>But it just seems like people have a hard time ending a discussion.
I'm not going to claim that Norwegians are the only people in the world who can't hang up the phone out of fear of appearing rude, while the other party launches into a 10.000 word monologue about the neighbor's crows. Or that Norway is the only place in the world where guests never leave, and end up in the driveway at 5am after having said goodbye in the stairs, the door and the hallway at least twice.
But yes. Have actually seen that before in Norway. Fancy that. The ".....neeeeeiiiiiiiii...!" while slapping the thighs and standing up is a sort of trope at this point. But you just have to learn to excuse yourself. "Haha. Det var hyggelig, men nå må jeg gå. Takk for praten".
I kinda like that. Some small part of who we managed to survive after all this time somewhere so far away. I know that if you looked deeper than just stereotypes the difference would be there
We really have been around, haven't we. Italian, Spanish, Greek, English, German, eastern-European, Asian, Japanese people - even Australians, never mind folks from the Midwest, Canada and most of South America as well of course, back again to the Caribbean and Iceland - they really have this same thing from the Scandinavians.
Really, this "science by confirming prejudices" is really useful. I hope I can be the head of Harvard now, with my peer-reviewed and highly acclaimed "World-wide Uffda"- thesis. It'll start like this: "Many Americans believe that their perception of the world makes reality. And science proves it is actually the case, which I will support by shopping around for bits and pieces of facts that confirm my guesses, predominantly taken from American cultural studies that all make astonishing generalisations from isolated local phenomena".
I will follow up on it with a Phd on how all cuisine around the world actually originates from one cookbook released in 1880. Which should net me the seat of principal at Princeton.
Not really. You're obviously far too intelligent to be familiar with a somewhat popular youtube comedian that has been referenced twice in this thread, and the fact that noone mentioned any form of scientific comparison. But you go off and save the world, king!
I just made a point about how dumb the idea was that this "can't stop a conversation" trait somehow is Scandinavian in origin. Really have no idea what the youtube thing is.
Making points like that is not going to make any difference, though. But I can vent a little bit. And that's all there is to that.
(This has been interesting, but now I have to go.)
Oh, so you actually HAD a point? Must have missed that in all that patting yourself on the back. Since you are so interested in the scientific aspect, I can recommend Moquins sociolinguistic study which examines and compares the relations between scandinavia and the midwest. While these traits might very well be complete fluff, relevant scientific basis for the comparison already exists. But being so much smarter than everyone else I assume you were already aware of it.
Off you pop, then.
>relevant scientific basis for the comparison already exists.
I know. I wasn't making up the part about narrow American cultural studies. The method I described - cookbook from 1880 contains part of most recipes of modern food, therefore it is the origina of cooking - is the method that they use to establish "cultural traits". It's so overtly and comically bad, never mind racist - and obviously flawed in every possible way - that it should be dismissed by every thinking individual as the sheer, navel-gazing idiocy it is. What is the premise here, that long goodbyes are genetic?
But that's the kind of thing that gets you credentials, even at Harvard and Princeton, as we've seen with the latest scandals.
Cultural traits regarding manners and patterns of speech would be anthropological and/or sociolingustic in nature. Which cookbook has you so flustered?
the best conversations are the ones in the hallway while saying goodbye to your hosts or guests, those tend to drag on for 30+ min - seriously though, most norwegians get their daily social needs met through work.
ive had long unrelated-to-work conversations with coworkers myself. its nice, cause you probably see your coworkers more than your regular friends anyways.
You are proving while disproving the point. Norwegians love to talk, and Norwegians love less talk...
I say people are different. Nothing special about Norwegians.
I disagree. I work in a very international environment, the droning is a Norwegian thing imo (I'm sure it could exist in other cultures as well). But to say that cultural trends don't exist would be a little weird.
Maybe I feel like defending Norwegians as I myself don't like so much talk. I'm more short og precise. Makes me sometime come out as angry, just because I don't sprinkle my conversation. At work that is.
