Indirect Questions as Subjects
An indirect question is a question embedded inside another sentence. For example, instead of directly asking "Who planned the burglary?", you might say "I do not know who planned the burglary."
In Danish, there is a special rule for indirect questions: when a question word like hvem (who) or hvad (what) is the subject of the embedded clause, you must insert the dummy pronoun der immediately after it.
Using "hvem der"
If the subject of the indirect question is hvem, use hvem der. Leaving out der here makes the sentence grammatically incorrect in Danish.
| I do not know who planned the burglary. | Jeg ved ikke hvem der planlagde indbruddet. |
| We would like to know who turned on the siren. | Vi vil gerne vide hvem der tændte sirenen. |
| They are asking who won the vote. | De spørger hvem der vandt afstemningen. |
Using "hvad der"
The exact same rule applies when the subject of the indirect question is hvad (what).
| The mother is asking what caused the protest. | Moren spørger hvad der forårsagede protesten. |
| The newspaper explains what is going on in the city right now. | Avisen forklarer hvad der foregår i byen lige nu. |
The Verb "stå" for Written Text
When talking about what is written in a newspaper, article, or update, Danish typically uses the verb stå (literally "to stand").
| to be written (in a text) | stå |
If you are forming an indirect question to ask about what a text says, hvad is the subject of står, so you must use hvad der.
| Can you see what is written on the front page of the local newspaper? | Kan du se hvad der står på forsiden af lokalavisen? |
| The father would like to know what is written in the update. | Faren vil gerne vide hvad der står i opdateringen. |