"To go" in Norwegian...

So, I was planning on making a video on this

one, but I've got so many things I want to say
(and since I'm not a fan of learning a script, I
prefer writing it all down so that you can take
your time and analyse the examples as we go
along :) 

So, are you ready? Let's go! 

In Norwegian, we have three words (at least)

that can translate the verb "to go". Here they
are (notice that they have other translations as
well that we will take a closer look at): 

1. Å gå (to go, to walk, to leave)

2. Å dra (to go, to travel, to leave)

3. Å reise (to go in the sense of travelling, to

leave)

Let's take a look at some examples to get a

closer understanding of the differences:

 
"Jeg går på fjellet"

= to walk on the mountain; to go to the

mountain (here the mountain is seen like a place
for activity and the activites one can do on the
mountain is in focus, not the trip to the
mountain).

"Jeg går til fjellet"

= I'm walking to the mountain. When you use "å

gå" with the preposition "til" then the meaning is
always "walk". 

"Jeg drar på fjellet"

= this means "I'm going to the mountain" and

can have the same meaning as "jeg går på
fjellet" (remember: the mountain and it's
possibilities when it comes to activites is in
focus, not the trip TO the mountain!). I suggest
you use this verb instead of "å gå" to not
confuse people :)

 
"Jeg drar/reiser til fjellet"

= this still means "I'm going to the mountain,

but with the preposition "til", the focus is the trip
to the mountain, and not the mountain part of
the trip, if that makes any sense!

So, what you need to remember here is:

1. "Å gå" and "å dra" is used for activities

with the preposition "på".

"Jeg går/drar på kino" (I'm going to the movies). 

"Jeg går/drar på kafé" (I'm going to a café)

"Jeg går/drar på biblioteket" (I'm going to the

library)

2. You can also use "å reise" for activities in the

same way ("jeg reiser på kino"), but in my
humble opinion it's less common, and it feels
like you're going far away. Plus the trip is more
in focus than the activity you're going to. 

 
3. With the preposition "til", "å gå" means "to
walk" and "å reise" and "å dra" means "to go" in
the sense of "to travel". 

"Jeg går til kinoen" (I'm walking to the movies)

"Jeg drar til Oslo" (I'm traveling to Oslo)

"Jeg reiser til Hawai (I'm going to Hawai)

"Jeg går til Oslo" (I'm walking to Oslo)

4. Nobody is perfect. Some Norwegians might

say "å gå til" while what they actually mean is "å
reise/dra til", it's quite common. For instance, I
could easily say "jeg går til ei venninne" (I'm
walking/going to a friend's place) while what I
want to say is "jeg drar til ei venninne" (I'm
going to a friend's place). For places that aren't
far away, this mistake doesn't sound very odd,
but if I say for instance "jeg går til Syden* i
ferien" (I'm walking to the south this holiday),
people might think I'm a sport fanatic...

*Syden: if you haven't heard about "Syden"

before (literally: the south), you should know
that this is Paradise on Earth for Norwegians,
the most common destination for Norwegians in
summertime. Where it really is, isn't very well
defined by anyone, but let's say that it's the
countries around the Mediterranean Sea (and a
littel bit beyond). 

Let's have a look at some other examples, just

to get a better feel of it :) 

If I say only "jeg går" it can mean "I walk" or

"I'm leaving" (for instance after a fight, that
would be a good way to say "I'm off!"). 

"Jeg drar" means "I'm leaving", but not just for

leaving the room, you have to at least leave the
building you're in... 

"Jeg reiser" alone means either "I'm travelling/I

travel" (for instance "I travel a lot" = "jeg reiser
mye")  or "I'm leaving", but here you have to
take the car/bus/train/boat and at least move
away some kilometers from where you are to
make it count :) Remember: the noun "en reise"
means "a trip", so it has to be more than just
walking away out on the street ;) 

I could give you so many examples, but I think

I'll stop here for now just to let it soak in (and
feel the essence of the meaning behind these
verbs). If you have any questions about this,
please feel free to ask, I love analysing
examples ;)

Vi snakkes snart :) Talk to you soon :)

Silje