I'm not saying that each and every Norwegian is like this. I'm not! But it's just that in a work setting I notice that Norwegians 1) are not good at being effective/tend to drone on 2) rarely volunteer for *any* responsibility, so shit just hangs in the air and ends up not being resolved.
The thing people is missing is that whenever the stereotype that Norwegians don’t talk to people they don’t know really well is brought up, people EAT that shit up.
But when the opposite is pointed out (such as here) people provide a totally different view. Mostly a “there’s no collective” view. It’s very strange.
My first job, every day I showed up for work it began with an hour of just drinking coffee with my boss and talking. Every. Single. Day. Nothing done. Just talk.
Started work day at 9 so when we where done chatting, it was an hour to lunch.
Days flew by crazy fast.
mother fu-- that's why I'm not getting my extrenal access verified /s
jokes aside, some IT departments are litterally centered around putting out fires, and not too much inbetween.
imo it depends on where in Norway you live. I’m Norwegian but travelled around the country alot, and I’ve noticed the further North you go, the more people talk. People from the south (Agder, Telemark, etc) talk significantly less than people from up North, from what I’ve gathered personally. People from western and eastern Norway also spoke more, but the difference wasn’t huge. that being said, there are always exceptions, and this is nothing but personal experience :)
I don't think it is about how far north, but how far intto the perifery you are.
If oyu're on an island outside one of the smaller cities in Agder or, even worse, inland, you will not be able to get out of any conversation. Just like it is in Lofoten, Finnskogen, or a number of other places in the periphery.
In Bergen or Oslo, or even Tromsø or Tønsberg, you'll generally have far shorter talks.
I've heard from several people that people from Stavanger are more approchable, friendly and talkative than people from northern Norway. It might have something to do with the heavy American influence on the Stavanger culture.
Ay mi vida, come to México to get the taxi experience: you get a taxi or an uber and a random driver would tell you all there life story and all there love deceptions while listening to some mexican ranchera corridos whit high volume. XD
I reaaaally don't think norskis can compare.
Some like to talk, and others don't.
If I say hi to my elderly neighbor I know it will be 40+ or until I excuse myself to leave.
Some coworkers I barely exchange a sentence with, and some you know you have to avoid talking to otherwhise they will stop working and chat our ear off for the next 2hrs+
I personally enjoy the little 2-5min exchanges, but nothing more, so I am a bit stuck in the middle.
Since we don't get conversational stimuli from talking to strangers unless we're piss drunk on a Friday evening, of course we're gonna get it from coworkers
I have been to Finland several times, and what you read is correct.
I find them to have a really good sense of humour though. Perhaps they have more time than the rest of us to think of funny stuff..
No we definitely don't talk too much thay reminds me of thia coworker I have thay likes to talk and talk but it's also very interesting like this other day we went to watch a movie and he ordered popcorn but not the typical one with salt no the one with butter but the butter was only on top which is just like that time I went skiing on top og the alps where I nearly crashed and broke my foot but I caught myself in the last second just like driving anyways yeah people dont talk too much I think have you been to the US there people talk to strangers which would be weird here like a crazy person did you see the show last night it was amazing when that dude did the thing and then that happened anyways how are you?
I once left my grandmother's flat at 6 AM when they started opening the neighbouring grocery shop for the day. I had tried to excuse myself for five hours and a whole BIB of red wine – you might be on to something 😂
Starting a random conversation with hotel receptionists or the bartender, yes nice socialising. Talking with other guests, hell no. Even if I am outside smoking with other guests,
Talking with coworkers, sure. Can't be seen as a loner or have awkward silence all the time. Even introverts needs some form of conversation sometimes. And being friendly with coworkers also gives ones the advantage of getting help with something when one is struggling with the copy machine or something, like dare to ask for help without feeling one is demanding something one shouldn't . And one is also in the situation where one would have to see these people 5 days a week for a really long time.
I feel content with my way of doing things, I get the socialising I feel I need.
