Re: NAT: Scandinavian word order

> > Early Medieval Scandinavian was sometimes V1 in consecutive sentences,
> > especially in legal texts -- "Drepr maðr mann blah blah blah" --, but
that
> > seems to have died out even in Icelandic.  Probably it arose from
sentences
> > beginning with a temporal adverb.
>
> Actually, there's an if-then construction in Danish that is similar,
> but I don't know if it's a carryover from this mediaeval usage.
>
> Instead of saying 'Hvis S1 V1 [O1 ...], [så] V2 S2 [O2 ...]' you can
> just say 'V1 S1 [O1 ...], [så] V2 S2 [O2 ...].' This is somewhat
> marked, and suitable for dramatic pronouncements, sports journalism
> and song texts. Examples:
>
>         Blir hun her, så går jeg!               If she stays, I leave!
>
>         Scorer de nu, er de i finalen!
>                                 If they score now, they're in the final!
>
>         Glemmer du, så husker jeg det ord for ord... [very romantic song]
>                         If you forget, I'll remember word for word...
>
>         Er du en trold får du børn med en heks. [nursery rhyme]
>                 If you're a troll you'll have children with a witch.
>
> Don't you have that in Swedish?
At least in Österbottniska (y'know, western finland, Vaasa region).
never heard the construction in "standard" or "correct" (gee, hate that
word) Swedish.

Hör man med ena örat på en diskussion kan det lätt tas för en fråga, om dom
tar en paus mellan bi och huvudsatsen :-)

(for those nonscandinavians, that means: if one listens one-earedly to a
debate, such a statement easily can be taken for a question, if the speaker
puts a pause between the head and subclause)

 -- M i e k k o