- Forum >
- Topic: Swedish >
- "Mina föräldrar bor i Storbri…
"Mina föräldrar bor i Storbritanniens huvudstad."
Translation:My parents live in the capital of the United Kingdom.
58 Comments
Erm guys, Great Britain doesn't have a capital...it's not a country :/ that's like saying 'the capital of Scandinavia'
1376
facepalm I've got to defend us though, in Swedish, Storbritannien does have a capital, Wikipedia link, because we usually call the United Kingdom that. I'm really sorry to say this, but this means that Great Britain is a false friend :-(
Will try to fix the sentence asap, and thanks for the heads up!!
PS have a lingot!
I agree. In Swedish Storbritannien could be either the state United Kingdom, or the island Great Britain.
But the United Kingdom doesn't have a capital city :p it's a collective of countries, each with their own capital. London is the capital of England. If you asked a Scottish person if their capital was London they would definitely say no.
Edit; in fact I just looked it up and according to Wikipedia, London is the capital of the 'UK'...but even to me as a native English person, that makes no sense haha, maybe I'm wrong but it seems weird :S. Then again, I never consider myself 'British'. Hmm, maybe you can leave it as is then.
I mean it’s complicated, but the UK is also a country, it’s not a union like the EU or anything like that. It’s an official sovereign state with an official capital, and it consists of four countries with capitals of their own.
Yup, the member states are effectively provinces of the United Kingdom. They're not really countries in their own right - it's simply not stated officially because people would get upset.
- 1376
From our point of view, it is important to speak about Storbritannien because otherwise we very easily say England when we in fact mean the whole United Kingdom.
It's strange to consider as a native as it's not something that I ever even think about.
Most people do the same in German. However, there is a possibility to distinguish between Great Britain (Großbritannien) and the United Kingdom (Vereinigtes Königreich) in German, it's just that the latter word is rarely used. Does Swedish have a similar translation for the UK and it's just not commonly used or would it always be Storbritannien?
Yes you're wrong :P. London is the capital of the United Kingdom. Scotland is a region with a degree of autonomy within it, but it's still subordinate to Westminster.
DerrickMcClure1 is correct that Scotland is a country.
Great Britain can be either a political term or a geographical term.
Great Britain consists of three countries - England, Scotland, and Wales - that are all on the island of Great Britain. So the term "Great Britain" can refer to either the group of three countries or the island itself.
The United Kingdom consists of four countries - England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland - although Northern Ireland is sometimes called a country, sometimes a province, and sometimes a region.
The full name of the U.K. is The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
Obviously, Northern Ireland is on the same island with the country of Ireland, as they used to be one country. Ireland is a separate country, not part of the U.K.
The United Kingdom is considered “a sovereign entity” and treated as a country; however, England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales are not just divisions of that country, but are also countries themselves.
It seems pretty complicated to me how all the politics work. Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales all have their own governing bodies (a parliament or an assembly), with certain powers and responsibilities distinct from the Parliament of the U.K. For each of these countries, because of the complicated history, there is a different configuration determining which things fall under the jurisdiction of their own parliament or assembly, and which things fall under the jurisdiction of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Also, Northern Ireland's Assembly coordinates with the government of Ireland on some matters.
Unlike the other three countries, England does not have its own parliament; it is governed only by the Parliament of the U.K.
The capital of England is London. The capital of the U.K. is also London.
I have always found the different terms confusing. I hope this helps somebody else. It helped me to write it out.
I guess it would be easier if “The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland” was shorted to “The United Kingdom” or “The U.K.” rather than “Great Britain” in Swedish. But that’s ok. We will just have to learn that “Storbritannien” is the Swedish abbreviation and means the same as “The United Kingdom.”
You're wrong, sir. This is not the place for a full exposition, but Scotland and England ARE countries - nations, if you like.
I only really consider London the 'political' capital of the UK due to parliament being situated there. Culturally though, London is only really the capital of England.
- 2203
Here's a useful (and humorous) video detailing the differences between England, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNu8XDBSn10
In English it is seen as important to be distinct with these 2 due to Ireland. Obviously Ireland is not in GB but is in the UK, however sometimes people from northern Ireland are referred to as British. However, many people from Eire would be offended to be considered British, or as part of the UK.
