swedish Seattle
Paul Norlen © Arcadia Publishing 2007 (written in English)
Great visual history of Swedes and Swedish things in Seattle!
find this book! (Everyone)
*****
Varför säger man så?
Herbert Friedländer © Herbert Friedländer och Bokförlaget Liber 1956 och 1966
(written in Swedish)
"Varför säger man så? är en ofta ställd undran som inte alltid kan besvaras på rak arm. Men fil. mag. Herbert Friedländer visar att det finns svar på det mesta..."
This is a book full of explanations of common Swedish words and sayings, such as: skål, plugga, skolka, klart som korvspad, smörgås, örngott, att inte vara torr backom öronen, hur vackert var det inte, and so on.
Find this book! (Everyone)
Find this book! (UW Affiliates)