Learn Hardcore Norwegian: Dette vennskapet forstår jeg bedre nå.

Dette = this (neuter form of denne/dette/disse)
vennskapet = the friendship (vennskap = friendship, -et = neuter definite ending the)
forstår = understand / understands (present tense of å forstå)
jeg = I
bedre = better
nå = now

A very literal rendering would be: This friendship understand I better now.

Why does the sentence start with Dette vennskapet instead of Jeg?

Norwegian main clauses follow a verb-second (V2) rule:

The finite verb (here: forstår) must be in second position.
The first position can be many things: subject, object, adverb, etc.

In this sentence:

Dette vennskapet = first element (object/topic)
forstår = second element (verb)
jeg = third element (subject)

So Dette vennskapet forstår jeg bedre nå is perfectly normal: the speaker is putting this friendship in focus by putting it first, but still keeping the verb in second position as Norwegian requires.

If you put the subject first:

Jeg forstår dette vennskapet bedre nå.

Here, jeg is first, forstår is still second, so it also follows the V2 rule.

Is there a difference in meaning between Dette vennskapet forstår jeg bedre nå and Jeg forstår dette vennskapet bedre nå?

The basic meaning is the same: I understand this friendship better now.

The difference is mainly emphasis / information structure:

Jeg forstår dette vennskapet bedre nå.
– More neutral.
– Slight emphasis on me as the experiencer: I (as opposed to someone else) understand this friendship better now.
Dette vennskapet forstår jeg bedre nå.
– Brings dette vennskapet to the front and makes it the topic/focus:
This friendship, I understand better now (compared to before / compared to other friendships).

Both are correct. The fronted object version sounds a bit more stylistic, reflective or contrastive, depending on context.

Why is it vennskapet and not just vennskap?

Because the sentence refers to a specific friendship, not friendship in general.

vennskap = friendship (general / indefinite)
vennskapet = the friendship (definite, a particular one)

The speaker is talking about one particular friendship they now understand better, so the definite form with -et is appropriate: vennskapet.

What is the grammatical gender of vennskap, and how does that affect dette vennskapet?

Vennskap is a neuter noun in Norwegian.

Indefinite singular: et vennskap (a friendship)
Definite singular: vennskapet (the friendship)

The demonstrative must match the gender:

Masculine: den (e.g. den stolen – that chair)
Feminine: den (e.g. den boka – that book)
Neuter: dette (e.g. dette huset, dette vennskapet)

So you get:

dette vennskapet = this friendship
(dette agrees with neuter vennskapet)

Could I say dette vennskap instead of dette vennskapet?

No, dette vennskap is ungrammatical in standard Norwegian.

You have two main patterns:

et vennskap = a friendship (indefinite)
vennskapet = the friendship (definite)
dette vennskapet = this friendship (demonstrative + definite)

With dette, you normally use the definite form of a neuter noun:

dette huset (this house) – not dette hus
dette brevet (this letter) – not dette brev
dette vennskapet (this friendship) – not dette vennskap

Why is the verb forstår placed before jeg? In English the subject usually comes first.

This is the verb-second rule (V2) in Norwegian main clauses:

The finite verb must be the second element in the clause.
Whatever comes first (subject, object, adverbial) pushes the subject to later in the sentence.

Examples:

Jeg forstår dette vennskapet nå.
Subject first → jeg (1), forstår (2)
Nå forstår jeg dette vennskapet.
Adverb first → Nå (1), forstår (2), jeg (3)
Dette vennskapet forstår jeg bedre nå.
Object first → Dette vennskapet (1), forstår (2), jeg (3)

So forstår must appear before jeg here to satisfy the V2 rule.

Can I also say Nå forstår jeg dette vennskapet bedre or Nå forstår jeg dette vennskapet bedre nå?

You can say:

Nå forstår jeg dette vennskapet bedre. ✅
= Now I understand this friendship better.

This is very natural and common. The adverb nå is placed first for emphasis on the time frame (now as opposed to before).

But:

Nå forstår jeg dette vennskapet bedre nå. ❌

Repeating nå at both ends is redundant and sounds wrong in normal speech. Use nå either at the beginning or at the end, but not both:

Nå forstår jeg dette vennskapet bedre.
Jeg forstår dette vennskapet bedre nå.
Dette vennskapet forstår jeg bedre nå.

Why is nå (now) at the end of the sentence? Could it be somewhere else?

Yes, nå can appear in several positions. All of these are grammatical, with slightly different rhythm/emphasis:

Nå forstår jeg dette vennskapet bedre.
(Focus on the time: Now I understand…)
Jeg forstår nå dette vennskapet bedre.
(Possible, but less common / more written or formal-sounding.)
Jeg forstår dette vennskapet bedre nå.
(Very natural and neutral.)
Dette vennskapet forstår jeg bedre nå.
(Focus on dette vennskapet, while nå still marks the time.)

So having nå at the end is completely normal and actually very typical: adverbs of time often appear at the end in spoken Norwegian.

What exactly does bedre mean here, and is it related to bra or god?

Bedre means better.

It is the comparative form of both:

bra = good (general adjective: a good day, a good idea)
god = good (often used with food, taste, moral quality, etc.)

For comparison:

bra / god = good
bedre = better
best = best

So forstår jeg bedre = I understand (it) better (than before / than something else).

Could I omit jeg and just say Dette vennskapet forstår bedre nå?

No. In Norwegian you cannot normally drop the subject pronoun the way you sometimes can in languages like Spanish or Italian.

Dette vennskapet forstår jeg bedre nå. ✅
Dette vennskapet forstår bedre nå. ❌ (ungrammatical in standard Norwegian)

Norwegian requires an explicit subject pronoun jeg / du / han / hun / vi / dere / de in sentences like this.

Why is forstår in the present tense even though English might sometimes use a different structure?

Norwegian uses the simple present tense very similarly to English for mental states and ongoing situations:

Jeg forstår dette vennskapet bedre nå.
= I understand this friendship better now.

If you wanted to stress the process of coming to understand, you could use the present progressive in English:

I am coming to understand this friendship better now.

In Norwegian you would still usually just use the simple present:

Jeg begynner å forstå dette vennskapet bedre nå.
(I am beginning to understand this friendship better now.)

So forstår in the simple present is the natural choice here.

Is there any difference between dette vennskapet and just vennskapet in this context?

Yes, a nuance:

vennskapet = the friendship (definite, but without pointing at it with this/that)
dette vennskapet = this friendship (explicitly deictic: the one we have been talking about or the one I am pointing to in context)

In many contexts, both might refer to the same relationship, but:

dette vennskapet feels a bit more pointed or contrastive, often used when distinguishing this particular friendship from others, or highlighting it in a narrative.

Example contrast:

Vennskapet vårt har endret seg. Dette vennskapet forstår jeg bedre nå.
(Our friendship has changed. This friendship I understand better now.)

How would I say this in a more neutral, everyday word order?

The most straightforward, everyday version is:

Jeg forstår dette vennskapet bedre nå.

It keeps all the same elements:

Jeg – I
forstår – understand
dette vennskapet – this friendship
bedre – better
nå – now

The version you gave, Dette vennskapet forstår jeg bedre nå, is also correct but slightly more marked in terms of word order and emphasis.