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Language Learning Center
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Willamette University
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llc@willamette.edu
Something that exists in Nordic mythology is the creature called "Nattmaran." This creature was believed to have come in the form of a woman and would sneak into the bedroom at night through a keyhole. It would then sit on the man or woman’s chest and this would make them feel like they were being shocked. This is how the Swedish word "Mardröm,” which means nightmare, got into being .
It was only recently that Halloween ( in Sweden we call it Allhelgnonaafton) came to be celebrated in Sweden. It started 1995 and even now so many years later we still don’t celebrate it exactly the same way the US does. Sure there are carved pumpkins, costumes and scary decorations in orange and black coverings in most of the stores in my country during this time of year. But it is all mostly for a marketing purpose.
My name is Martina Eriksson and I was born and raised in a very small town in the south of Sweden, called Olofström. After high school I studied art and the English language for a couple of years and when I was 21 I decided to apply to a university in Sweden. In June this year I graduated with a bachelor in Cultural Leadership, with a major in film studies from the university of Växjö. Even as a freshmen I planned on making my dream of going to the Us for a year come true.
Here are some Swedish youtube links, as swedish as it gets, enjoy!!
Continue reading "Svenska YouTube inslag (Swedish YouTube links)"
Sweden is a constitutional monarchy, which means that king Carl XVI Gustaf Bernadotte is head of state but his power is limited to official and ceremonial function. After the 2006 election the Alliance, four center-right parties, were able to form a government in Sweden. Since 1932 Sweden has been mainly governed by the Social Democratic Party with few exceptions.
According to the latest development report published by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Sweden is the 9th most prosperous developed nation. The annual table showing countries’ national output adjusted for the purchasing power of their currencies, published by the OECD, placed Sweden as number nine.
Sweden has adopted the American tradition of Valentine’s Day and the procedures are very much the same; sending cards, chocolate or flowers to your loved one. If chocolate on the 14th is a new tradition in Sweden, an older tradition to keep fat, warm and happy in the Swedish February climate is the Fettisdagen.
Swedes are fascinated with the United States of America. There are several organizations in Sweden aiming to a sustained and further development of a stronger relationship between the two countries.
My name is Johanna and I am an international student from Sweden. I study to become a Psychologist at the University of Linköping but I am very patriotic to my hometown Göteborg on the west coast of Sweden. Since I am not going home for the winter break I cannot help but thinking longingly at the preparations for Christmas that are taking place in Sweden at the moment.
In advance, I apologize for not writing on a more fun subject like Christmas and the holidays in Sweden maybe, and it is probably because I think that these issues are more important and and also because I don't celebrate Christmas. For reading about the holidays and traditions in Sweden, check out Johanna's post where she tells everything:
Continue reading "What are the outcomes of the Annapolis conference?"
How foolish and productive is the rhetoric used by the Bush administration but also from other sources like Sarkozy? How well does it really deal with the issue of Iran that the “West” is now trying to solve?
All of these talks are so weird for me to hear because I can see behind the rhetoric of it. Although I could hope that the public, especially in the US would see that too, I have my doubts. The problem isn’t even that much with the masses but the elected officials in Congress and the White House. We can see how the rhetoric of them has changed during the last months to a much more aggressive tone, much reminiscent of the talks for the Iraq war just 4 years ago. Are the public and Congress going to be swept away with the current leading harsh rhetoric surrounding Iran or what? Should we care about what the IAEA has to say or what? We didn’t last time in Iraq and look where it got us.
Continue reading "What’s up with all of this anti-Iran rhetoric? "
Many people who think about Sweden think about all the good stuff: hospitality of the country towards immigrants, free health care, free education including college, the most democratic country in the world and similar thoughts. Although one might get entitled to many of the Swedish societies benefits, there is evidence that shows it might be harder to get into that society.
The media frenzy around the arrival of the high profile Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to the United Sates for a United Nations General Assembly meeting and a question and answer event at Columbia University, invited by the University's president Lee Bollinger is an important issue. There are two matters that I want to highlight here. One is the obvious issues that were raised during Mr. Bollinger’s introduction of the Iranian president and the second being the controversy of the Iranian presidents right to be at Columbia University.
Continue reading "Was the reaction in Columbia appropriate?"
