The Swedish word heja (pronounced "hey-ah") is often shouted by supporters of a team or athlete in order to show support. This can also be described as a hejarop, with ropa here meaning "shout".
You may also see the phrase heja Sverige in advertisements and on posters during international championships, such as the current Women's European Championships, as companies cash in on the football fever and show their support for Sweden's blågula (blue and yellow) team.
It's not only used in sport, either. During Eurovision, you may have heard Swedes saying heja KAJ ("come on KAJ") when cheering on KAJ, the artists behind Sweden's Bara Bada Bastu entry earlier this year, and you might also hear parents saying it to their child at playgrounds or in similar circumstances where the child is attempting something difficult.
As an immigrant in Sweden, especially if your country is still in the competition in question or is due to play against Sweden, you may be asked who you hejar på (support).
The word hejarklack can be used to describe a group of supporters. Klack here comes from the French word claquer meaning clap or bang, and refers to a group of people who historically were paid to applaud in theatres.
Football chants or similar, where supporters sing a specific song or shout a specific phrase in support of their team, are hejaramsor. You're most likely to hear these in actual stadiums rather than in pubs or similar where supporters are watching the match on TV.
A ramsa is a short phrase, like a nursery rhyme for children or a rhyme used to remember something. Here's an example.
Trettio dagar har november,
april, juni och september,
februari tjugoåtta allen,
alla övriga trettioen.
And in English:
Thirty days has November,
April, June and September,
February has twenty eight,
All the others have thirty-one
Hejaramsor can also include some sort of action or movement, such as Malmö FF's hejaramsa, hoppa om ni älskar Malmö, hej, hej! (Jump if you love Malmö, hey, hey!), where supporters jump with each hej.
There are also specific hejaramsor for the Swedish football team, including den som inte hoppar är... (anyone not hopping is...) where the nationality of the opposing team is the last word of the ramsa, essentially meaning that if you're not jumping up and down, you're supporting the other team.
Example sentences:
Heja Sverige!
Come on Sweden!
Vem hejar du på? Jag hejar på Japan.
Who are you supporting? I'm supporting Japan.
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