“Halløj” & More Basic Danish Phrases

One of my favorite shops ever is called Flying Tiger Copenhagen. I think its name sounds so zany, and hearing the name always makes me think of a cute tiger with a pair of cute wings that help it fly.

Anyway, Flying Tiger is a variety store chain and they have fun products like stickers, pens, sticky notes, highlighters that look like nail polish, planners, journals, and many more things perfect for every season and every occasion.

Fun fact: the first Flying Tiger shop was opened in Copenhagen. Copenhagen is in Denmark. Denmark is in Europe, just above Germany. Its official language is Danish. Interestingly, the Danish language has no Danish word for the English word “please.” Instead, they use the phrase “vil du være så venlig,” which means “would you be so kind.”

Basic Danish Phrases

• Hello: halløj (ha-loy)
• Hello: halløjsa (ha-loy-sah)
• Hey: hej (hey)
• Good morning: god morgen (go moh-ren)
• Good night: godnat (go-nat)
• Have a good day: ha’ en god dag (ha en go dahg)
• Bye: hej hej (hey hey)
• Goodbye: farvel (fahr-vel)
• Excuse me: undskyld (oon-skool)
• Please (would you be so kind): vil du være så venlig
• Yes: ja (yah)
• No: nej (nay)
• Thank you: tak (tak)
• You’re welcome: det var så lidt (deh var so lit)
• I’m sorry: undskyld (oon-skool)
• Where’s the toilet: hvor er toilettet (vor er toy-let-et)
• Where’s the library: hvor er biblioteket (vor er bib-lee-oh-teh-ket)
• What’s your name: hvad hedder du (vad hed-er du)
• How are you: hvordan har du det (vor-dan har du det)
• How much is it: hvad koster den (vad kost-er den)
• I love you: jeg elsker dig (yay el-sker dye)
• Cheers: skål (skohl)
• Well done: godt gået (got gaw-et)