What is "nynorsk"

Nynorsk, Neo-Norwegian, New Norse, or New Norwegian is an official written standard for the Norwegian language, alongside Bokmål. The language standard was originally created by Ivar Aasen during the mid-19th century, to provide a Norwegian alternative to the Danish language, which was commonly written in Norway at the time. The official standard of Nynorsk has since been significantly altered. A minor purist fraction of the Nynorsk populace have stayed firm with the Aasen norm, which is known as Høgnorsk (, analogous to High German).

In local communities, 26% (113 of 428) of the Norwegian municipalities have declared Nynorsk as their official language form, and these municipalities account for about 12% of the Norwegian population. Of the remaining 74% of the municipalities, half are neutral and half have adopted Bokmål as their official language form. Four of the 19 counties, Rogaland, Hordaland, Sogn og Fjordane and Møre og Romsdal, have Nynorsk as their official language form. These four together comprise the region of Vestlandet, western Norway.

The Norwegian Language Council recommends the name Norwegian Nynorsk when referring to this standard in English.