Tilskuer

Tilskuer is a Norwegian noun meaning a person who attends a public event to watch, without taking part in the action. Tilskuere are found at sports matches, theatre performances, concerts and similar occasions. The term emphasizes the observer role of the individual, in contrast to participants such as players or performers. In some contexts, it is used alongside publikum, though tilskuer often refers to individuals present in a venue rather than a broader audience.

The word is formed from til- meaning toward and skue meaning to look, and it has cognates in Danish (tilskuer). In Bokmål it is common; some dialects or forms in Nynorsk may use tilskodar.

At large events, tilskuere expect safe, accessible seating and a reasonable level of comfort, and they are generally required to follow venue rules, avoid obstructing view or play, and cooperate with security. Crowd management and event organization aim to ensure tilskuere can observe the action with minimal risk. The concept also appears in media discussions of attendance figures and spectator behavior. In broadcasting, tilskuere can refer to on-site spectators, whereas off-site audiences are more often described as publikum or seere.

See also: spectator, crowd management, attendance figures. In sport journalism, discussions of tilskuer numbers are common when evaluating the popularity or impact of an event.