Thursday 31 December 2009

Happy ending!


The Whirlpool
Originally uploaded by
Asplund

I've been house-sitting for my cousins, and their cat Felix likes helping me with my knitting when he isn't busy dancing on the rugs.

Nearly done with the vest: I've picked up stitches along the the two front pieces and across the back of the neck to knit a few rows of garter stitch. I almost prefer the way the wrong side looks, so I've toyed with the idea of trying to make the vest reversible. However, I'm eager to finish it to start new projects (and perhaps finish some old ones) so I won't.

Gott slut! No, that's not a combination of German and English. It's a Swedish expression meaning good/happy ending - what we wish each other between Christmas and New Year's Eve, before it's time to wish each other Gott nytt år (happy new year). When the new year's arrived we say God fortsättning, wishing a happy continuation (of the new year). If used during Christmas it refers to the Christmas holidays.

Complicated? Perhaps, but at least it's well-meaning!



9 comments:

Mel said...

Gott slut to you, too! Hope the coming year is full of wonderment and merriment.

Ulla V. said...

Ja, Gott Slutt til dig og et rigtig godt nytår også. :))
Det har været en fornøjelse at følge din blog og dine smukke strikkerier...

Call design said...

Happy new year!

Anonymous said...

Happy New Year to you as well. And a good time to thank you for your wonderful and entertaining blog. May 2010 be fun and exciting.
Ron in Mexico

Unknown said...

Happy New Year to you! I enjoy your blog very much and hope that you continue it.

A few questions about Swedish, since I'm a language geek:

1. Since you say "God fortsaettning", why isn't "gott nytt aar" spelled "godt" like the ?Danish (I'm never certain whether something's Danish or NorwegianB, since I know no Scandinavian language) comment you received? Does Swedish change -dt to -tt?

2. How does it sound? In English transcription, would it be something like "Goo", "Gooth", "Goot", or something else?

Yarndude said...

Happy New Year, Ivar!

Anonymous said...

Happy New Year! The vest is looking fantastic.

Asplund said...

Thanks, everyone!

Dan:
How observant - I'm impressed! (And a language geek too!)
1. It used to be spelled "godt" in Swedish too, but was one of the things changed to reflect pronunciation when there was a major spelling reform about a century ago. It's fascinating reading books printed before the reform - it really helps taking you back in time!
2. Pronunciation is tricky to describe, but "god" almost rhymes with English "food" (but with lips far more rounded - one's mouth almost looks like a circle) while "gott" almost rhymes with the British pronunciation of "not" (but with slightly more rounded lips).

Lars said...

Makes sense when you think about it, I'm assuming that a more literal translation is "forthsetting"
Anyway, may your new year continue to get better and better.