The Vikings of Bjornstad
Old Norse Pronunciation
| Need help pronouncing Old Norse words? The following table may help. This is adapted from information in the video by Dr. Jackson Crawford. It is highly recommended if you want to hear these sounds. |
| Old Norse Pronunciation Guide | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Important Note: In ALL Old Norse words, the accent is on the first syllable. | |||
| Old Norse Short Vowel | Sound in English | Sample Old Norse Word | English Translation |
| a | got | dagr | day |
| e | pet | ek | and |
| i | heat | fiskr | fish |
| o | wrote | stormr | storm |
| u | root | fundr | battle |
| Old Norse Long Vowel | Sound in English | Sample Old Norse Word | English Translation |
| á | father (but held longer) | lágr | small, low |
| é | said | vér | sea |
| í | heed | íss | ice |
| ó | rode |
Þórr (Thor) Óðinn (Odin) |
|
| ú | rude | fúss | eager |
| Old Norse Alternate Vowel | Sound in English | Sample Old Norse Word | English Translation |
| y | dude, tune |
yfir (above) ýr (yew tree) |
|
| æ | had, mad | áræði | courage |
| ǫ | law (drawn out) | dǫgun | daybreak |
| ø, ö | bird (as spoken by Arnold Schwarzenegger) | døkkr | dark |
| au | house | hauss | house |
| ei | rain | steinn | stone |
| ey | similar to 'gluey' | éy | island |
| Old Norse Consonant | Sound in English | Sample Old Norse Word | English Translation |
| f | usually sounded as an English 'v', except at the beginning of a word |
fra ('f' sound as in 'from') yfir ('v' sound as in 'over') Fáfnir, the dragon name (sounds like 'fahvnir') |
|
| g | go (always a hard 'g') | galti | boar |
| hj | Houston, hue | hjálmr | helmet |
| hv | what | hvat | what |
| hl | - | Hliðskjálf | The seat on which Odin sits |
| hr | - | hrafn | raven |
| j | yes | já | yes |
| r | Trilled with a tongue flutter. Extended if the 'r' is doubled to 'rr'. | þór (accusative case), þórr (nominative or subjective case) | Thor |
| s | sit (always pronounced as 'sss', never as a 'z') | íss | ice |
| z | 'ts' (pronounced as in German) | hræzla | fear |
| Þ, þ | 'thorn' character as in 'thin', 'worth', 'breath' | þáttr | tale, short story |
| Ð, ð | 'eth' or 'edth' character (as in 'then', 'breathe', 'worthy') | leið | road, path |