An unusual issue has been happening in Sweden for over a month now; it has put Sweden on the list of Muslim-hating countries in the eyes of many Muslims. The issue is about freedom of speech and where the line between one's freedom of speech in a democratic country is in regard to criticizing issues in a society in a way that would be considered as a hate speech/action or a provocative act; such an act would offend thousands and maybe millions of people. The issue is not easy to resolve and the line is blurry.
Hi,
My name is Morteza and I'm from Sweden. I am 24 years old, and yes I know, that is old here at Willamette but i manage to cope with my age. I was actually born in Iraq, "moved" to Iran when I was just a few months old, and then sort of "moved" or fled to Sweden when I was 10 years old. I have lived most of my life in Sweden and will primarily report news from that country. But because of my heritage and my interest in politics I probably will also report about Iran. I am also interested in sports, especially football (soccer) and if you are lucky I will also report about some fun and random news about these countries. Every day I spend a lot of time reading the current news so I think that this would be a good way to share my reading for you all.
I am almost done with my Political Science and International Relations studies in Sweden, unless I don't go to graduate school for a master degree. I do not exactly know what I want to do with my diploma, but I know that I want to do something that will help people. I guess I have to find out exactly how to do that. Last year I had studied at Willamette for one year as an exchange student and I had the time of my life;it was great. I got the opportunity to be back here for one more semester and to write my bachelor thesis at Willamette for my University in Sweden (which I still don't have a topic for). I know that this will also be a good semester, although it feels a little weird to be back. Also, I want to point out that Sweden is not the same country as Switzerland, both neutral countries, but very different from one another. If you have any questions about these topics, feel free to contact me by email.
I'm ending my participation here at World News with bragging a bit about Sweden. According to a new report by the Economist Intelligence Unit, Sweden is the most democratic country in the world and is called a near-perfect democracy. The U.S. is only on ranked on place 17 and maybe has to consider its statement as the best democracy in the world.
A new European Union proposal is aimed at changing divorce procedures so that a divorce can only take place in a country where the couple has "connecting factors". Sweden claims that this proposal is going to be valid both inside and outside the EU and that, for instance, Iranian divorce laws can be applied by a Swedish court.
Continue reading "Sweden challenges EU plan to simplify divorce"
A new government report has shown that Sweden is threatened by the serious climate changes in the future. Major lakes are going to flood more frequently and with severe consequences.
The new Swedish government has set in and they have decided about some new reforms they think can help against the problem with unemployment in Sweden. The government has decided that the monthly charges for the unemployment funds, the A-kassa, are going to increase sharply.
Continue reading "Women hit as unemployment fund charges soar"
A couple of weeks ago there was a governmental election in Sweden. There are elections every fourth year and the Social Democrat Party have been in power for a really long time and are always expected to win. But this election meant a change. The winners were a coalition with the Moderate party as the biggest of four parties, and means a shift in Swedish politics from the left to a more moderate or rightwing agenda.
I’m Josefin Thoresson and I’m from Linköping University in Sweden. I’m a politics major and I’m going to spend a semester here at Willamette. I’m 22 years old and this is my third year as a student (I’m old, I know, but we have a different education system in Sweden). I’m interested in international politics and hopefully in the future, I will get a job where I can work with international problems or assistance.
Saddam Hussein applies for Exile in Sweden, Austria or Switzerland
Ever wondered what happened to Saddam Hussein? First of all he intends to run in the next Iraqi introduction, till then he wants to Sweden, Switzerland and Austria. One of his lawyers explains that one doesn`t have to be guilty to plead for clemency and all the accusations were ridiculous. Read, why the former Dictator pleads transfer to a neutral country under:
Sweden plans to lower liquor taxes to keep up with EU imports
All of you, you`ve ever been to Scandinavia, will have noticed the high price for Liquor. Here`s the good news: Scandinavia may lower his liquor taxes – by 40 percent. So far Sweden still has the highest liquor taxes in Europe - with the public health in mind. The Taxes in Denmark are 35 percent higher than for example in Germany. But the liquor sales are dramastically challenged by the new imports inside the EU. Read how soon Swedish liquor will be cheaper under:
Hi everyone,
My name is magdalena eriksson, and i am a pretty friendly viking from the beautiful southern part of sweden.
The reason i came to oregon was, besides the fact that willamette is a fun school, to be somewhat closer to
my canadian boyfriend.
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