Category: Languages

The Significance of Time in Our Daily Lives

“Time” is a small word with immense importance in our everyday lives. Everything revolves around it: every moment and every minute we take is a step toward organizing our daily activities. We often live as if our time is running out, which is somewhat accurate, but sometimes we should slow down and enjoy every moment fully.

We tend to plan our days with some sort of agenda, organizing our routines and scheduling specific appointments or errands. But how do we ask “What time is it?” and respond to this question in Italian, Spanish, English, Portuguese, and Norwegian?

The inspiration for this article came from an experience I had recently. I overheard a Norwegian person abbreviate the proper way of stating the time, and I wondered, “Is that possible?” After considering how he should have said it, I understood why he omitted the full phrase—it takes quite a long time to say it in Norwegian! Before we delve into the Norwegian way of telling time, let’s examine how it is done in other languages.

Italian: In Italian, we ask, “Che ore sono?” (we use the plural form to inquire about the time of day). The response is, “Sono le undici” (it is eleven o’ clock) or “È l’una” (it is one o’ clock). We use the singular form for the number one and the plural form for other numbers. The time can be stated in both digital and analog formats. In this article, I will focus on the analog format because it involves more words in the sentence: “Sono le undici e venti!” (it is twenty past eleven) or “Sono le tre meno un quarto!” (it is a quarter to three). “E” is “past“/right side of the clock and “meno” is “to“/left side of the clock.

Spanish: In Spanish, the question is, “¿Qué hora es?” or “¿Qué horas son?“—both singular and plural forms are used. The answer is always in the plural form, except for one o’clock, which is singular, just like in Italian. “Son las quince y veinticinco” (it is twenty-five past three PM) or “Son las cuatro menos cinco” (it is five to four). On the right side of the clock, they use “y” (and), and on the left side, they use “menos” (to).

English: In English, we ask, “What time is it?” and respond with, “It is twelve o’ clock” or “It is ten to ten!” The singular form is used here. When telling time in English, remember that “past” is used for the right side of the clock (e.g., “it is a quarter past three“), while “to” is used for the left side (e.g., “it is twenty to four“).

Portuguese: Portuguese follows the same pattern as Spanish. They ask, “Que hora é?” or “Que horas são?” and answer with, “São as cinco para onze” or “É a uma e cinco“. “Para” is used to mean “to” (left side of the clock), and “e” is used for “past” (right side of the clock).

Norwegian: Finally, let’s analyze the Norwegian way, which led me to write this article. They ask, “Hva er klokken?” The answer can be complex. For the first quarter on the right side of the clock, they say, “Det er fem tjue” (it is five twenty). For the last quarter, they say, “Det er kvart på fire” (it is a quarter to four). The challenge, particularly for immigrants, comes with phrases like “Det er ti/fem på halv ett” which translates literally to “It is ten/five minutes to the half-hour to one” (meaning “it’s twelve twenty/twenty-five”). For the left side of the clock, they say, “Det er fem/ti over halv tre”, meaning “it is five/ten minutes past the half-hour to three” (i.e., “twenty/twenty-five minutes to three“).

Considering this explanation, I recall the phrase I heard: “Er det ti over?” (He asked, “Is it twenty to…?“)—a significant abbreviation! He should have said, “Er klokken ti over halv elleve?” (Is it twenty to eleven?).

I often wonder why people complicate their lives. What is complicated and “strange” for some might be simple and easy for others. It just takes time to memorize how certain things work.

And I appreciate that!

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