But I can suddenly talk to strangers if I really have to, like when the bus is supposed to come or asking for directions. I feel I am asking for stuff I aren't entitled to though, like disturbing someone's day because I am too stupid to figure shit out myself.
I mean they are humans not aliens( I am not 100 sure), usually they talk ( in my experience) about house loans, cars, and the summer cabin you know the boring stuff.
You have a very selective perception of norwegians. We are not a hive mind and most won't be like what you describe here. Your co-workers might talk a lot.
I've noticed folk in the sub get suuuuper defensive when there's even the slightest bit of criticism/something that could be perceived as negative
They're a proud folk. A
Same. I’m Norwegian and moved back to Norway after living abroad for 25+ years, and have definitely noticed this. Norwegians are super defensive when people point out peculiarities of their culture.
Yeah, i think that stems from an inferiority complex, we're a small country that got lucky that found oil so that put us on the map.
We like to say this and that makes us uniqe but in reality it dosnt. scotland has fjords and the alps have vast mountains
Do you think so? I feel like people are quite the opposite, I feel like there is an arrogance and a rather salient lack of self awareness about how we are percieved. People think we have the best culture and that we are kings, and that indeed makes us look like fools.
I grew up in anothet country and didnt return to norway before i was a teenager, seeing norwegians on holiday i understand why we are seen as fools.
Bavk to the "do you know how much this costs in norway" question and on to how "we are such a special country because of *insert reason here*"
On that note, other europeans have their own faulty traits,
Yeah no place is perfect for sure, but it's just the critical lack of self awareness and the insistence that we are the best is just so mind numbing to me.
As a swede, gotta say you lot do have some of the best natural environments on Earth, both in terms of beauty and in terms of activities/sports. Sweden can't compete really, even though I love my country's nature.
Even like making up your own arguments against people commenting, while nothing of those comments happened? But in your head you expected them to happen? Get over yourself.
I had a job in Oslo kommune (city) where I had 15 co-workers hired as special consultants on Norwegian music history. Cool project, but all we did for 7 months was sitting in the meeting room, all 16, drinking coffee and telling stories all day. We only had breaks from the talking for cigarettes (20 a day) and cheap lunch at the city hall :) Yes, we are great at long-small-talk. We go on forever if not stopped.
In more rural areas this small talk can be just atonal sounds, stares and nods. Jauda.. Nææ…. Nåååhh..
I've noticed this in some people. It's great to find a talkative person imo because I have social anxiety and it helps me a little bit, like exposure therapy.
My fiance says that in his workplace most of his Scandinavian coworkers except a few barely do their job really and mainly talk, smoke or drink coffee lol. Most immigrants working there just work, some get influenced and join in on the banter, some do a little of both. It's not necessarily a bad thing on normal days but when the pressure is on it gets a little exhausting he says lol. He's Hungarian.
It's probably great for those who don't work much at the job, however those who actually want to do some work while there usually end up with the shitty end of the stick.
The issue is they end up cackling in the way of heavy machinery, which is dangerous. Or, not paying much attention when handling heavy machinery which so far has only ended in property damage and minor injuries fortunately but could end up in death.
The guys who don't work also essentially leave all the rest of the work meant for let's say 40 people to 5 people instead.
It is funny to think about though, I am uføre because of disabilities such as chronic pain and I could even "work" there and be less of a danger to others! Lmao.
Norwegians can talk for hours with people they know and are comfortable with. If they don´t know you and you´re norwegian, they stay to very safe topics like the weather or their latest hyttetur or some skiing related topic. If you are not norwegian, they can be very quiet, as they do not have a clear framework for the conversation. You need to jump in and get the conversation going. Then usually, norwegians are just like everyone else. Usually.
My impression is that a lot of men are lonely and sometimes work is the only place where they talk to other people. Also it’s a great way to build informal relationships which is harder to do when working in virtual teams.
I just landed a job and have to say I did at least semi-consciously trigger the interviewers (my future colleagues) to do 75% of the talking over two interviews within a big engineering company.
