halvdel

Halvdel is a noun used in Swedish and Norwegian to denote one half of a whole or a portion that has been divided into two equal parts. The word combines halv (half) and del (part) and is used for both concrete and abstract halves, such as a half of a cake or half of a population. The plural form halvdelene or halvdelar depends on the language and dialect.

In Swedish, halvdel can refer to a physical half, for example en halvdel av kakan (one half of the cake), or to a figurative half, such as halvdel av befolkningen (half of the population). The term is common in everyday speech, journalism, and education, especially when discussing proportions, resources, or distributions.

In Norwegian Bokmål, halvdel functions similarly and is used across formal and informal registers. Examples include halvdel av budsjettet (half of the budget) and delene er halvdelene (the parts are halves, though wording may vary by context). The noun can also appear in statistical or mathematical contexts to indicate a quantity equal to 50 percent of a specified whole.

Halvdel is closely related to other terms for parts and proportions in the Scandinavian languages, and its interpretation is generally clear from context. It is not a technical term for a geometric point or a line; for those concepts different terms are used.

See also: Half, Proportion, Division (Mathematics).