Breakdown of Laut der Volkszählung ist das Einkommen gestiegen.
sein
to be
der
who, which, that (relative pronoun; die, das)
steigen
to rise (go up, increase)
laut
according to
Questions & Answers about Laut der Volkszählung ist das Einkommen gestiegen.
Is der Volkszählung in the Dative or Genitive case here?
It could be either! The preposition laut (according to) can be used with either the Dative or the Genitive case. Because Volkszählung is a feminine noun, its article changes to der in both of those cases. Generally, laut with the Dative is more common in everyday speech, while the Genitive is preferred in formal writing.
Why is the verb ist placed before the subject das Einkommen?
This is due to the verb-second (V2) rule in German. The prepositional phrase Laut der Volkszählung takes up the entire first position in the sentence. The conjugated verb ist must take position two, which pushes the subject (das Einkommen) right after it into position three.
Why does the past tense use ist (ist ... gestiegen) instead of hat?
The verb steigen (to rise/climb) describes a change of state. In German, verbs that express a change of state or a change of location form their perfect tense using sein (to be) as the helping verb, rather than haben (to have).
How do you break down the compound noun Volkszählung?