børn

Børn is the Danish word for children. It is the plural form of barn, the noun for a single child. In everyday Danish, børn refers to offspring and is used across contexts from family life to education and media. The singular form is barn; the definite singular is barnet, and the definite plural is børnene. The possessive form is børns, as in børns legetøj (children’s toys).

Etymology: The word descends from Proto-Germanic and has cognates in other Scandinavian languages, such as Norwegian barn and Swedish barn, all with the meaning "child" or "children." The Danish spelling with ø distinguishes it from the singular barn and from related words in neighboring languages.

Usage: In Danish, børns is used to form possessives; "børn" is used generically to refer to all children or groups of children, not to specific individuals.

Cultural and regional context: The term is common in literature, media, and everyday speech in Denmark, and it appears in demographic and social discussions alongside related terms in Norwegian and Swedish.