Glossary entry (derived from question below)
Swedish term
papperskvarn
This question may surprise but what it "papperskvarn" in this context (first printed Swedish bible)
I Sverige användes papper först på 1300-talet och Gustav Vasa satte på 1500-talet väldig fart på tryckkonsten med den normbildande svenskspråkiga bibel som bar hans namn och en ***papperskvarn*** i Stockholm.
I've searched for 10 mins but can't find an article about this bible that mentions a "paper mill" nor "paperskvarn" in Swedish
Okay, the printers may have been in Stockholm but is there an image of a paper milll on the bible ???
Thanks
| 5 | paper mill |
JaneD
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| 3 +2 | bureaucracy |
Anders Ericsson
|
Non-PRO (1): Anna Herbst
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Proposed translations
paper mill
References - the Wikipedia article on "Kvarn", and the one that mentions Gustav Vasa erecting a paper mill in Stockholm. I know that Wikipedia isn't necessarily a reliable source, but I think in this case we can trust it!
| Hello Jane Once all the dust has settled and we now all seem to finally agree, yes, one can wonder what all the fuss was about but you can see what caused the confusion for yourself. I actually had the right answer at the start (ignoring the fact that I though it was a logo on the bible ha ha ha) |
Sweden
20 years smoking translations that bite
Native in: Swedish 
Works in: English to Swedish, Swedish to English, Danish to Swedish, and 2 more.
bureaucracy
It is neither a shredder nor a plant for production of paper.
One of the hallmarks of Gustav Vasa (if I am not wrong, history is not my main forte) was that he established an efficient bureaucracy. (Wikipedia: "Hans regering kännetecknas av införandet av ett starkt centralstyre i hela riket med en effektiv byråkrati och en evangelisk statskyrka grundad på Luthers lära." That is not in the English wikipedia mentions that he "was a skilled bureaucrat"
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Note added at 14 mins (2018-08-24 12:16:28 GMT)
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I botched the sentence at the end, it should have been: »That is not in the English wikipedia but it is mentioned there that he "was a skilled bureaucrat".)».
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Note added at 18 mins (2018-08-24 12:20:17 GMT)
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and, I should add, I figure that he gave a boost to the emerging printing industry not only with the bible, but the "papperskvarn" he established had a need of mass production of forms and other documents.
| agree |
Tim Kynerd
: I think you're right about what's being said here. I think it would be more logical for "papperskvarn" to refer to a paper mill or something similar, but I don't think it ever does.
7 mins
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| agree |
Deane Goltermann
: Right, the paper mill in Swe is a 'papparsbruk' so the 'papparskvarn' is a play on words
4 hrs
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| neutral |
Anna Herbst
: I doubt that the modern day metaphor is what is referred to here.
15 hrs
|
Discussion
It's really appreciated
SafeTex
On this point of cultural knowledge, please note that Anders originally thought that "papperskvarn" = bureaucracy in this context (backed by Tim) and was not to be confused with a "pappersbruk". (note the subtle difference here in Swedish)
Now Anders in his latest remark thinks it's indeed a "paper mill" in Stockholm owned by Gustav.
Agneta had already noted both possibilities in her comment and finished her post with "What the author means is anybody's guess, though."
For all these reasons, I don't think your remark "A bit of knowledge of Swedish history is essential here and is easily found on line" is particularly fair.
As I said before, it's a potted history over 1, 000 years and covers a wide range of subjects.
I don't profess to be the best translator in the world nor great at Swedish history but I'm putting in all this effort and time to get two words right for around 0.14 centimes!!!
Yet again, I wish to underline that I do appreciate all the help I'm getting but this text is more than vague at times
Regards
It's a bit funny though, as this is the first time I encountered "X-kvarn" as a producer of X. In swedish X/kvarn so far in all uses I have seen means the "kvarn" grinds X. (e.g. pepparkvarn, köttkvarn, avfallskvarn). So logically a "papperskvarn", in the physical sense, ought to be a paper shredder.
In modern swedish a paper mill is called "pappersbruk".
SAOB gives examples of "papperskvarn" in the meaning of paper mill from 1565 up until 1929. The first example of the modern meaning of bureaucracy is from 1910.
So, when all is said and done, I switch my position to paper mill.
That said, it was a sneaky one.
A bit of knowledge of Swedish history is essential here and is easily found on line:
"Sedan konsten att trycka med lösa typer uppfunnits på 1400-talet ökade papperskonsumtionen snabbt. I Norden började man importera papper först vid mitten av 1300-talet och det skulle dröja över 200 år innan den svenska tillverkningen kunde börja med en s.k. papperskvarn, som Gustav Vasa gett tillstånd att bygga i Norrström i Stockholm och vars verksamhet startade 1560".
From a potted history of paper at https://www.skogen.se/glossary/papper
The translation papper = paper + kvarn = mill
What the author means is anybody's guess, though.
(1) den normbildande svenskspråkiga bibel som bar hans namn
(2) en papperskvarn i Stockholm
I'm inclined to think Anders is correct (below) about "papperskvarn" being a bureaucracy. The usual term for a paper mill in Swedish is "pappersbruk."