gången

Gången is a Swedish noun in its definite form that denotes a corridor or passage within a building, or a covered walkway connecting rooms, halls, or courtyards. The term is commonly used in architectural and urban descriptions to refer to long, linear walkways, galleries, or porticoes that people move through. In addition to architectural usage, gången can appear in toponymy as a component of place names, where it evokes a passage or street-like feature.

Etymology and cognates: Gången derives from the verb ganga, meaning to walk, with the definite suffix -en forming "the walk" or "the corridor." The sense of a physical passage emerges from this association with walking space.

Usage in Swedish language: The word appears in building plans, architectural descriptions, and historical texts describing churches, castles, schools, and other complexes that include internal walkways. It is also encountered in modern signage and descriptive labels for campuses or housing blocks. In place names, variants such as Gången or Gångstigen may be used to designate a specific path or pedestrian way.

Related terms and notes: Related Swedish terms include gång (walk), gångväg (pedestrian path), and gångbro (footbridge). The word gången highlights the relationship between movement and the architectural or spatial passages through which movement occurs.