Professor
Jan Svennevig from the University of Agder (UiA) has secured a position at the Centre for Advanced Study (CAS) in Oslo. He will spend a year researching small words like 'mhm', 'huh?' and 'okei'. These words turn out to be more important than we might think.
Svennevig will be working together with Marja Etelämäki from the University of Oslo.
Traffic signals of conversation
"We will be studying words that appear small and insignificant, such as mhm, hm, oh, huh, okay and precisely. Some people might even wonder if some of these are words at all," says Svennevig.
But they are. Svennevig describes them as the traffic signals of conversation.
"They indicate who can speak and when, whether you keep up with what the other person is saying, or if clarification is needed. There's been very little research on such words in Norwegian, so this will be groundbreaking work," he says.
The researchers will also study gestures and facial expressions. Nods, hand movements and grimaces can steer conversations just like small words do. All of this helps us communicate better.
May help many
This is fundamental research, yet it has several practical applications.
"It's often quite difficult for foreigners learning Norwegian to grasp how such words used, as Norwegian textbooks offer little guidance," Svennevig says.
If you ask an average Norwegian to explain the difference between 'javel', 'akkurat', 'okei' and 'mhm', you probably won't get a good answer. But for those learning Norwegian, it's important to understand how these words are used.
"You could also imagine applications in speech therapy to help people with communication difficulties," he adds.
Prestige for UiA
The Centre for Advanced Study is an independent research foundation in Oslo funded by the government. It aims to promote excellent basic research.
Only three research groups join the centre each year. These groups are made up of leading researchers from all over the world, who spend an academic year working on their projects. The Centre for Advanced Study provides an ideal environment for them to focus entirely on their research, free from other duties.
Svennevig's admission to the centre is an acknowledgment that his research is of a high standard, believes the Pro-Rector at UiA, Hans Kjetil Lysgård.
"It's a feather in the cap for him personally, for the research community he belongs to, and for UiA as a university," says Lysgård.
International collaboration
The project will also look at small words in Danish, Swedish and Finnish. Researchers from these countries will be invited to Oslo. Each of them will spend a month at the centre collaborating with the Norwegian team.
"For me, this is an exceptional opportunity to delve deeply into a topic that has long been a passion of mine. I also get to work with other leading researchers in the field," says Svennevig.
The participating researchers have different expertise in grammar, conversation, gestures and sounds.
This makes it possible to find similarities and differences between the languages. Each language has its way of using small words. But there is also much that is similar.
"This will be an exciting collaboration with the best in the field," says Svennevig.
The project starts in 2026 and lasts for twelve months.