I just saw a similar post(about what Norwegians consider rude behavior among Americans), so I got curious myself. Even after years of living in Norway, there are still a couple of things I can’t quite get used to. Nothing major, tbh, just little details here and there.
For example, I’ve heard "Hva sa du?" a couple of times, said by a manager to an employee or by a father to his child. In my head, the automatic translation is basically "What did you say?", which sounds incredibly rude in English.
Or when someone wants to ask you something and starts with "Du,…" rather than Hi or some other little introduction. It doesn’t sound particularly friendly to my ears, even though I’m sure there’s nothing rude intended, that's just how some people are used to talk.
Another thing is not giving up your seat when an elderly person gets on public transport. To be fair, I’ve actually seen people give up their seats twice, but that’s a pretty miserable number considering how many years I’ve lived here. But it did make me wonder. Is this connected to the Norwegian idea of independence and not assuming that older people are weaker or need special treatment, or is there another cultural reason behind it?
So, what are some things you’ve found difficult to get used to in Norway? Maybe things that are perfectly normal because that’s simply how the language works, but can sound strange or even rude to foreign ears? Or perhaps some cultural habits, expressions, or more folksy/countryside ways of speaking that could technically be phrased differently, but are just considered normal in Norwegian?