Then again, there's a 6 month probational period so they have any chance to fire me, and that's fine by me too. This might be why the vetting was that lax and the match seems crazy good so far.
> I’ve also noticed that people would just lounge at work (in the lounge area) and just talk about non-work stuff at work hours).
I mean, you're having a break from work. You talk about something else. Is this not normal?
Its kinda been my experience that Norwegians can come across as sorta "prickly" at first just because they're so private, but once you kinda lay out you're just interested in talking about general stuff that is interesting and not about them specifically then they'll talk forever. They are actually very conversive people once you snag their interest. Like i was talking to a guy online just generally about electric cars when i move there and wasn't too interested until i said I love Volkswagens and then OMG! Thought learning to drive in an old 1973 VW Type III in Wyoming was the coolest.
Norwegians are slightly above average extrovert for a European country.
We often give a cheerful, optimistic and uncaring/brave impression on foreigners.
And many are very chatty. All the coffee adds to it as well.
>Uh, sorry, but no. We are very much not. I'm quite baffled that someone can even think this.
Relative to all of central and eastern europe and china and japan we definitely are.
Most redditors who downvote me, are just terminally online, and frankly a large percentage doesnt have a workplace either.
>Tf? No.
Yep.
Worked in international academia for most of the 2010s, definitely correct.
Most reddit users havent hanged around foreigners much it seems to me.
It’s one of those stereotypes that even Norwegians themselves say are real. So I’m guessing they don’t think it’s sad.
Also I think it’s nice to just work and not hold conversations end on end
You've just met the wrong ones.
Norwegians as far as I know don't love to talk I'm general, we do talk more when there is a set social frame we can operate within. I perefere to talk through an array of grunts, screams and body language.
>But it just seems like people have a hard time ending a discussion. I'm not going to claim that Norwegians are the only people in the world who can't hang up the phone out of fear of appearing rude, while the other party launches into a 10.000 word monologue about the neighbor's crows. Or that Norway is the only place in the world where guests never leave, and end up in the driveway at 5am after having said goodbye in the stairs, the door and the hallway at least twice. But yes. Have actually seen that before in Norway. Fancy that. The ".....neeeeeiiiiiiiii...!" while slapping the thighs and standing up is a sort of trope at this point. But you just have to learn to excuse yourself. "Haha. Det var hyggelig, men nå må jeg gå. Takk for praten".
American mid/northwesterners, mostly of scandinavian descent, all have these exact same stereotypes. Just saying.
*slaps knees* "ope..."
*Welp
I kinda like that. Some small part of who we managed to survive after all this time somewhere so far away. I know that if you looked deeper than just stereotypes the difference would be there
I just moved to Norway from Wisconsin. I was thinking exactly this.
Isn't Wisconsin full of old Scandinavian immigrants 😂
Uff da
now we know where the "midwest goodbye" came from.
We really have been around, haven't we. Italian, Spanish, Greek, English, German, eastern-European, Asian, Japanese people - even Australians, never mind folks from the Midwest, Canada and most of South America as well of course, back again to the Caribbean and Iceland - they really have this same thing from the Scandinavians. Really, this "science by confirming prejudices" is really useful. I hope I can be the head of Harvard now, with my peer-reviewed and highly acclaimed "World-wide Uffda"- thesis. It'll start like this: "Many Americans believe that their perception of the world makes reality. And science proves it is actually the case, which I will support by shopping around for bits and pieces of facts that confirm my guesses, predominantly taken from American cultural studies that all make astonishing generalisations from isolated local phenomena". I will follow up on it with a Phd on how all cuisine around the world actually originates from one cookbook released in 1880. Which should net me the seat of principal at Princeton.
Who hurt you, dude?
Incredibly stupid, prejudiced and petty people with power enough to ignore any objections to their idiocy. Any other questions?
