Lifestyle

There Is No English Word For ‘Gezellig’ And This Is Why

There’s no English word for ‘hygge’ either

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The Dutch have gezellig. Scandinavians have hygge. Americans have no such word and do not require one.

means something like cozy and comfortable, but there’s no direct English translation.

Sometimes, when my Dutch husband and I are having espresso and a sweet while comfortably tucked in together, I look at him and say … well, I say something close to gezellig. It’s not that easy to pronounce. (Much like our last name, which I also cannot pronounce properly.)

Scandinavians have a similar word, . It is also not that easy to pronounce. I’m not certain whether Danes, Swedes and Norwegians all pronounce it the same way, but I’ve listened to examples online and maybe it’s not a bad thing that I can’t afford to travel there. I’m having enough trouble with Dutch.

Why don’t Americans have such a word?

In the U.S., we don’t value simple comforts and time with friends and family. We say we do, but we don’t.

American Thanksgiving could be and should be gezellig, but we have chosen not to go in that direction.