der er ugler i mosen

Danish

Etymology

Literally: "There are owls in the bog/swamp". The expression is a corruption of the Jutish der er uller i mosen, which referred to wolves (ull, see ulv). The expression spread to Copenhagen with Jutlandic bull traders, who used it to describe dubious transactions.

Proverb

der er ugler i mosen

  1. (idiomatic) smelling a rat

Descendants

  • Norwegian Bokmål: det er ugler i mosen
  • → Norwegian Nynorsk: det er ugler i mosen

References

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