Page:A simplified grammar of the Swedish language.djvu/22

4 The letter c is generally replaced by k where it has the hard sound of that letter, as Karl for 'Carl.' In foreign words which have been adopted with little or no modification, the c is often replaced by s, as seder, or ceder, 'cedar.'

The letter d is not sounded before t, as godt (got), 'good,' nor between l and t, as mildt (millt), 'mild.' It is dropped before j in certain words, as djur (jur), 'animal.'

The letter f is followed by v, and merged in that letter, when standing between two vowels, as gifva (yeeva), 'to give.'

The letter g has the sound of hard g or soft k at the end of words, as skog, m. (skoǎgk), 'wood;' but it takes the sound of Swedish j when preceded by l or r, as talg (talj), 'tallow;' färg (färj), 'colour.'

When g precedes a soft vowel at the beginning of a word, or of a syllable, it takes the sound of Swedish j, or English y; as, gäst (yest), 'stranger;' begära (beyera), 'to require;' gerna or gärna (yerna), 'willingly.'

When g is followed by n in a root-word, it takes the so-called  'äng'  sound, as regna (rengna), 'to rain,' from regn, 'rain.'

The letter h is often dropped after k, or absorbed in that letter, as bokhällare (bokkellare), 'book-keeper.'

Although k has the sound of English ch before soft vowels in ordinary Swedish words, as kyrka (chürka), 'church,' it retains the hard sound in most foreign words, as anarki (annarkee), 'anarchy.' It is occasionally dropped before other consonants, as spektakel (spektaakel), 'theatre.'