Learn how to tell time in Danish

Rules for telling time in Danish

To tell time in Danish is just a matter of learning the Danish numbers and a few important rules. Here are the basics:

1. No a.m. or p.m. in Danish

Danish doesn't have words for ‘a.m.’ or ‘p.m.’ Instead, you should use:

'om morgenen' from ? to 9 a.m.

'om formiddagen' from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

'om eftermiddagen' from noon until about 6 p.m.

‘om aftenen’ from 6 p.m. until midnight

‘om natten’ from midnight until ? (whatever feels like nighttime for you).

2. In writing use the 24 hour system

In writing, Danes usually use the 24-hour clock. That means that 3 p.m. becomes kl. 15:00 (klokken 15:00). When writing to friends or family, you can also use  ‘Jeg kommer hjem klokken otte i aften’ [I’ll be home eight o’clock this evening].

3. Forget all about 'half past' and embrace 'half to' instead

The last and most important rule is the fact that the time is NEVER ever ‘half past’ something in Danish. Instead, when a Dane says that the time is half eight in the morning, s/he means the time is half to eight (7:30 a.m.).

Let’s recap:

• 12:30 p.m. –  Klokken er halv et [the time is half (to) one]
•  5:30 a.m. –  Klokken er halv seks om morgenen [the time is half (to) six in the morning]
•  7:30 p.m. –  Klokken er halv otte om aftenen [the time is half (to) eight in the evening]

If you remember only one thing from this post, let it be the half-to rule. It will save you a lot of grief. Bungling up 'half past/to' is a common mistake among Danish language learners. To make matters worse, Danes might also make the same mistake when speaking in English, so check your Danish appointment twice if it’s set to half past/to.