Dalene er stille om aftenen, når vi er på ferie i bjergene.

The valleys are quiet in the evening when we are on vacation in the mountains.

Breakdown of Dalene er stille om aftenen, når vi er på ferie i bjergene.

• i: in
• være: to be
• på: on
• når: when
• aftenen: the evening
• vi: we
• om: in
• stille: quiet
• ferien: the vacation
• dalen: the valley
• bjerget: the mountain

Questions & Answers about Dalene er stille om aftenen, når vi er på ferie i bjergene.

What exactly does Dalene mean, and why does it end in -ene?

Dalene means “the valleys” (or “the dales”).

In Danish, the definite article (“the”) is usually a suffix on the noun, not a separate word:

• en dal – a valley
• dalen – the valley
• dale – valleys
• dalene – the valleys

So the ending -ene here marks definite plural: dal + e (plural) + ne (the) → dalene = the valleys.

What about bjergene – how is that formed, and is it the same pattern as Dalene?

Yes, bjergene follows the same basic pattern:

• et bjerg – a mountain
• bjerget – the mountain
• bjerge – mountains
• bjergene – the mountains

Again, -e marks the plural (bjerge) and -ne makes it definite plural (bjergene = the mountains).

So in the sentence:

• Dalene = the valleys
• i bjergene = in the mountains

Why isn’t there a separate word for “the” before Dalene and bjergene, like in English?

Danish normally attaches “the” to the end of the noun instead of putting a separate word in front.

So instead of:

• the valley → the
  • valley

Danish does:

• dalen → dal + -en (the)

Some examples:

• en stol – a chair → stolen – the chair
• et hus – a house → huset – the house
• bøger – books → bøgerne – the books

That’s why you don’t see a separate word like “the” before Dalene or bjergene; the “the” is already inside -ene.

Why do we say om aftenen and not i aftenen?

For general times of day (“in the evening”, “in the morning”, etc.) Danish normally uses om:

• om morgenen – in the morning
• om eftermiddagen – in the afternoon
• om aftenen – in the evening

i aftenen is not used as a normal time expression in standard Danish.

Use i mainly for specific times like:

• i aften – this evening
• i morgen – tomorrow (literally “in the morning/day after today”)

So om aftenen here means “(generally) in the evenings / in the evening (as a habit)”.

Why is it om aftenen (singular “the evening”) when English says “in the evenings” (plural)?

Danish often uses singular definite for general, repeated times:

• om aftenen – (in) the evening, in the evenings (as a habit)
• om morgenen – in the morning(s)
• om sommeren – in (the) summer, in summers

So even though English uses a plural (“in the evenings”), Danish expresses the same idea with singular definite: aftenen (the evening). It’s just a difference in how the two languages express general, habitual time.

Why is it når vi er på ferie and not da vi var på ferie?

når and da both translate as “when”, but they are used differently:

• når – for repeated / general / future situations
  
  • Når jeg er træt, sover jeg. – When I am tired, I sleep.
• da – for a single, specific past situation
  
  • Da jeg var barn, boede jeg i Odense. – When I was a child, I lived in Odense.

In your sentence, you’re talking about what normally happens whenever you are on holiday in the mountains (a repeated or general situation), so når is the right choice:

• … om aftenen, når vi er på ferie i bjergene.
  → “in the evening, when(ever) we are on holiday in the mountains.”

Is the comma before når necessary?

In modern Danish, there are two accepted comma systems:

1. With comma before all subordinate clauses (traditional system)
2. Without that comma (the “new” system)

So both of these are officially correct:

• Dalene er stille om aftenen, når vi er på ferie i bjergene.
• Dalene er stille om aftenen når vi er på ferie i bjergene.

Most Danes still do write the comma before når, and as a learner it’s perfectly fine (and common) to keep it.

Why is it er på ferie and not something like er i ferie?

På ferie is a fixed expression in Danish meaning “on holiday / on vacation”. You almost always use på, not i, with ferie in this sense:

• Vi er på ferie. – We are on holiday.
• Jeg tager på ferie i juli. – I’m going on holiday in July.

i ferie is not idiomatic for the “on holiday” meaning.

So når vi er på ferie i bjergene literally is “when we are on holiday in the mountains.”

Why doesn’t stille change form to match Dalene (plural)? Shouldn’t it have some ending?

In Danish, many adjectives do change form, but stille is one of the adjectives that does not change at all:

• en stille dal – a quiet valley
• et stille hus – a quiet house
• stille dale – quiet valleys
• dalene er stille – the valleys are quiet

So you always use stille – there is no different plural or neuter form to learn for this word. That’s why the sentence has Dalene er stille and not something like stillee or stillet.