Script guide › Latin
How to recognize Norwegian
Norwegian is one of 35 languages in Grafle's Latin group. Here's what it looks like, where you'll see it on signs, and how to tell it apart from its lookalikes.
Spot it fast
- Uses æ, ø, å — if you see ä or ö instead, it's Swedish.
- Near-twin of Danish: Norwegian writes 'av' where Danish writes 'af', so lean on context.
What Norwegian looks like
Alle mennesker er født frie og like i verdighet.
Hei, hyggelig å møte deg! Hvordan går det?
Det er typisk norsk å være god.
Latin scripts: The alphabet you're reading now. Each language gives itself away by its own special letters and accent marks.
Where you'll see it on signs
- Norway
Easy to confuse with
- Danish — The hardest pair — both write æ, ø, å and most words match. Danish spells 'af' where Norwegian spells 'av'; on signs, Denmark marks a zone as Zone where Norway writes Sone, and domains end .dk vs .no.
- Swedish — Swedish uses ä/ö, Norwegian uses æ/ø — that letter swap is the fastest tell.
- Icelandic — Icelandic keeps the ancient letters þ (thorn) and ð (eth); Norwegian never uses them.