Guidance for Norwegian

Style Guides Norwegian
1

Last update: January 2, 2024

If you have any comments, suggestions, questions or need for an arbitration, create a topic in the Style Guide section, the Language Lead will get back to you.

Here you will find the guidance for Norwegian, but you should also consider the guidance for all languages.

1. Capitalization

  • Capitalize only the first letter of a sentence and the names of people, products or places.
  • Always apply the Norwegian conventions rather than adhering to the English source.
  • For better readability, avoid capitalization when it is accepted to use a word with or without capitalization.

Capitalize

  • Proper names
    :point_right: Proton Mail
    :point_right: Proton VPN
    :point_right: NetShield
  • Command/Folder names and keywords (first word only)
    :point_right: Åpne
    :point_right: Lukk
    :point_right: Forkaste endringer
  • First word of a sentence, title or subtitle
    :point_right: Hvordan oppretter jeg et alias?

Do not capitalize

  • Words like e-post and papirkurven, except when they are the first word of a sentence
  • Keep a consistent style. From 2016 in Norway, you can choose whether to capitalize the word ‘internett’ or not. However, for better readability we will stick to ‘internett’.
  • Words after colon when in the same line and not a complete sentence
    :point_right: Det viktigste for Proton: personvernet til brukerne.
  • Names of days, months and seasons
    :point_right: mandag
    :point_right: januar
    :point_right: vinter

2. Gender

  • We want to be as inclusive as possible, so we try to be neutral, but we use gender-specific nouns and verbs if remaining neutral goes against the writing best practices for a specific language.
  • You can use passive language to avoid gender-specific verbs, but only if it doesn’t hurt readability and/or make the sentence sound unnatural.
  • Rephrase when you are unable to find a gender-neutral way.
  • The gender and number of the acronym are determined by the gender and number of the translation for the governing noun of the extended form. Here is an example: VPN (Virtual Personal Network) is neuter in Norwegian, because the translation of “network” (“nettverk”) is neuter.

3. Abbreviations

Whenever possible, avoid using abbreviations .

Abbreviate the text only when you lack space (mainly buttons, option names or strings with specific character limitations) or when you need to ease the text readability. Instead of abbreviating (e.g., 4 or 5 consecutive words), summarize a term or a phrase in 2 or 3 words that can be written in full.

General criteria for shortening words:

  • Omit at least two letters
  • Truncate a word so that it ends with a consonant and place a period after it
  • When a word contains a double consonant, truncate it at the second one and place a period after it
  • Examples:
    :point_right: Forkortelse Fork.
    :point_right: Administrativ Adm.

Days abbreviations (in calendars, agendas, timetables… the names of days are written without a period for visual purposes):

English Translation Abbreviation
Monday mandag man.
Tuesday tirsdag tir.
Wednesday onsdag ons.
Thursday torsdag tor.
Friday fredag fre.
Saturday lørdag lør.
Sunday søndag søn.

Months abbreviations (in calendars, agendas, timetables… the names of months are written without a period for visual purposes):

English Translation Abbreviation
January januar jan.
February februar feb.
March mars mar.
April april apr.
May mai mai
June juni jun.
July juli jul.
August august aug.
September september sep.
October oktober okt.
November november nov.
December desember des.

4. Acronyms

  • Common examples are VPN (Virtual Personal Network), DNS (Domain Name Server), HTML (Hypertext Markup Language), etc.
  • The most common acronyms and their translations are included in the glossary. Always refer to the glossary when localizing acronyms.
  • The gender and number of the acronym are determined by the gender and number of the translation for the main noun of the extended form.
    :point_right: VPN (Virtual Private Network) is neuter in Norwegian because the translation of “network” (“nettverk”) is neuter.
  • To choose the appropriate article to use in front of an acronym, consider the gender and the euphonic effect.
    The VPN :point_right: VPNet.
  • Commonly used acronyms do not need explanations (DVD, LED, TV, etc.).
  • When an acronym is repeated several times in the same section, include its extended form in parentheses only for its first occurrence.
  • Refer to section 15 for cases like the word “API”, where the English version of the main noun (“interface”) is present in the Norwegian dictionary with one gender and the Norwegian version (“grensesnitt”) with another gender (in this case, “interface” is neuter and “grensesnitt” is common).

