Scandinavian

Part of speech: adjective, noun

Definitions

1. Pertaining to the cultural, historical, and linguistic aspects from the region of Northern Europe that encompasses Denmark, Norway, and Sweden
2. Describing the people, languages, and traditions that emerge from the northern European area including Denmark, Norway, and Sweden
3. Relating to the heritage, languages, and customs associated with the northern European countries of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden

Etymology: Scandinavia itself is the older word here. The Latin "Scandinavia" appears in classical and medieval writing for the northern lands, and English took the place name in the early modern period, after which "Scandinavian" was formed by adding the suffix "-an" to it. The suffix has a long pedigree: it comes down from a Proto-Italic form "-ānos" through Latin "-ānus", then Old French "-ain", and reached Middle English as "-an". English speakers have been adding it to place names this way ever since, which is why "Italian", "Lutheran" and "Victorian" follow the same pattern. The adjective and noun both describe the people, languages and things of the region, so "Scandinavian" can mean either a person from Norway, Sweden or Denmark or a quality of those places. The base word is a Latin label, not a native one, so the name of the whole region was imposed from outside before its inhabitants had a shared name for themselves.

Synonyms: Norse, Nordic, Scandian, Danish, Swedish