bastu

Norwegian Nynorsk

Alternative forms

• badstu (alternative spelling)

Etymology

A clipping of Old Norse baðstofu (oblique case of baðstofa) with metaphony. Compare badstugu.

Noun

bastu f (definite singular bastua or basto, indefinite plural bastuer or bastur, definite plural bastuene or badstune)

1. (dialectal) alternative form of badstove (“sauna”)

Swedish

en bastu

Etymology

A clipping of (probably) Old Swedish badstuwu, from earlier baþstova, equivalent to bad +‎ stuga (cognate with English bath + stove). Compare inherited badstuga.

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

bastu c

1. a sauna (room for heat sessions)

   bygga bastu på tomten

   build a sauna on the property

2. (in some expressions) a sauna (sauna session)

   Synonym: bastubad

   ta en bastu efter jobbet

   take a sauna after work [can also be expressed as "bada bastu efter jobbet" or "basta efter jobbet"]

Usage notes

Nouns ending with unstressed (short) -u are rare in Swedish and most of them are loanwords, and the plural form -r given by normative dictionaries feels unnatural to many speakers. For this reason, alternative plural forms like bastuar may be found.

Declension

Declension of bastu

		nominative	genitive
singular	indefinite	bastu	bastus
	definite	bastun	bastuns
plural	indefinite	bastur	basturs
	definite	basturna	basturnas

Derived terms

• bada bastu
• bastuaggregat
• bastubad
• bastukvast

Related terms

• basta

See also

• duscha
• het
• lövruska
• svett
• svettas
• svettig
• varm

References

• “bastu”, in Svensk ordbok [Dictionary of Swedish] (in Swedish)
• “bastu”, in Svenska Akademiens ordlista [Wordlist of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)
• “bastu”, in Svenska Akademiens ordbok [Dictionary of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)
• Gunlög Josefsson (2018), “Avokadosar och kepsar – ett epentetiskt s med olika funktioner [Avokadosar and kepsar – an epenthetic s with many functions]”, in Språk & stil‎^[1], volume NF 28, Uppsala: Uppsala University, →ISSN, pages 5-21