5. Pronouns

  • English, especially technical English, is more redundant than some other languages.
  • When translating, you often need to reduce the redundancy of the source text using pronouns. This may otherwise affect the text readability. However, this must not affect accuracy.
  • When translating technical and complex strings, ensure users can associate pronouns to the noun they refer to.
  • Avoid the use of possessive pronouns when possible.

6. Gerunds (“ing” ending)

  • Gerunds are used in English, such as in “Creating a report”.
  • When paragraph and chapter heads begin in English with a gerund, as a general rule, please use a verb in present time, translating it as the equivalent of “Currently creating a report”.
  • When a string has a gerund in the middle, as a general rule, please use a noun, translating it as the equivalent of “Creation of a report”.
English Context We avoid We prefer
Generating keys Action or title Generering av nøkler Genererer nøkler
Generating keys Processing Generering av nøkler Genererer nøkler
Importing Action or title Importering Importerer
Importing Processing Importering Import pågår
Importing data from %1s to %2s Action or title Importering av data fra %1s til %2s Importerer data fra %1s til %2s
Importing data from %1s to %2s Processing Importering av data fra %1s til %2s Data importeres fra %1s til %2s

7. Punctuation

If you need help, you can check this website 1.

7.1 Period

  • Unless the item includes more than one sentence, do not place any periods at the end of titles, links, buttons and checkboxes.
  • Include a period at the end of each extended sentence in a bullet list if this sentence has a full meaning by itself.
  • For the period at the end of a sentence, adapt the source to the Norwegian usage:
    • When the English source puts a period at the end of a sentence that does not apply in Norwegian, do not put it in your translation.
    • When the English source does not put a period at the end of the sentence but you should in Norwegian, add it in your translation. In this case, make sure that the text you are translating is not a part of a longer sentence (this is usually specified in the context).
English We avoid We prefer
This footer is added after your signature Denne bunnteksten legges til etter signaturen din Denne bunnteksten legges til etter signaturen din.
Impossible to load content. Please enable Chrome Umulig å laste innhold, vennligst aktiver Chrome Umulig å laste innhold, vennligst aktiver Chrome.
This message will expire in %s Denne meldingen utløper om %s Denne meldingen utløper om %s.
Signature verification error. Feil ved signaturbekreftelse. Feil ved signaturbekreftelse
Unknown error. Ukjent feil. Ukjent feil

7.2 Exclamation mark

  • Exclamation marks are used in Norwegian to give emphasis.
  • As their use is less common than in English, you should use them sparingly: feel free to change an exclamation mark into a period if it is more natural, but please don’t change a period into an exclamation mark.
English We avoid We prefer
Theme reset! Redirecting… Tema tilbakestilt! Omdirigerer… Tema tilbakestilt. Omdirigerer…
Importing contacts complete! Kontaktimport fullført! Kontaktimport fullført.

7.3 Parentheses

  • Parentheses are used to clarify statements or provide additional information.
  • If a sentence in parentheses clarifies the context, it usually starts in lower case and does not require an ending period. The ending period for the context should come after the closing parenthesis.
  • However, a sentence in parentheses providing additional information separated from the context may start in upper case and have a period before the starting parenthesis. The ending period should still come after the closing parenthesis.
English We avoid We prefer
We also support importing vCard. (UTF-8 encoding) Vi støtter også import av vCard. (UTF-8-koding) Vi støtter også import av vCard (UTF-8-koding).
Please choose a display name to finish setting up your account. (Other people will see this.) Vennligst velg et visningsnavn for å fullføre konfigurasjonen av kontoen (Andre vil se dette.) Vennligst velg et visningsnavn for å fullføre konfigurasjonen av kontoen. (Andre vil se dette).

7.4 Comma

Do not place commas before the Norwegian “og” and “eller” when the conjunction is used to link two related terms.

