Learn Hardcore Norwegian: Etter forelesningen loves det at resultatene kommer raskt. - After the lecture it is promised that the results will come quickly.

å love = to promise
- Det loves at … = It is promised that …
å elske = to love (in the emotional/romantic sense)
- Jeg elsker deg = I love you

So loves here is from å love (to promise), not from anything to do with affection.

Why does loves end in -s? What does that mean?

The -s makes the verb passive.

å love = to promise (active)
- Foreleseren lover at … = The lecturer promises that …
å loves = to be promised (passive)
- Det loves at … = It is promised that …

Norwegian often forms the passive by adding -s to the verb:

man sier → det sies = people say → it is said
man tror → det tros = people believe → it is believed
man lover → det loves = people promise → it is promised

So loves here means “is promised”.

What is the role of det in loves det? Is it referring to something specific?

Here det is a dummy subject (also called an expletive pronoun). It does not refer to any concrete thing.

English uses the same idea:

It is said that the results will come quickly.
It was decided that …

In Norwegian:

Det loves at resultatene kommer raskt.
= It is promised that the results will come quickly.

The real “content” subject is the whole at-clause:

at resultatene kommer raskt = that the results come quickly

But Norwegian syntax likes a subject in the subject position, so det fills that slot, just like dummy it in English.

Why is the word order Etter forelesningen loves det … and not Etter forelesningen det loves …?

This is because of the V2 rule in Norwegian main clauses:
the finite verb must be the second element in the sentence.

Elements:

Etter forelesningen – fronted adverbial (time expression)
loves – finite verb
det – subject
at resultatene kommer raskt – the rest

So:

✅ Etter forelesningen loves det at resultatene kommer raskt.
(After the lecture is-promised it that the results come quickly.)

If you put det second:

❌ Etter forelesningen det loves at … (breaks the V2 rule)

If you start with det, then det is first and the verb is still second:

✅ Det loves at resultatene kommer raskt etter forelesningen.

What does etter forelesningen literally mean, and why is forelesningen definite?

Literally:

etter = after
forelesning = lecture
forelesningen = the lecture (definite singular)

So etter forelesningen = “after the lecture”.

Why definite (forelesningen, not en forelesning)?

Definite (forelesningen) is used when both speaker and listener know which lecture is meant (e.g. today’s lecture, that lecture you just attended).
Indefinite (en forelesning) would mean “a lecture” in general, not a specific one.

So the sentence is about a particular, known lecture.

Why is there no comma after Etter forelesningen in Norwegian?

Norwegian normally does not put a comma between a fronted adverbial and the main clause.

So:

✅ Etter forelesningen loves det at resultatene kommer raskt.
❌ Etter forelesningen, loves det at resultatene kommer raskt. (English style)

You only add a comma if you start a subordinate clause, not just a simple time/place phrase. For example:

Når forelesningen er ferdig, loves det at resultatene kommer raskt.
(When the lecture is finished, it is promised that the results will come quickly.)

Why is it resultatene and not just resultater?

Resultatene is definite plural: “the results”.

et resultat = a result
resultater = results (indefinite plural)
resultatene = the results (definite plural)

In context, the speaker is talking about some specific results that both sides know about (e.g. exam results, test results). So Norwegian uses the definite:

at resultatene kommer raskt
= that the results will come quickly (those particular results everyone has in mind)

Why is the verb kommer (present tense) used for something that will happen in the future?

Norwegian very often uses the present tense to talk about the near or expected future, much more than English does.

So:

Resultatene kommer raskt.
Literally: The results come quickly.
In practice: The results will come soon/quickly.

You can also say:

Det loves at resultatene skal komme raskt.
Det loves at resultatene vil komme raskt.

But in many contexts, the simple present kommer sounds more natural and is perfectly future-like, especially when you have an adverb giving a sense of time or speed (snart, raskt, i morgen, etc.).

Why is it raskt and not rask?

Raskt is the adverb form, while rask is the adjective form.

rask (adjective) describes nouns:
- en rask student = a quick student
- et raskt svar = a quick answer
raskt (adverb) describes verbs/adjectives/whole clauses:
- Resultatene kommer raskt. = The results come quickly.

In kommer raskt, raskt modifies the verb kommer, so you need the adverb form.

What does at do in at resultatene kommer raskt?

At is a subordinating conjunction meaning “that” (the “that” you often omit in English).

Det loves at resultatene kommer raskt.
= It is promised that the results will come quickly.

The whole clause at resultatene kommer raskt functions as the content of what is promised:

Det loves [at-resultatene-kommer-raskt].

Is Etter forelesningen loves det at resultatene kommer raskt the most natural way to say this in Norwegian?

It’s grammatical, but in everyday Norwegian many speakers might prefer a slightly different phrasing, for example:

Etter forelesningen ble det lovet at resultatene skulle komme raskt.
(After the lecture it was promised that the results would come quickly.)

Differences:

ble lovet = was promised (clear past tense)
skulle komme = would come (future-in-the-past, matching ble lovet)

Your original sentence uses present passive (loves) and present (kommer), which can be interpreted as a general statement:

After the lecture, it is (generally) promised that the results come quickly.

So: correct and understandable, but there are more idiomatic past-tense options depending on the context.