Uff da

It was June 17, 1813, and Ragnhild, long known as one of her community's most attractive women,  had a date to go stone-skipping on the Otta River near Vågå. While hurrying to get ready, she mistakenly put her bra on backward.

Ragnhild was dismayed to find that it actually fit better that way.

"Uff da," she muttered.

This is the first recorded utterance of an expression that, over time, became synonymous with Norwegian culture.

Nowadays, uff da is memorialized in the name of a Minnesota-based internet service provider and is known almost everywhere as the all-but-official Norwegian expression of dismay, disapproval and disgust.

But the rich context of uff da has largely been lost.

Those of us who grew up hearing and saying uff da know that it is just one of three finely graded expressions. The others, fi da and ish da, are now seldom heard.

Fi da was what Norwegian parents said when they discovered that their daughter was dating a Swede or looking for a snake to keep as a pet. It signified mild disapproval, but fell short of disgust.

Ish da signified a wide array of more extreme reactions. A drink of home-made dandelion wine might prompt an ish da and a race for the weeds.

Here's a handy rule of thumb. If you step over it, say fi da. If you step in it, say ish da.

As for the old reliable uff da, here are some situations when it's a suitable thing to say:

You discover while eating a delicious sandwich that it's made of cat food.

You notice that non-Norwegians at a church dinner are using lefse as a napkin.

You arrive at a lutefisk dinner and find that they're actually serving lutefisk.

The cow you're about to milk swishes your face with a wet tail.

You have forgotten your mother-in-law's first name.

The two people you are dating find out about each other.

You can dance only the polka and the band can play only rock and roll.

Here's another instance from an acquaintance: "When I was in Norway touring with a college choir we took a small boat to the island in the fjord near Trondheim. As we were leaving and the boat was backing up, a small Norwegian child was swimming behind the boat. When he realized we were heading straight for him, he yelled out, 'Uff da.'"

Bernie Shellum

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