English We avoid We prefer
You can also add, delete, and edit them by clicking… Du kan også legge til, slette, og redigere disse ved å trykke på… Du kan også legge til, slette og redigere disse ved å trykke på…
Assign permissions to users, or groups Tildel tillatelser til brukere, eller grupper Tildel tillatelser til brukere eller grupper

7.5 Colon and semicolon

  • Colons and semicolons come immediately after the preceding word, with no space in between
  • Capitalization of the following word should follow the rules described in section 1
    Date: Old to new Dato: Gammel til ny

7.6 Em dash (—), en dash (–), hyphen (-)

  • In English, an Em or En dash is used to demarcate an isolated element, to introduce an item that is not essential to the sentence’s meaning, to emphasize a sudden change in thought or to bring focus to a list.
  • In Norwegian, en dash is referred to as “tankestrek” while hyphen is “bindestrek”.
  • Use an en dash to separate sentence parts :point_right: Fordelene ved Proton VPN – nå enda billigere
  • Use a hyphen:
    • to separate words at line breaks
    • to express “from … to” ranges :point_right: klokken 7-18
    • to connect nouns that are not spelled as one word :point_right: API-version
  • Do not use the Em dash.

7.7 Quotation marks

Use normal quotes :point_right: “Eksempel”

7.8 Apostrophes

  • The only usage case for an apostrophe that might arise in the context of this project is the genitive form of names ending in an -s sound. Use a curved apostrophe in these cases.
  • Do not use the apostrophe to show letters omitted in spoken language.
English Wrong Correct
Max’s email Maxs E-mail Max’ E-mail

7.9 Ampersand (&)

Replace “&” with “og” unless it is part of a company/product name or a registered trademark.

8 Spacing and non-breaking spaces

  • All double punctuation marks (quotation marks, colons and semicolons, exclamation and question marks) are preceded by a non-breaking space.
  • Use non-breaking spaces to prevent improper division of elements such as product names, part numbers, numbers, dates, etc.
  • When using currency symbols or units of measurement, include a non-breaking space between number and sign.
  • To insert a non-breaking space using your keyboard:
    • On Windows, hold down the “Alt” key while typing the number “255”.
    • On Apple, Ctrl + Option⌥ + Space bar.
English Translation [non-breaking space]
First step: click Første trinn: klikk Første trinn[non-breaking space]: klikk
Thank you! Takk! Takk[non-breaking space]!
Why? Hvorfor? Hvorfor[non-breaking space]?
30% 30 % 30 [non-breaking space]%
5€ 5 € 5 [non-breaking space]€
1 GB 1 GB 1 [non-breaking space]GB
Message “%s” does not exist. Meldingen “%s” eksisterer ikke. Meldingen “[non-breaking space]%s[non-breaking space]” eksisterer ikke.

9 Numbers

  • Replace the period that stands for the decimal point in American English with a comma in your translations.
    3.75 :point_right: 3,75
  • For numbers smaller than 1, always put a zero before the decimal comma.
    :point_right: .5 0,5
  • The period in app/software version numbers remains unchanged.
    :point_right: Proton Mail v.3
  • As a thousand separator, use a period. Never use thousand separators in years.
    15,000 and year 2015 :point_right: 15.000 og år 2015
  • Time and date:
    • Hours and minutes are separated by a colon. Use the 24 hour format to specify A.M. and P.M.
      at 9:25 P.M :point_right: klokken 21:25
    • The Norwegian date format is “dd/mm/yy”.
      :point_right: 01-31-22 (mm/dd/yy) 31/01/22

10 Ordinal numbers

Ordinal numbers are indicated by a period. When used in a sentence, they should typically be spelled out.

