The word "värmebölja" refers to a prolonged period of scorching weather, often with high humidity, that can impact health, agriculture, and daily activities.
Source: Linnea, OLS Community Manager
Värmebölja: Pronounced as [Vair-meh-bul-yah].
It consists of two words, so let's break it down:
Värmebölja means "heatwave" in Swedish. Värme means "heat" or "warmth", and bölja means "wave", so it's an easy translation. You'll sometimes hear “värmevåg” used too, using another Swedish word for "wave", but värmebölja is the most common term.
It's true what many people say: Swedes love to talk about the weather, so it's always good to expand your vocabulary with as many meteorological terms as possible. How do you know when to use the word? A warm spell is officially a värmebölja when there are five consecutive days with a daily high of over 25 degrees.
Although there is a separate word for heat (hetta), it's good to remember that the Swedish language uses "varm" in most contexts, whereas English uses "heat." A few other examples are varm choklad (hot chocolate), värmeflaska (hot water bottle), and centralvärme (central heating).
Example:
Värmebölja på väg med 30 grader på vissa håll.
A heat wave is on the way, with 30C in some locations.
Usch, vad varmt! Jag hoppas att värmeböljan är över snart.
Yuck, it's so hot! I hope the heatwave is over soon.
Linnea, OLS Community Manager – Swedish