Breakdown of Zajednički prostor u kojem radimo jako mi se sviđa.
ja
I
raditi
to work
u
in, into
sviđati se
to like (Sviđa mi se)
Questions & Answers about Zajednički prostor u kojem radimo jako mi se sviđa.
Why is it u kojem and not just koji?
In English, we often put the preposition at the end of the sentence (like the 'in' at the end of 'the space we work in'). In Croatian, the preposition must come right before the relative pronoun koji. Because you work 'in' a space (u prostoru), you need the preposition u followed by the locative case of koji to match the masculine singular noun prostor. This gives us u kojem (in which).
Why are the enclitics mi se placed after jako instead of earlier in the sentence?
Enclitics (like mi and se) usually want to be in the second position of their clause. Here, the main clause is interrupted by the relative clause u kojem radimo. When the main clause resumes with the adverb jako, that word acts as the 'first position' for the rest of the thought, pulling the enclitics mi se right behind it.
Why does the sentence use the dative pronoun mi instead of the nominative ja?
The verb sviđati se means 'to like', but structurally it behaves more like 'to appeal to'. The thing being liked is the grammatical subject (in this case, the zajednički prostor), and the person who likes it is the indirect object in the dative case. Therefore, mi is used to mean 'to me'.
Is zajednički related to the word for 'together'?