fortidsformen

Fortidsformen is a term used in Scandinavian grammar to refer to the past tense form of a verb. It denotes actions or states that occurred in the past and is typically contrasted with present and future tenses. In Danish and Norwegian grammars, fortidsformen is commonly equated with the preterite or simple past, though the exact realization varies between languages and verb classes.

Formation and usage: In Danish, many verbs form the past tense by adding endings such as -ede, -te, or -te, while some strong verbs change their stem. Norwegian preteritum forms vary by verb type, with regular verbs often ending in a specific suffix, and irregular verbs appearing more frequently in common usage. Fortidsformen is used to recount events in narratives, describe completed actions, or situate statements within a past time frame.

Relation to other tenses: The fortidsformen is distinct from the perfect tenses (formed with have/har plus past participle) and from the pluperfect, though some languages employ periphrastic past forms to express past actions. In many Scandinavian grammars, fortidsformen is presented as the basic, non-compound past tense, complementary to, but separate from, compound past constructions.

Cross-linguistic notes: The corresponding term and forms exist in other related languages, where equivalents include the preterite or imperfect. Although terminology differs, the core function—marking completed past events—remains common across these languages.

Examples: Danish: jeg spiste (I ate), jeg gik (I went). Norwegian Bokmål: jeg spiste (I ate), jeg gikk (I went). In teaching contexts, fortidsformen is contrasted with present tense forms and with compound past forms to illustrate past-time reference.