The art of koselig

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En koselig morgen.

Norwegians are the kings and queens of koselig. What exactly is koselig, you ask?
It is my favorite word in Norwegian. Possibly my favorite word that exists to my knowledge. And there's a lot of words I like, rumpetroll,rumpeballer, smilhull,bøtteballet, tjuesju and so on. Koselig doesn't quite translate to English.

It's a feeling. It's an action. It's the atmosphere. Koselig is a lot of things.
It's warmth and comfort. It's being in the presence of loved ones in the evening. It's laughing in a pub with your closest friends. It's intimacy and love. It's warming your feet by the fireplace while wearing knitted woolen socks. It's candlelight on a dark night (or day). It's cuddling with your significant other under a blanket while sitting outside sipping hot chocolate - or cuddling on the couch with chocolate ice cream, watching Netflix, whatever your thing is. :-) It's something as simple as lighting candles.

I think of koselig as an art. Because it is an art. I'm sitting here sipping my chococino (that's the closest I get to drinking coffee) after having lit several candles because it's a very dark and drizzly day. It's making a dark day brighter and that is absolutely necessary for survival.






Comments

F_Julian said…
I'm a long time follower; I followed your blog when you first came to Norway, and then I stopped (reasons unknown), then last autumn I suddenly stumbled across the blog again, and after reading everything between where I left off and the last entry, I reached a conclusion: I love your blog. Not only because of my interest in the culture difference between US and Norway in way of living, but also because you have such a nice, down-to-earth way of describing everyday actions/situations that we Norwegians sort of take for granted - in reference to your definition of "koselig"!
There is also somehting about how you give yourself to the blog, you offer the real you; you don't only describe the "happy", but also the quaint, madening, enjoyable and sad parts, as well as the happy parts!

Keep on blogging! :-D
May 7, 2015 at 8:48 PM
Anonymous said…
Isn't it translatable to "cosy" in english?
Or maybe you could make a new word like "cosely" since it's kinda like "lovely" :)
May 7, 2015 at 9:09 PM
Anonymous said…
You have described koselig perfectly Evelyn :) a little like the Danish hygge it's an 'art' form which the English word cosy just doesn't not encompass to the same extent :)
May 8, 2015 at 2:05 PM
Evelyn Sand said…
F_Julian: Thank you so much for the kind words in your comment! Reading this really brightened my day and put a smile on my face. Thank you! :-)
May 15, 2015 at 12:31 PM
Evelyn Sand said…
Koselig is a bit deeper than just 'cozy.' It's like saying hyggelig is 'nice', but the meaning is actually more deeper than those words, so it doesn't really translate. :-)
May 15, 2015 at 12:33 PM
Anonymous said…
I love the idea of 'koselig'. People are always telling me how cold Norwegians are to new acquaintances, but the way so many of them welcome you with their 'koselig' is astounding. I love the way you described it :)
May 15, 2015 at 9:16 PM
Colleen said…
This is a great post, I admit it is a concept that it took me years to truly understand. I remember being alarmed when I first arrived here when I would get invited to a "kosekveld" or something similar because I translated it so literally and thought, a cozy evening? I don't understand!!:) Now however, I have a deep appreciation for the concept. :)
August 27, 2015 at 12:31 PM
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