Breakdown of Az alapítványnak van könyvtára.
lenni
to be
könyvtár
the library
az
the
alapítvány
a foundation or charitable organization
Questions & Answers about Az alapítványnak van könyvtára.
Why is alapítvány written as alapítványnak?
Because Hungarian does not usually use a separate verb meaning to have the way English does. Instead, possession is often expressed with this pattern:
possessor + -nak/-nek + van + possessed thing
So alapítványnak means roughly to the foundation.
The whole sentence is literally something like:
To the foundation, there is its library.
That is how Hungarian says The foundation has a library.
What does van mean here?
Van is the 3rd person singular form of lenni (to be), so it literally means is / there is.
In possession sentences, Hungarian uses van where English uses has:
- A fiúnak van kutyája. = The boy has a dog.
- Az alapítványnak van könyvtára. = The foundation has a library.
So here van is the key word that creates the have meaning together with the dative possessor.
Why does könyvtár become könyvtára?