Musikken i bakgrunnen er rolig.

The music in the background is calm.

Breakdown of Musikken i bakgrunnen er rolig.

• være: to be
• i: in
• musikken: the music
• rolig: calm
• bakgrunnen: the background

Questions & Answers about Musikken i bakgrunnen er rolig.

Why is musikk spelled musikken here?

Because it’s the definite form. In Norwegian you make a noun definite by adding a suffix:
• musikk (music) + -en = musikken (the music).

What does i mean in i bakgrunnen?

i is a preposition meaning “in.” It tells you where the music is: in the background.

Why do we say i bakgrunnen instead of på bakgrunnen?

i bakgrunnen is the idiomatic way to express “in the background” in Norwegian. Saying på bakgrunnen sounds like you literally place something on top of a physical background.

Why is bakgrunn written as bakgrunnen?

That’s the definite form of bakgrunn (background). Like musikken, it takes -en to mean “the background.”

Why is rolig not inflected here (for gender or number)?

When an adjective follows a linking verb like er (to be), it stays in its base form. You don’t add -t or -e in the predicate position:
Musikken … er rolig.

Can I place the location phrase after the verb, e.g. Musikken er rolig i bakgrunnen?

Yes. Both orders work:
• Musikken i bakgrunnen er rolig. (background phrase attached to the subject)
• Musikken er rolig i bakgrunnen. (predicate first, then location)

Is there a single-word alternative for musikken i bakgrunnen?

Yes: bakgrunnsmusikk (background music).
For example: Bakgrunnsmusikken er rolig.

How do you form the definite form of a noun in Norwegian?

• For masculine/feminine nouns, add -en: bok → boken
• For neuter nouns, add -et: hus → huset
• Some common-gender nouns use -a: ku → kua