I affären but på banken – Swedish places and their prepositions

Swedish prepositions are small words with strong opinions. Especially i and på.

You can live i Göteborg (“in Gothenburg”), but go on holiday på Gotland (“on Gotland”). You can shop i affären (“in the shop”), but work på banken (“at the bank”). You can walk i parken (“in the park”), but meet someone på torget (“in/at the square”). And sometimes both i and på are possible, as in i skolan and på skolan, but they do not mean quite the same thing.

So how can you make sense of them?

First, there are patterns. Then there is tradition. And then there is Swedish itself standing next to you saying: “Yes, but here we actually say it like this.”

Let’s sort it out with a few everyday examples.

I – when something surrounds you

I is often used when we think of something as an area, a place or a room that you are inside.

Examples:

Jag bor i Sverige. (“I live in Sweden.”)

Hon studerar i Uppsala. (“She studies in Uppsala.”)

Man sitter i klassrummet. (“You sit in the classroom.” / “People sit in the classroom.”)

Mjölken står i kylen. (“The milk is in the fridge.”)

Here, the place feels like something you are inside. It can be a country, a city, a room, a building or a clearly defined area.

Say:

• i Sverige (“in Sweden”)

• i Malmö (“in Malmö”)

• i skogen (“in the forest”)

• i parken (“in the park”)

• i affären (“in the shop”)

• i klassrummet (“in the classroom”)

• i köket (“in the kitchen”)

A useful way to think about it is this: are there walls, boundaries or a clear sense of “inside”? Then i is often a good candidate.

But of course, it is not always that simple. Prepositions have patterns, but they also have their little quirks.

På – when the place is a surface, meeting place or social setting

På is often used when we think of a place as a surface, a meeting place, a workplace or somewhere where something happens.

Examples:

Boken ligger på bordet. (“The book is on the table.”)

Det är marknad på torget. (“There is a market in the square.”)

Hon jobbar på banken. (“She works at the bank.”)

Jag är på jobbet. (“I’m at work.”)

Det står en bil på gatan. (“There is a car in/on the street.”)

This is not only about being physically on top of something. På can also signal that the place has a function: a workplace, an institution, a meeting place or an activity.

Say:

• på torget (“in/at the square”)

• på stan (“out in town”)

• på jobbet (“at work”)

• på banken (“at the bank”)

• på posten (“at the post office”)

• på apoteket (“at the pharmacy” / “at the chemist’s”)

• på kontoret (“at the office”)

• på gatan (“in/on the street”)

På stan means that you are out and about in town, often in the centre. You might be shopping, having a coffee, running errands or walking around pretending to be productive.

Jag är på stan means roughly: “I’m out in town somewhere.” It is not one exact location, but more the general city-life zone.

You can also say i stan, but then the focus is more on the actual place or area:

Jag bor i stan. (“I live in town / in the city centre.”)

You live in the town or city centre.

Jag är på stan. (“I’m out in town.”)

You are out in the city, perhaps shopping, having coffee or running errands.

Geographical places: i Sverige, på Gotland

For geographical places, there are a few common patterns.

Countries, cities and larger regions often use i:

• i Sverige (“in Sweden”)

• i Norge (“in Norway”)

• i Göteborg (“in Gothenburg”)

• i Skåne (“in Skåne”)

• i Norrland (“in Norrland”)

Islands often use på:

• på Gotland (“on Gotland”)

• på Öland (“on Öland”)

• på Grönland (“in/on Greenland”)

• på Mallorca (“in/on Mallorca”)

You can think of the island as a surface or a place on the map. You are på ön (“on the island”).

But there is variation. When an island is also a country, both forms can occur. You often hear på Island (“in/on Iceland”), but i Island also occurs.

With city districts and areas, it varies too:

• på Södermalm (“in/on Södermalm”)

• i Vasastan (“in Vasastan”)

• på Östermalm (“in/on Östermalm”)

• i Gamla stan (“in the Old Town”)

Here, logic does not always take you all the way. Sometimes the expression has simply settled that way. Swedish has chosen a chair, made itself comfortable, and refuses to move.

