Compound Prepositions of Relation
When discussing complex topics like climate change, Swedish uses compound prepositions—multi-word phrases that function as a single preposition—to express relationships clearly.
Med hänsyn till (With regard to / Considering)
Med hänsyn till means "with regard to" or "considering" (from en hänsyn, meaning consideration). Use it when a fact or situation must be taken into account.
| Considering the extreme temperature, we should stay indoors. | Med hänsyn till den extrema temperaturen borde vi stanna inomhus. |
| We ought to reduce the emissions with regard to the environment. | Vi borde minska utsläppen med hänsyn till miljön. |
I förhållande till (In relation to / Compared to)
I förhållande till translates directly as "in relation to" or "compared to" (from ett förhållande, meaning relationship or proportion). It is perfect for comparing two things or measuring against a baseline.
| The temperature is high in relation to what is normal. | Temperaturen är hög i förhållande till vad som är normalt. |
| The drought is extreme in relation to a normal summer. | Torkan är extrem i förhållande till en normal sommar. |
Discussing Climate Change
These prepositions are especially useful for environmental discussions, where you often need to relate extreme events to normal baselines.
| The small island is exposed in relation to the sea level. | Den lilla ön är utsatt i förhållande till havsnivån. |
| With regard to the global climate change, the glacier will melt. | Med hänsyn till den globala klimatförändringen kommer glaciären att smälta. |
Whether you place the prepositional phrase at the beginning of the sentence to set the context or at the end to add a condition, the internal structure of the phrase remains exactly the same.