English Singular
1st prize: 1. premie:
This marked only the 3rd time that… Det var kun tredje gang, at…
1st 1.
2nd 2.
3rd 3. and so on

11 Currencies

  • Do not convert USD ($) or EUR (€) amounts to any local currency.
  • Place the USD or EUR code or the symbol €, $ after the number and separate it with a non-breaking space from the number.
  • Amount of €30 :point_right: Beløp på 30 € or Beløp på 30 EUR

12 Units of measurement

  • Use the metric system.
  • Insert a non-breaking space between a number and the relevant unit.
  • Convert imperial units into metric units.
    6 feet :point_right: 1,83 m
Category Measurement unit Translation Abbreviation
LINEAR Kilometer
Meter
Centimeter
Millimeter		 Kilometer
Meter
Centimeter
Millimeter		 km
m
cm
mm
MASS Ton
Kilogram
Pound		 Ton
Kilogram
Pund		 t
kg
lb
IMPERIAL Inch
Feet
Mile
Gallon		 Tomme
Fot
Mil
Gallon		 in
ft
mi
gal
COMPUTING Byte (B)
Megabyte (MB)
Gigabyte (GB)
Terabyte (TB)
 Byte
Megabyte
Gigabyte
Terabyte		 B
MB
GB
TB

13 Form of address

  • Use the informal second-person singular (“du”) form of address.
  • Use the lower case spelling for pronouns (“du”, “din”).
    Use your own domain name :point_right: Bruk ditt eget domenenavn

14 English/US terms

Please

Please if often used in English to introduce an instruction. In Norwegian, depending on the context, we will use a form of the verb “vennligst”.

  • Verification code sending failed. Please try again. :point_right: Sending av verifiseringskode mislyktes. Vennligst prøv på nytt.
  • A payment error occurred. Please try again later or create a free plan. :point_right: Det oppstod en betalingsfeil. Vennligst prøv igjen senere, eller opprett en gratis plan.

Successfully

Successfully is also a very US formulation. Instead of a literal translation, we don’t translate it at all.
Your Proton account was successfully created. Din Proton-konto ble opprettet.

15 Foreign words

  • The decision about the use of foreign words (keeping it in English) instead of the equivalent Norwegian terms is based on how widespread the use of the word is. An English term might be recommended when its use has become very common.
  • To find out how common a word is you can use internet search engines. Search for the English word and for the corresponding translated Norwegian word on your preferred search engine. The number of occurrences in each case will be an indication of how popular the use of each word is.
  • Foreign words might be accompanied by quotation marks or italics when their use is not widely spread. However, English words that are widely accepted for use are kept as they are in the original but do not take the ending “s” in the plural case.
  • When foreign words are common and well understood, they can be left in the source language. Where necessary, add an explanation in the target language.
  • Avoid using too many anglicisms.

16 Localizing person names

  • Localize fictitious person names used for explanatory purposes, choosing a name that is generic but not stereotypical.
    Please enter your display name (e.g. Julia Smith) :point_right: Angi ditt visningsnavn (f.eks. Alex Andersen)
  • Do not localize real persons’ names .
    Bart Butler is a senior engineer at Proton Mail :point_right: Bart Butler er senioringeniør hos Proton Mail

17 Localizing domains and email addresses

Localize fictitious domain names and e-mail addresses used for explanatory purposes:

  • Translate the local-part of an e-mail address
    user@ :point_right: bruker@
  • Translate the domain name
    yourdomain.com :point_right: dittdomene.no
  • Use your target country code at the end
    .com :point_right: .no
English Translation
Proton Mail allows you to keep your business email address (you**@yourcompany.com**). Proton Mail lar deg beholde bedriftens e-postadresse (deg**@ditfirma.no**).
Receive all email sent to addresses in your domain that do not exist (e.g., “****mistake@yourdomain.com ” ). Motta all e-post som sendes til adresser i domenet ditt som ikke finnes (f.eks. “feil@dittdomene.no”).

However, do not localize any real email addresses or domain names .
To reset your mailbox password, please use the web version of Proton Mail at proton.me :point_right: For å tilbakestille postkassepassordet ditt, bruk nettversjonen av Proton Mail på proton.me

18 Localizing CTA (Call To Action) buttons

To translate call-to-actions, use the infinitive form.

English Translation
Sign in Logg på
Create an account Opprett en konto
Edit Rediger

19 References

Below is a list of helpful websites that can help when translating to Norwegian. These should be used in combination with the style guide and glossary.