Activities: på konsert, på bio, på restaurang

When talking about activities and events, Swedish often uses på.

Examples:

Jag ska gå på konsert. (“I’m going to a concert.”)

Vi var på bio igår. (“We went to the cinema yesterday.”)

Hon är på fest. (“She is at a party.”)

De gick på teater. (“They went to the theatre.”)

Vi åt på restaurang. (“We ate at a restaurant.” / “We went out for a meal.”)

Here på shows that you are taking part in something, or doing something connected to the place.

På konsert means you are listening to live music. (“at a concert”)

På bio means you are watching a film at the cinema. (“at the cinema”)

På restaurang means you are eating out. (“at a restaurant” / “out for a meal”)

På fest means you are at a social event. (“at a party”)

På kurs means you are taking part in a course. (“on a course”)

The difference becomes clear if you compare i restaurangen and på restaurang:

Jag är i restaurangen means that you are talking about the actual premises. The person is inside the restaurant.

Jag är på restaurang focuses more on the activity. The person is out eating.

Same place, different perspective: i restaurangen is more about where someone is, while på restaurang is more about what they are doing there.

Places and workplaces: i affären, på banken

Some places often take i, others often take på, and sometimes it depends on how Swedish thinks about the place.

I affären is common because the shop is a physical place you go into:

• Jag är i affären. (“I’m in the shop.”)

• Hon jobbar i en liten butik. (“She works in a small shop.”)

But many institutions and workplaces take på:

• på banken (“at the bank”)

• på posten (“at the post office”)

• på apoteket (“at the pharmacy” / “at the chemist’s”)

• på kontoret (“at the office”)

• på sjukhuset (“at the hospital”)

Examples:

Jag är på banken nu. (“I’m at the bank now.”)

Hon jobbar på apoteket. (“She works at the pharmacy.” / “She works at the chemist’s.”)

Vi ses på kontoret. (“See you at the office.”)

Here, the place functions as a workplace or institution, not just as a room with walls.

I skolan or på skolan?

Sometimes both i and på work, but the focus changes. One common example is i skolan and på skolan.

I skolan is often about life as a pupil, teaching or school in a general sense.

Barnen är i skolan. (“The children are at school.”)

They have lessons.

Jag lärde mig franska i skolan. (“I learnt French at school.”)

During my school years.

Hur går det i skolan? (“How is school going?”)

How are the studies going?

På skolan is more often about the actual place, building, workplace or institution.

Det finns en ny rektor på skolan. (“There is a new head teacher at the school.”)

At that school as an institution.

Hon jobbar på skolan. (“She works at the school.”)

She works there.

Det går många elever på skolan. (“Many pupils attend the school.”)

At that specific school.

So the difference is roughly:

• i skolan = as a pupil, in education or school life

• på skolan = at the place, workplace or institution

Compare:

Min son är i skolan idag. (“My son is at school today.”)

He has lessons.

Min son är på skolan. (“My son is at the school.”)

He is on the school premises or in the school building. It sounds more focused on the place.

And:

Jag jobbar på en skola. (“I work at a school.”)

It is my workplace.

Han jobbar på Sommarboskolan. (“He works at Sommarboskolan.”)

It is his workplace.

The preposition often shows how Swedish views the place: as a room, an area, an institution, a surface or an activity. Very practical. A bit as if every place had its own entrance and its own preposition policy.

Quick guide to i and på

Use i with:

• countries: i Sverige, i Brasilien

• cities: i Lund, i London

• rooms and premises: i köket, i klassrummet, i affären

• areas: i skogen, i parken, i centrum

Use på with:

• islands: på Gotland, på Öland

• surfaces and places: på torget, på stranden, på gatan

• institutions and workplaces: på banken, på kontoret, på posten, på apoteket

• activities and events: på bio, på konsert, på restaurang, på kurs

• city life: på stan

But remember: there are fixed expressions. Sometimes you have to listen, read and collect examples. After a while, i and på begin to feel less like guesses and more like old acquaintances.