by brl
People from Sweden have a lot to be proud of. The Stockholm Archipeligo, world-class medicine and health care, tight family connections, a strong economy and much more.
But for a reason I've never understood, they are also proud of the fact that (they say) the word "lagom" does not have a direct one-word English translation.
But does it?
The origin of the word is a variation on the word for law (lag). In this case it means more of a common sense rule than judicial law. However, no Swede will tell you that. They will all tell you a completely different story, which I'm pretty sure they all believe to be the true origin of the word.
Here is how a Swede will explain it, but first let's break down the word. In the legend, the word lagom is the contraction of two Swedish words, laget and om. Laget means "the team" and om, in this case, means "around".
To explain the false legend of the term lagom we have to go back to the days of the Vikings. Vikings, of course, worked in teams conquering and pillaging and whatnot. There was a great deal of camaraderie and they were very careful to ensure that resources were equally distributed so that everyone could continue to contribute to the team. Weapons, food, mead, etc. were all shared in the amounts that best benefited the team. According to legend, the word lagom originated from sharing a horn of mead around the group at night. Each Viking only took as much as they needed so there would be enough to go around the team, or laget om. Eventually the two words became one word, lagom.
In modern times, the word lagom is usually what is used in Swedish for an amount or unit of measure that is "just right" or "just enough". For example, if someone is pouring you a cup of coffee, when they get to the right amount you can say lagom (just right). Or if someone asks you how much money you make you can say lagom mycket, meaning you make enough to pay your bills and buy what you need, but nothing more (just enough).
As with a lot of adjectives, lagom can take on a positive or negative connotation, however, in Sweden, it tends to be a positive thing. You should be content with something that is lagom. For me, as someone who moved to Sweden in my 30's, it can be both. I would like a lagom amount of sugar in my coffee, but I wouldn't be satisfied a lagom paycheck.
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Swedes, who generally speak pretty good English and have a large English vocabulary, will usually tell you there is no English word that means lagom.
I hate to burst the bubble... but...
Satisfactory, sufficient, adequate and words like that are all perfectly good translations of the word lagom.
Even "when" is, as in "say when" when someone is pouring you a drink.
So yes, there are one-word English translations of the word lagom. Sorry Swedes.
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Comments
Thanks for stopping by Ragtimelil!
I love learning the origin of words, even in Swedish!
Thanks Mladen! I only know one word in Serbian, slivovitz. A good word to know though. :)
So, if I ever visit Sweeden (hope I will), now I know one word, and I know the story about it. :) We, in Serbian, have few words that we claim there are no one-word translations in English. Strange, what people are proud of. :)
I enjoy reading legends and learning about other cultures. Great article!
Thanks Marie!
It's always interesting to learn about words and their meanings. I'd never heard of lagom before so that was a good read.