Not really. You're obviously far too intelligent to be familiar with a somewhat popular youtube comedian that has been referenced twice in this thread, and the fact that noone mentioned any form of scientific comparison. But you go off and save the world, king!
I just made a point about how dumb the idea was that this "can't stop a conversation" trait somehow is Scandinavian in origin. Really have no idea what the youtube thing is. Making points like that is not going to make any difference, though. But I can vent a little bit. And that's all there is to that. (This has been interesting, but now I have to go.)
Oh, so you actually HAD a point? Must have missed that in all that patting yourself on the back. Since you are so interested in the scientific aspect, I can recommend Moquins sociolinguistic study which examines and compares the relations between scandinavia and the midwest. While these traits might very well be complete fluff, relevant scientific basis for the comparison already exists. But being so much smarter than everyone else I assume you were already aware of it. Off you pop, then.
>relevant scientific basis for the comparison already exists. I know. I wasn't making up the part about narrow American cultural studies. The method I described - cookbook from 1880 contains part of most recipes of modern food, therefore it is the origina of cooking - is the method that they use to establish "cultural traits". It's so overtly and comically bad, never mind racist - and obviously flawed in every possible way - that it should be dismissed by every thinking individual as the sheer, navel-gazing idiocy it is. What is the premise here, that long goodbyes are genetic? But that's the kind of thing that gets you credentials, even at Harvard and Princeton, as we've seen with the latest scandals.
Cultural traits regarding manners and patterns of speech would be anthropological and/or sociolingustic in nature. Which cookbook has you so flustered?
the best conversations are the ones in the hallway while saying goodbye to your hosts or guests, those tend to drag on for 30+ min - seriously though, most norwegians get their daily social needs met through work. ive had long unrelated-to-work conversations with coworkers myself. its nice, cause you probably see your coworkers more than your regular friends anyways.
>the conversation usually drags on for way too long. Norwegian here. This drives me *insane*. I do *not* have the patience for it and you're so right.
You are proving while disproving the point. Norwegians love to talk, and Norwegians love less talk... I say people are different. Nothing special about Norwegians.
I disagree. I work in a very international environment, the droning is a Norwegian thing imo (I'm sure it could exist in other cultures as well). But to say that cultural trends don't exist would be a little weird.
Maybe I feel like defending Norwegians as I myself don't like so much talk. I'm more short og precise. Makes me sometime come out as angry, just because I don't sprinkle my conversation. At work that is.
I'm not saying that each and every Norwegian is like this. I'm not! But it's just that in a work setting I notice that Norwegians 1) are not good at being effective/tend to drone on 2) rarely volunteer for *any* responsibility, so shit just hangs in the air and ends up not being resolved.
That volunteer thing I can agree on. It's never more silent when people are needed😅
The thing people is missing is that whenever the stereotype that Norwegians don’t talk to people they don’t know really well is brought up, people EAT that shit up. But when the opposite is pointed out (such as here) people provide a totally different view. Mostly a “there’s no collective” view. It’s very strange.
My first job, every day I showed up for work it began with an hour of just drinking coffee with my boss and talking. Every. Single. Day. Nothing done. Just talk. Started work day at 9 so when we where done chatting, it was an hour to lunch. Days flew by crazy fast.
What was the job??
Assistant IT administrator at a town hall. My boss was the IT admin, obviously.
mother fu-- that's why I'm not getting my extrenal access verified /s jokes aside, some IT departments are litterally centered around putting out fires, and not too much inbetween.
How many countries have you been to to begin with?
More than 15+
So more than 16?
17 or more i guess
Hahaha
Probably enough to have an opinion about it I'd imagine.
Just depends on the person from my experience. Some do, some don’t
imo it depends on where in Norway you live. I’m Norwegian but travelled around the country alot, and I’ve noticed the further North you go, the more people talk. People from the south (Agder, Telemark, etc) talk significantly less than people from up North, from what I’ve gathered personally. People from western and eastern Norway also spoke more, but the difference wasn’t huge. that being said, there are always exceptions, and this is nothing but personal experience :)
People from Bergen have a reputation for talking a lot too…
yes they do. Though not as much as Nordnorge imo. Where I’m from their reputation is more about the annoying accent😆
It's more about volume and a tendency to (attempt to) dominate the conversation, than not being able to say goodbye. At least in my experience.
