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Top 4 Danish Localization Tips

Author: Andreea Balaoiu

Top 4 Danish Localization Tips

Danish is a Scandinavian language spoken by roughly 6 million Danish people and is the official language in Greenland and the Faroe Islands, as well as the Northern part of Germany.

World Bank’s new Doing Business 2020 report ranked Denmark as #4 on its top 10 places in the world to pursue business development, sustaining this high and favourable ranking over the past decade, which, inherently, marks the Danish language are very relevant and sought after in terms of Translation and Localization.

In this article we will detail the top 4 best Localization tips and practices when entering and competing in the Danish market, pinpointing a series of key factors that influence the adaptation, activity, and development of a business in this specific market, with a focus on Translation & Localization best practices.

Danish Localization Tip #1: Adherence to local formatting and currency units

According to the Danish language locale and narrative specifications, in order to ensure a thorough and linguistically adapted Localization into Danish, the following monetary and date/time conventions must be taken into account:

Monetary formatting

International currency symbol:

DKK xxx,xx

Domestic currency symbol:

kr xxx,xx

Use of negative sign:

kr -xxx,xx

Thousands and decimal separators:

kr x.xxx.xxx,xx

Date and time conventions

Both weekday and month names are written with an initial lower-case letter in Danish (Normal capitalizing rules apply in the beginning of a sentence, etc.).

English name -

Weekday names -

Short weekday names

Sunday

søndag

søn

Monday

mandag

man

Tuesday

tirsdag

tir

Wednesday

onsdag

ons

Thursday

torsdag

tor

Friday

fredag

fre

Saturday

lørdag

lør

Short weekday names consisting of the two first letters are also commonly used.

English name -

Month name -

Short month name

January

januar

jan

February

februar

feb

March

marts

mar

April

april

apr

May

maj

maj

June

juni

jun

July

juli

jul

August

august

aug

September

september

sep

October

oktober

okt

November

november

nov

December

december

dec

 

Long date:

07 juni 1994

Abbreviated day and time:

tir 07 jun 1994 23:22:33 CET DST

long date with weekday:

onsdag den 21. december 1994

Abbreviated long date:

07 jun 1994

Numeric date:

1994-06-07

Time:

18:06:20

Danish Localization Tip #2: Avoid overly colloquial discourse

Native Danish speakers are characterized by straightforwardness, honesty and a really good sense of humour (after all, Denmark IS often referred to as the birthplace of sarcasm). However, these canonical Danish traits do not always translate well into the business landscape.

When localizing exact text communication for the Danish market, one very important localization tip is to avoid colloquialisms or slang expressions that may result in mistranslation and misinterpretation in Danish. It is a rule of thumb to tackle financial products, legal services or, generally, monetary related communication in a formal tone and style.

Danish Localization Tip #3: Don’t be overly literal

Translating and Localizing into Danish requires a deeper understanding of the multitude of cultural nuances and layers to get your message across.

As standardized Danish has undergone a wave of important changes since diverging from Old Norse, it currently encompasses three main Danish dialects: Insular Danish or ømål (spoken in Zealand, Funen, Lolland, Falster, and Møn islands), the Jutland or Jysk (spoken in North, East, West, and South Jutland peninsula) and the Bornholmsk dialect (spoken on Bornholm Island).

Choosing a Danish Translation Service provider that can add a deeper understanding of these cultural undertones to the linguistic aspect will favourably influence the appropriate and accurate Localization of your message, avoiding stiff literal renditions that can result in misinterpretation or even cultural sensitivity. A well-performed Localization service, conducted for the Danish Market specifically, is guaranteed to generate wider traction for your brand, making it resonate with the cultural framework and identity of the target audience, thus making it relatable, and giving it an authentic touch.

Danish Localization Tip #4: Be mindful of Marketing trans adaptation in Danish

According to Startupoverseas.co.uk (https://www.startupoverseas.co.uk/starting-a-business-in-denmark/marketing-a-business.html), conducting marketing and promotion for your business in the Danish market relies heavily on “more cultural acclimatization, rather than calculatory acumen. It’s making sure your product or service fits the inclinations and idiosyncrasies of a nation. (…) Although English is the international language of business and many Danish people can speak it, at the initial stage of the relationship with a Danish commercial partner, trade literature may be presented in English. However, as the contact develops, it will be expected that all trade literature and technical manuals for use in Denmark are translated into Danish.”

Additionally, “Anglophonic countries may be susceptible, but if your product or service plays on a quintessentially British characteristic or joke the chances are, it will not be well received.

As for other countries, don’t bank on using the same strap-lines or gimmicks. Unless they are perfectly transitional, your product or service could suffer especially if it relies on humour.”

The Bottom Line

The top 4 localization tips when entering the Danish market presented in this article can certainly contribute favourably to the adaptation to streamlining of the Translation and Localization workflow when connecting with this entire novel and challenging audience.

At AD VERBUM, we take great pride in our expertise, as well as in an extensive portfolio of professional Localization Services for a wide range of content types, from exact texts to creative writing, to aid you on your journey to localize your content as effectively as possible to the Swedish market.

Our Professional Localization services are provided by multivalent content SMEs, native in the highest-ranking language combinations within the market, guiding you along every step of the intricate Localization processes and giving you the voice to speak globally through the right content, tailored to your needs. Get in touch with the language experts at AD VERBUM and start your translation journey towards a new market and audience today.

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