bosted

Bosted is a noun used in Danish and Norwegian to denote the place where a person lives; it stands for a home, residence, or domicile. The term can refer to a person's permanent address, a temporary housing arrangement, or the location where someone stays for social or care reasons. In everyday language it is often synonymous with bopæl or bolig, though bosted emphasizes the physical place of residence or establishment rather than the dwelling as a building. In official use, bosted is common in forms, registers, and administrative documents to indicate a person's address or place of residence.

In Norwegian administration and welfare contexts, bosted also refers to the registered place of residence in the national population register and can imply eligibility for services based on where a person is considered to reside. The concept covers both private housing and institutional settings such as care facilities when those places serve as a person’s bosted. The word is typically pluralized as bosteder.

Etymology: the word is built from bo 'to live' and sted 'place', reflecting its function as the place where one lives. Related terms include bopæl and bolig, with nuanced distinctions between the act of living and the dwelling itself.

See also: bopæl, bolig, bostedsregistrering.