Kirkene

Kirkene is the definite plural form of the Norwegian noun kirke, meaning "the churches." It is used chiefly in Bokmål to refer to multiple church buildings or congregations in a definite sense (for example, "kirkene i byen" — "the churches in the town"). The form combines the base word kirke with the definite plural suffix -ne, a common morphological pattern in Norwegian Bokmål for forming definite plurals.

Etymology traces kirke to Old Norse kirkja, itself derived from a West Germanic form (cf. Old English cirice) ultimately from Greek kyriakon, "of the Lord," reflecting early Christian influence on Germanic vocabulary. Cognates appear throughout the Scandinavian and Germanic languages: Danish kirke/kirkerne, Swedish kyrka/kyrkorna, and English church (via different phonological developments).

In usage, kirkene can denote physical church buildings, institutional bodies of the Church of Norway or other denominations, and, in historical or cultural contexts, groups of parish churches. The term appears in administrative descriptions, heritage listings, parish directories and everyday speech. Its Nynorsk equivalents follow different inflectional patterns (for example, kyrkjer and the corresponding definite plural). As a lexical item, kirkene illustrates Norwegian noun inflection and the broader pattern of definite marking for plurals in Scandinavian languages.