The indefinite article varies according to gender, and exists in three forms: en, ei, et. However, there is no such thing as a definite article for nouns in Norwegian. Instead, the nouns are given a suffix that indicates the definite form. The suffix, like the indefinite article, also depends on the gender of the noun.
2.1 Gender and the indefinite article The gender of the noun is indicated by its indefinite article. Masculine: en mann, en katt, en kopp, en telefon a man, a cat, a cup, a telephone Feminine: ei jente, ei dør, ei klokke, ei bok a girl, a door, a clock/watch, a book Neuter: et eple, et hus, et esel, et vindu an apple, a house, a donkey, a window We have three forms of the indefinite article: en, ei and et. In some cases, the natural sex of what is described will be the same as its gender: M: en mann, en gutt, en okse, en hane F: ei jente, ei tante, ei ku, ei høne
a man, a boy, a bull/an ox, a cockerel a girl, an aunt, a cow, a chicken/hen
Sadly, however, for the vast majority of nouns, there’s no such logical assistance to be had. Obviously, one can try to guess, but it’s generally easier to learn the article of each new noun along with the noun itself. It is important to note that the feminine article, ei, is actually optional: it is entirely possible to drop it and use the masculine en in its place. The degree to which this happens is a partly a matter of regional dialect and partly a matter of style. In Bergen, for example, the feminine article is never used, even for specifically feminine words; they say en jente, en dame (a girl, a woman) etc. If you choose to do the same, bear in mind that this would be seen as uncommonly formal in many other regions, especially when using en as the article for everyday words like: ei jente, ei hytte, ei klokke, ei dør a girl, a cabin, a clock/watch, a door Ei is perceived as more informal than en. Your best bet is to listen carefully to the speech patterns of the people around you, and find out what seems to be the norm in your particular area. If the feminine article is used, you might be better off doing the same, but if it’s rarely used, sticking to the more formal masculine article could be an option.
18