East is north and south is west
And these days they all meet more often. In the midst of a time of disasters and dangers of war, there are also reassuring signs of increased tolerance and cultural exchange in the world. We just have to know where to look.
National borders no longer have the same meaning (pun intended, Vladimir P!). In this ever-shrinking world, just like we tend to go to Sweden to re-experience our roots or get a clear sense of our heritage or modern ways of distant relatives, individuals and families now shift from one country in large numbers because of political persecution, economic advantage or romance. This type of “globalization” is sometimes viewed as a problem and even a threat. But in the cultural arena, we will always argue that this type of cross-fertilization has overwhelmingly delightful consequences: We are ourselves a testimony of this.
Vasa Convention
We recently went to the Vasa District 6 Convention in Cape May. It was fun and a great experience; even the so-called business meetings were lively and informative, so thanks, brothers and sisters in NJ, for sharing. The visit made me realize a couple things.
First of all, few are aware of the significance and history of Bishop Hill, Illinois where the annals of the Vasa Order are archived. It is definitely off the beaten path but quite an adventure to visit. When the 150th anniversary of the beginning of mass emigration from Sweden to the United States was celebrated in 1996, the initiators picked that settlement as representative of the first wave of Swedish mass immigration to North America. These first immigrants were members of a religious group led by farmer/salesman/preacher Erik Jansson who left their country in search of religious freedom. The group founded the Bishop Hill colony in western Illinois in 1846.
Allow us to point out that this particular, and peculiar, group was randomly chosen by the Jubilee’s initiators, and is by far the only group that qualifies. The fact is, it would be close to impossible to pinpoint any specific group as the absolute trigger for the start of the mass emigration. As some of our exerpts from newspaper and magazine reports indicate, however, Jansson’s utopia in Bishop Hill was considered a most daring experiment at the time and is to this day a piece of living history of Swedish immigration. For more on the colony, turn to the stories on pages 4-5.
Secondly, while you may have read Nordstjernan for many years and appreciate it for its coverage of traditions or events, entertainment or informative values (or, we hope, all of the above), and despite all our efforts to provide information on all things Swedish and Swedish-American, we usually neglect an important piece of information: the pronunciation of the name Nordstjernan.
The Swedish sje-sound
Many of you are not familiar with the Swedish sje-sound so prevalent in many Swedish words, Nordstjernan among them. It’s a tricky sound for a couple reasons. For one, it doesn’t have an equivalence in English and also, since our written language changes much less than our spoken, the sound can be spelled in a variety of ways — all leading back to an earlier pronunciation of the word, different from today’s.
The skj in skjuta (to push or shoot) was likely at first pronounced the way it looks, pronouncing every letter s-k-j-uta just like Nordstjernan was pronounced Nords-t-j-ernan. Not so anymore. While the different spellings have survived, the pronunciation of them all is the same, and to an American English speaker it’s a bit of a cross between a hush sound and the sound of the wind blowing.
Several years ago we received a letter to the editor from Patric L., which tries to explain the pronunciation of the number seven —”sju” in Swedish— where the sj is identical to how a Swede today would pronounce the stj in Nordstjernan. The so-called sje-sound is one of the most difficult sounds of the Swedish language for a non-native. The rest of Nordstjernan is easy: “o” is pronounced like the double o’s in too; the “e” sounds similar to the “a” in carry; and the “a” is similar to the open sound of the vowel in father.
As for stj, an example of the sje-sound you’ll find in many, many Swedish words. While the spelling differs between different words, they are — dialect differences aside — in essence pronounced in the same way. So, whenever you encounter a sch, sj, skj, sk or stj, if you master the instruction below you’re safe. (As a born Swede you’ll recall the test rhyme of “7,777 sjösjuka sjömän sköttes av en sjuksköterska.…”)
Take the idea, use it on Nordstjernan and you will be able to explain to your friends how the title of this paper is pronounced. And, maybe you’ll even say sju next time a relative or Swedish friend is teasing.
How to pronounce “sju”
by Patric L.
Knowing how difficult this particular sound is to pronounce for a non-native Swede, I will try to build my way to the sound as follows:
Start by saying SHOE in English. Notice how your tongue is cupped toward the front of your palate and remains there for the entire word. The OE part of SHOE will closely resemble the U in SJU if you move your tongue during the pronunciation of OE so that the tip of your tongue touches the inside base of the teeth in your lower jaw by the end of the word.
So, you flip the tip of your tongue from top palate to lower teeth, exactly when the OE begins, and now your SHOE will begin to sound like SJU instead. Remember not to try to change anything else, as that flip of the tongue should suffice.
To make the SJ-sound, pout with your lips at the same moment you flip your tongue. Starting with your mouth and tongue back, you should end up pouting and touching the tip tongue in front.
And there you have the pronunciation of “sju.”
Bishop Hill, Cape May and the pronunciation of Nordstjernan—beginning with ‘shoe’
|
The Editor & Publisher
Inte som andra bloggar.... this entry will be sometimes in Swedish, sometimes 'på svenska' - Just så händelsrikt är livet som utgivare av Amerikas äldsta och numera enda Svenska tidskrift.
Här ovan poserar jag “on location” kl 6 på morgonen i Minneapolis St. Paul för två år sedan. Henrik Olund tog bilden som förberedelse för en porträttbild av Vice President Walter Mondale. (Det var en bra intervju med en bra person) Jag skriver sällan med byline i Nordstjernan men jag är alltid ansvarig för innehållet, även om jag inte alltid håller med om allt.
(PS. Intervjun med Mondale hittar ni på nordicreach.com DS.) |