svärma

Svärma is a Swedish verb meaning to swarm, that is, to move or gather in large numbers as a group. It is commonly used about insects, especially bees, that leave a colony to form a new one, but it can also describe crowds of people or other animals that converge around something or someone. The word conveys a sense of rapid, collective movement and mass formation.

The related noun svärm denotes a swarm. The term is of Germanic origin and is cognate with the English word swarm. In Swedish usage, svärma often appears in natural-science contexts, such as entomology, as well as in more general descriptions of gathering or clustering phenomena. The verb can appear in various tenses to describe current, past, or upcoming swarming events.

Usage and nuance can vary by context. In ecological or agricultural writing, svärma refers specifically to swarming behavior of insects, notably bees. In social or cultural contexts, it can describe a large crowd gathering around a focal point, such as an event or a public figure. The expression tends to carry a neutral to descriptive tone, avoiding judgment about the swarm itself.

Examples:

- Bina svärmar i vårens början. (Bees swarm at the start of spring.)

- Folkmassorna svärmade kring kändisen. (The crowds swarmed around the celebrity.)

See also: svärm (a swarm) and swarming as a general concept in biology and crowd dynamics.