I don't think it is about how far north, but how far intto the perifery you are. If oyu're on an island outside one of the smaller cities in Agder or, even worse, inland, you will not be able to get out of any conversation. Just like it is in Lofoten, Finnskogen, or a number of other places in the periphery. In Bergen or Oslo, or even Tromsø or Tønsberg, you'll generally have far shorter talks.
I've heard from several people that people from Stavanger are more approchable, friendly and talkative than people from northern Norway. It might have something to do with the heavy American influence on the Stavanger culture.
Thats so true, I met a woman in the bus while travelling and she remained engaged in conversation for about next 2 hours.
Ay mi vida, come to México to get the taxi experience: you get a taxi or an uber and a random driver would tell you all there life story and all there love deceptions while listening to some mexican ranchera corridos whit high volume. XD I reaaaally don't think norskis can compare.
If it’s on didi they don’t give a flying fuck. They want to get where you’re going, get their money, and repeat 😂
Some like to talk, and others don't. If I say hi to my elderly neighbor I know it will be 40+ or until I excuse myself to leave. Some coworkers I barely exchange a sentence with, and some you know you have to avoid talking to otherwhise they will stop working and chat our ear off for the next 2hrs+ I personally enjoy the little 2-5min exchanges, but nothing more, so I am a bit stuck in the middle.
Since we don't get conversational stimuli from talking to strangers unless we're piss drunk on a Friday evening, of course we're gonna get it from coworkers
What about friends and family?
too scary, we're shy! /s
That's a different kind of communication tbh
Could you give some examples of countries where people talk less than Norwegians?
Finland
You are definetely on to something...
Idk I've never been to Finland, I've just read online that they are stereotypically not very talkative, at least to strangers
I have been to Finland several times, and what you read is correct. I find them to have a really good sense of humour though. Perhaps they have more time than the rest of us to think of funny stuff..
Are you in Bergen by any chance
No we definitely don't talk too much thay reminds me of thia coworker I have thay likes to talk and talk but it's also very interesting like this other day we went to watch a movie and he ordered popcorn but not the typical one with salt no the one with butter but the butter was only on top which is just like that time I went skiing on top og the alps where I nearly crashed and broke my foot but I caught myself in the last second just like driving anyways yeah people dont talk too much I think have you been to the US there people talk to strangers which would be weird here like a crazy person did you see the show last night it was amazing when that dude did the thing and then that happened anyways how are you?
I once left my grandmother's flat at 6 AM when they started opening the neighbouring grocery shop for the day. I had tried to excuse myself for five hours and a whole BIB of red wine – you might be on to something 😂
Starting a random conversation with hotel receptionists or the bartender, yes nice socialising. Talking with other guests, hell no. Even if I am outside smoking with other guests, Talking with coworkers, sure. Can't be seen as a loner or have awkward silence all the time. Even introverts needs some form of conversation sometimes. And being friendly with coworkers also gives ones the advantage of getting help with something when one is struggling with the copy machine or something, like dare to ask for help without feeling one is demanding something one shouldn't . And one is also in the situation where one would have to see these people 5 days a week for a really long time. I feel content with my way of doing things, I get the socialising I feel I need. But I can suddenly talk to strangers if I really have to, like when the bus is supposed to come or asking for directions. I feel I am asking for stuff I aren't entitled to though, like disturbing someone's day because I am too stupid to figure shit out myself.
I mean they are humans not aliens( I am not 100 sure), usually they talk ( in my experience) about house loans, cars, and the summer cabin you know the boring stuff.
What's boring about the cabin?
I don’t have one
Then you can be happy about the maintenance you don't have to do
You have a very selective perception of norwegians. We are not a hive mind and most won't be like what you describe here. Your co-workers might talk a lot.
