Something Swedish #8

Diane and I took an interest in the Swedish language somewhat late into the summer, but I feel that I have developed a familiarity with the language over the past three months. At first, when I looked at the written language, the pronunciations didn't seem to make any sense to me, but now that I've heard the language, I can read things with mostly correct pronunciations, even if I don't know what the words mean. Here are the three extra letters in the Swedish alphabet that you need to know if you want to try to read anything:

• ö--This is the one that I have the toughest time pronouncing. It sounds like an 'euh' or 'ugh.' It is used in the name of my town, Skövde, and because 'sk' in Swedish is pronounced like an 'h,' it sounds like 'Heuhv-deh.' This is one pronunciation that is really difficult to explain.
• å--This is the one that I think is the easiest. A common name for a girl is Åsa, and it is pronounced "Oh-suh," so it is an 'oh' sound. I visited the zoo in Borås, which is pronounced 'Bor-ohs.'
• ä--This is another kind of tough one, and it is a hard 'a' sound, like if you were sticking your tongue out at the doctor's office, like 'aah.' I visited the Nääs Slott (Castle), and this places a strong emphasis on the 'ah' sound.

That's it for now! Practice went well today and we have one more practice tomorrow before we leave for Sundsvall on Friday.