London is the capital of The United Kingdom of Great Britain & Northern Ireland
- 1376
British isles = Brittiska öarna https://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brittiska_%C3%B6arna
British islands = Brittiska öar https://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brittiska_%C3%B6ar
United Kingdom = Storbritannien https://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Storbritannien
Great Britain = Storbritannien https://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Storbritannien_(%C3%B6)
Northern Ireland is Nordirland, https://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nordirland, also Ireland is Irland and Scotland is spelled Skottland, the rest seems to be self-explanatory.
Oh, you have got to be kidding me! I thought I had this down at one point, but now I see that "British Isles" is different from "British Islands"! That's just mean, lol! I am definitely copying and saving this graphic and your text to go with it. Thank you, Arnauti! :D
- 1139
Thanks, this is by far the clearest explanation of this I have ever seen!
And yes, I think that even if I'm otherwise willing to forgive Duolingo for taking creative freedoms with language for pedagogic reasons, this is one occasion where great precision should be exercised and demanded.
My favorite on-line dictionary sanakirja.org gives translations "Förenade konungariket Storbritannien och Nordirland" for "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland" and explains that this is the official name, and "Förenade kungariket" for "United Kingdom", explaining "stat i nordvästra Europa omfattande Storbritannien och Nordirland; ofta kallad Storbritannien"
So ... the Swedish language doesn't differentiate between "United Kingdom" and "Great Britain"?
- 2092
Very curious... How do you manage that in schools? I mean, how do you make a difference? Idag förklarar vi skillnaden mellan Storbritannien och... Storbritannien... :))
I don't think I ever came across a scenario in school where the difference would have been noteworthy. I mean, sure, if you live in the area it's obviously important - but to Swedish children, not so much. :)
In very formal settings the difference exists, so if you are talking about college political science then perhaps they would make the distinction. "Förenade konungariket Storbritannien och Nordirland med kortform Förenade kungariket" from EU publication office . Without that, one could still force the distinction when needed but still use the form that seems not to be for diplomatic relations. "Ön Storbritannien" vs "den suveräna staten som Storbritannien".
- 180
Is "Storbritanniens" the common usage? I mean, in everyday speech almost nobody says "United Kingdom" or "Great Britain". One just says "Britain".
Yeah, it’s common usage. Colloquially it’s quite common to say England to refer to the entire UK, but obviously this is considered incorrect by many.
If Storbritannien means United Kingdom, then what would you say if referring to the island of Great Britain?
It's not considered incorrect - it IS incorrect. Scotland, England and Wales make up the island of Great Britain; Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland make up the United Kingdom. Not for much longer, though.
- 535
well, since Scotland also left the EU during the BRexit, you have to deal with the fact that the EU calls you BRitisch ;) if you want a different name, you have to secede the UK and rejoin the sane people ;)
- 794
It seems like Great Britain should be accepted as an answer, if the word means both UK and Great Britain
It is accepted. I can see you submitted an error report as well. Your translation was not accepted because you accidentally wrote "the" instead of "in":
my parents live the the capital of great britain
As I partly understand now my answer is not accepted because Great Brittain is not the same as United Kingdom. Not because of the genitive construction.I think the difference between Great Brittain and United Kingdom is not tought outside the UK. In my 50 years living in the Netherlands I have never heard about it before. Now I know, but it doesn't add much to my learning Swedish.
Surely you don't suggest that we accept incorrect translations because you weren't taught the right ones in a different language?
No, I'm not suggesting that. But I learned not to be offended when people call my country "Holland". I accept that a lot of people don't know better. I am suggesting to leave out this sentence from the course though, since probably a lot non-UK resident pupils here will make the same mistake.
The difference between the UK and the GB is much more complicated than the one between the Netherlands and Holland, though.
But please bear in mind that this is a course specifically aimed at people speaking native English. Although US English is our primary target, we absolutely need to include the UK in the course. If a lot of people get this wrong, it will be a learning opportunity for them.
- 406
Be careful, you're entering a minefield here about the difference between Holland and the Netherlands not being such a big deal ;-).
- 145
Your answer might actually have been marked wrong because you keep spelling Britain with a double T.
- 406
I may be more of an anglophile than I thought but I do notice the use of "Verenigd Koninkrijk" in Dutch news bulletins for instance. But must admit I often just incorrectly use "Engeland"
Would 'my parents live in the capital of Great Britain,' be accepted here?