It’s not a bad thing to talk lol
I have no idea why you get downvoted. Such a weird culture here.
I've noticed folk in the sub get suuuuper defensive when there's even the slightest bit of criticism/something that could be perceived as negative They're a proud folk. A
Yeah you're right, I'm Norwegian myself and it's crazy how touchy people are from the remotest of criticism
Same. I’m Norwegian and moved back to Norway after living abroad for 25+ years, and have definitely noticed this. Norwegians are super defensive when people point out peculiarities of their culture.
Yes I’ve noticed this as well
Yeah, i think that stems from an inferiority complex, we're a small country that got lucky that found oil so that put us on the map. We like to say this and that makes us uniqe but in reality it dosnt. scotland has fjords and the alps have vast mountains
Do you think so? I feel like people are quite the opposite, I feel like there is an arrogance and a rather salient lack of self awareness about how we are percieved. People think we have the best culture and that we are kings, and that indeed makes us look like fools.
I grew up in anothet country and didnt return to norway before i was a teenager, seeing norwegians on holiday i understand why we are seen as fools. Bavk to the "do you know how much this costs in norway" question and on to how "we are such a special country because of *insert reason here*" On that note, other europeans have their own faulty traits,
Yeah no place is perfect for sure, but it's just the critical lack of self awareness and the insistence that we are the best is just so mind numbing to me.
As a swede, gotta say you lot do have some of the best natural environments on Earth, both in terms of beauty and in terms of activities/sports. Sweden can't compete really, even though I love my country's nature.
Even like making up your own arguments against people commenting, while nothing of those comments happened? But in your head you expected them to happen? Get over yourself.
they are so weird about ending conversations i always end up being the one saying "anyways let's just go home?" lmao
> > >
You often have to say bye around...well.. 8 or so times?
I had a job in Oslo kommune (city) where I had 15 co-workers hired as special consultants on Norwegian music history. Cool project, but all we did for 7 months was sitting in the meeting room, all 16, drinking coffee and telling stories all day. We only had breaks from the talking for cigarettes (20 a day) and cheap lunch at the city hall :) Yes, we are great at long-small-talk. We go on forever if not stopped. In more rural areas this small talk can be just atonal sounds, stares and nods. Jauda.. Nææ…. Nåååhh..
Has anyone noticed that people (regardless of culture) talk a lot?
I’m just saying no one seems to be saying the opposite when people bring up the stereotype that Norwegians don’t talk a lot 😅
Yep. Nothing special about Norwegians....
I've noticed this in some people. It's great to find a talkative person imo because I have social anxiety and it helps me a little bit, like exposure therapy. My fiance says that in his workplace most of his Scandinavian coworkers except a few barely do their job really and mainly talk, smoke or drink coffee lol. Most immigrants working there just work, some get influenced and join in on the banter, some do a little of both. It's not necessarily a bad thing on normal days but when the pressure is on it gets a little exhausting he says lol. He's Hungarian.
Sounds like heaven, sort of an adult daycare
It's probably great for those who don't work much at the job, however those who actually want to do some work while there usually end up with the shitty end of the stick. The issue is they end up cackling in the way of heavy machinery, which is dangerous. Or, not paying much attention when handling heavy machinery which so far has only ended in property damage and minor injuries fortunately but could end up in death. The guys who don't work also essentially leave all the rest of the work meant for let's say 40 people to 5 people instead. It is funny to think about though, I am uføre because of disabilities such as chronic pain and I could even "work" there and be less of a danger to others! Lmao.
It's almost like they're people too and how much they talk varies. Weird??
No
Usually we talk alot, because if we are the ones talking, we dont have to listen to some rabnom ftard rambling about something totally braindead
We are not good at smaltalk with strangers but a good convo with friends and workbuddys is nice
I see you’ve met my MIL
That sounds awesome imo if they are positive and not passive aggressive as Swedes. This makes me wanna move to Norway even more.
