mellan hägg och syren

Swedish

Etymology

Literally, "between bird cherry and lilac". The two plants bloom in early summer, typically with a brief interval between them. One explanation of the origin of the phrase is that shoemakers would put up signs saying that they were closed between the two.

Adverb

mellan hägg och syren (not comparable)

1. (idiomatic) for a brief time in early summer

References

• “Mellan hägg och syren”, in isof.se‎^[1], Swedish Institute for Language and Folklore, 2020 November 10