Breakdown of Gezien het feit dat de bodem vruchtbaar is, is de landbouw hier belangrijk.
zijn
to be
hier
here
belangrijk
important
dat
that (conjunction)
het feit
the fact
de bodem
the ground / the soil (bottom)
gezien
given / in view of
vruchtbaar
fertile
de landbouw
the agriculture
Questions & Answers about Gezien het feit dat de bodem vruchtbaar is, is de landbouw hier belangrijk.
Why do we need the phrase het feit dat here instead of just saying Gezien de bodem vruchtbaar is?
Gezien functions as a preposition here (meaning "given" or "in view of"). Prepositions in Dutch cannot directly introduce a full clause with a subject and a conjugated verb. To connect the preposition gezien to the clause de bodem vruchtbaar is, you must use het feit dat (the fact that) as a grammatical bridge.
Why are there two is verbs right next to each other at the comma?
This happens because of two intersecting word order rules. The first is sits at the end of the subordinate clause because dat pushes conjugated verbs to the end. The second is starts the main clause because the entire first half of the sentence acts as "position one". To maintain the strict Dutch "verb-second" rule, the main clause verb (is) must come right after the comma, before the subject de landbouw.
Is gezien related to the verb zien (to see)?
Yes, gezien is the past participle of zien. In this context, it has evolved into a preposition meaning "given" or "considering". You can think of gezien het feit dat as literally meaning "seeing the fact that".
Could I just use aangezien or omdat instead of gezien het feit dat?
Yes, structurally and logically you could say Aangezien de bodem vruchtbaar is (Since the soil is fertile) or Omdat de bodem vruchtbaar is (Because the soil is fertile). However, using gezien het feit dat makes the statement sound more formal, objective, and analytical, which is very common in professional, journalistic, or academic Dutch.
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