Words from the cold North

The Nordic invasions: 10 words adopted by English

Image: Sami Matias Breilin

Romance languages, led by French, have had such a lasting influence on English that we sometimes forget that it is actually a Germanic language, and as such, a relative of the Nordic languages.

However, Nordic languages had left their mark on English centuries before the French-Normans even attempted to conquer England, and they continue to do so to this day. Let’s have a look at some words of Nordic origin that are ingrained in everyday English.

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The terms for window used by Old English and Old Norse were both related to the word ‘eye’, but were different. In Old English, the common word was eagþyrl or ‘eye-hole’, while Old Norse used vindauga or ‘wind-eye’. V_indauga_ was one of the many words adopted into English during the Viking invasions and evolved into ‘window’ during the Middle English period.

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Did you know that the original English word for egg was æg, and it was pronounced like ‘eye’? The word as we know it now was adopted from Old Norse around the 14th century. For a while, egg coexisted with eyren, the plural of æg, but the Norse term was ultimately more popular.

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What do the words fjord, ford, and port have in common? They all come from the same Indo-European word meaning ‘crossing’, but through different languages. Old English ford retained the meaning of ‘a shallow river crossing’, while Latin portus was adopted as port (a harbor), and Old Norse fjǫrðr was adopted as fjord (an inlet or estuary that gave passage from the sea to the land).

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Nordic countries deal with much more snow than England, so the adoption of snow-adjacent vocabulary seems only logical. In addition to this, most of the English terms that start with sk- are of Norse origin. The word ski comes from the Old Norse skíth (meaning ‘snowshoe’), and it was adopted into English during the 18th-century. Related words such as slalom (a sloping track) are of the same origin.

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This word, from Swedish origin, was adopted in the 1950s, but it is actually a portmanteau. The original name was trampcykel med motor och pedaler or ‘pedal cycle with engine and pedals’. It seems that the name was a mouthful even for the Swedish, because the shortened version was coined by them.

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Nowadays, gang can have a negative connotation in some contexts, but it can also be used in a more neutral sense. This neutral use (gang as ‘group’) comes from Old Norse gangr or ganga, meaning ‘going’ or ‘journey’. Adopted into English, the meaning of gang shifted to ‘a group of people’.

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People want the things that they don’t have, and that is the origin of this very important English verb. In Old Norse, vant was a neutral form of vanr, ‘deficient, lacking’. Vanta was ‘to be lacking’. Although the word was adopted by English with the meaning of ‘lacking’ something, its original notion was later extended to ‘needing’ and then ‘desiring’.

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The origins of this term are Scandinavian, most likely the Swedish skúfa, meaning ‘to shove’ or ‘to push’. It was adopted into English in the 1500s to describe small, clumsy tussles and fights, though it later adopted also the meaning of moving in a confused or hurried way.

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A much more modern term, hygge became popular in English in the last decade. This Danish word is impossible to translate, and it's used to describe a feeling of coziness, contentment, and comfort. Through its Old Germanic roots, hygge is related to the English hug.

Image: Emily Campbell

Did you know that geysers are named after an Icelandic geyser called Geysir? The name comes from the Icelandic verb geysa, meaning ‘to gush’ or ‘to go forward’. The Icelandic word for geyser is goshver, but Geysir was so famous that English adopted it as a generic name for all spouting hot springs in the 18th century.

No problemo!

"Whatchoo Talkin' 'Bout, Willis?!" Do you remember these TV series lines?

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Perhaps because they appeared on our screens repeatedly, TV shows had a way of imprinting certain catchphrases in our memories. These expressions worked as a primitive version of what we now know as memes: little ideas that could be used in multiple situations and were often funny or curious. Shows like The X Files, Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, or Sledge Hammer had catchphrases and famous lines that every viewer will remember. Take a look at the following 12 and see which ones you recall!

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The most famous cartoon family since 1989 has created more than one catchphrase throughout its long history. Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie have gone through numerous phases of their lives and tackled social, political, economic, and other situations with their signature Simpsons humor.

But, without a doubt, Homer is the highlight of the animated sitcom. He is not the smartest man alive, but he has some brilliantly funny moments. A sign of something going wrong is Homer's angry "D'oh!" which has become a part of pop culture.

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The brilliant combination of sci-fi with the supernatural that was The X-Files marked the 1990s TV, thanks in no small part to FBI agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully, who looked into unresolved cases with extraterrestrial origins.

Dana Scully said the famous line, "The truth is out there, but so are lies," and the first part of the quote became the tagline of The X-Files.

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While the phrase was made famous by Jack Nicholson in The Shining, "Here's Johnny," dates back to 1960s television, when it was first uttered by Ed McMahon to introduce audiences to Johnny Carson on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.

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In 1999, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire debuted as a two-week show but, due to its massive success, became a regular series. The question, "Is that your final answer?" was asked by the host Regis Philbin, and has since become a phrase used in multiple situations of everyday life.

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The Addams Family was a 1964 television show based on a series of New Yorker cartoons depicting a family full of macabre interests and supernatural powers, that to this day still remain in our minds thanks to films, animated movies, comic books, and more.

While The Addams Family is known for its peculiar characters, there's one line that everyone remembers, which is "You rang?", uttered by the show's butler, Lurch.

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Few phrases carry as much kindness as "Won't you be my neighbor?" from the children's show Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. Fred Rogers created the show and served as host, writer, puppeteer, voice actor, and musical composer.

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The "Adventures of Superman" made its television debut in 1952, and this line was part of the opening title sequence. The voice-over narration continued: "Faster than a speeding bullet! More powerful than a locomotive! Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound!"

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Walter Cronkite signed off his"CBS Evening News" shows with the words: "That's the way it is." Originally, Cronkite used to encourage viewers to read their newspapers for more details, but network executives were not happy with his suggestion. Cronkite eventually agreed to change his salutation to the one that is now in the annals of history.

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A running gag, this question was repeatedly asked by child actor Gary Coleman in "Diff'rent Strokes" to his on-screen brother, played by Todd Bridges, whenever he said something confusing or dumb.

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This phrase, and its many similar iterations, was uttered by the villain of the day, at the end on each Scooby Doo episode. This happened because every episode had a similar structure: the Scooby gang went to investigate some paranormal activity, encountered fake ghosts and monsters, and went on to unmask them.

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Other than "jumping the shark", the pop culture favorite show "Happy Days" also created the catchphrase "Ayyy", as uttered by the Fonz, its popular character. The phrase had several meanings, ranging from an expression of disgust to a celebratory exclamation.

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This half-hour comedy about a police detective who went too far, every single time, but with humorous results, was only aired for a couple of seasons, but left a mark on its audience. Sledge Hammer carried a .44 magnum everywhere he went and said, "Trust me, I know what I'm doing" before doing all sorts of insane things.