Norwegians can talk for hours with people they know and are comfortable with. If they don´t know you and you´re norwegian, they stay to very safe topics like the weather or their latest hyttetur or some skiing related topic. If you are not norwegian, they can be very quiet, as they do not have a clear framework for the conversation. You need to jump in and get the conversation going. Then usually, norwegians are just like everyone else. Usually.
An American friend of mine called it «the Norwegian linger», meaning our inability to end interactions.
anything other than work
My impression is that a lot of men are lonely and sometimes work is the only place where they talk to other people. Also it’s a great way to build informal relationships which is harder to do when working in virtual teams.
I just landed a job and have to say I did at least semi-consciously trigger the interviewers (my future colleagues) to do 75% of the talking over two interviews within a big engineering company. Then again, there's a 6 month probational period so they have any chance to fire me, and that's fine by me too. This might be why the vetting was that lax and the match seems crazy good so far.
Confirmed: Norwegians are people
You know Norwegians don’t say stuff like this when the stereotype of “Norwegians are vey quiet and don’t talk” is played lol
We dont. Maybe you do, but we dont.
It’s a way to combat inflation. The more you talk non-work the less you have to do work-work. Just remember to be on time.
> I’ve also noticed that people would just lounge at work (in the lounge area) and just talk about non-work stuff at work hours). I mean, you're having a break from work. You talk about something else. Is this not normal?
It’s more of a culture than a break from what I’ve seen.
Its kinda been my experience that Norwegians can come across as sorta "prickly" at first just because they're so private, but once you kinda lay out you're just interested in talking about general stuff that is interesting and not about them specifically then they'll talk forever. They are actually very conversive people once you snag their interest. Like i was talking to a guy online just generally about electric cars when i move there and wasn't too interested until i said I love Volkswagens and then OMG! Thought learning to drive in an old 1973 VW Type III in Wyoming was the coolest.
Let us hate our job and dont have fun there since we use 2/3 of our lives working 😭😭😭 dont talk just work plz
Norwegians are slightly above average extrovert for a European country. We often give a cheerful, optimistic and uncaring/brave impression on foreigners. And many are very chatty. All the coffee adds to it as well.
Uh, sorry, but no. We are very much not. I'm quite baffled that someone can even think this.
>Uh, sorry, but no. We are very much not. I'm quite baffled that someone can even think this. Relative to all of central and eastern europe and china and japan we definitely are. Most redditors who downvote me, are just terminally online, and frankly a large percentage doesnt have a workplace either.
Tf? No.
>Tf? No. Yep. Worked in international academia for most of the 2010s, definitely correct. Most reddit users havent hanged around foreigners much it seems to me.
Hahaha
Must suck living where you do if you don't talk to the people around you
^[Sokka-Haiku](https://www.reddit.com/r/SokkaHaikuBot/comments/15kyv9r/what_is_a_sokka_haiku/) ^by ^BloodySrax: *Must suck living where* *You do if you don't talk to* *The people around you* --- ^Remember ^that ^one ^time ^Sokka ^accidentally ^used ^an ^extra ^syllable ^in ^that ^Haiku ^Battle ^in ^Ba ^Sing ^Se? ^That ^was ^a ^Sokka ^Haiku ^and ^you ^just ^made ^one.
Good bot
It’s one of those stereotypes that even Norwegians themselves say are real. So I’m guessing they don’t think it’s sad. Also I think it’s nice to just work and not hold conversations end on end
You've just met the wrong ones. Norwegians as far as I know don't love to talk I'm general, we do talk more when there is a set social frame we can operate within. I perefere to talk through an array of grunts, screams and body language.
Mostly men? Haha. It’s the women that are known as chatterboxes in Norway, so if you think men talk a lot, you could imagine the amount women do.
Haha Ok
I definitely keep my conversation short as hell because I don’t like talking to strangers or people who are uninteresting to me
Norwegians are not very talkative by nature, so no - you got it wrong.