Samkvæmt lækninum er hann heilbrigður.

to be

Breakdown of Samkvæmt lækninum er hann heilbrigður.

• hann: he
• læknirinn: the doctor
• heilbrigður: healthy

Questions & Answers about Samkvæmt lækninum er hann heilbrigður.

Why is it lækninum and not læknirinn?

Because samkvæmt takes the dative case, so læknirinn changes form.

• læknirinn = the doctor in the nominative
• lækninum = the doctor in the dative

So after samkvæmt, you say:

• samkvæmt lækninum = according to the doctor

This is something you simply have to learn with the word samkvæmt: it is followed by the dative.

What exactly does samkvæmt do in this sentence?

Samkvæmt means according to or in accordance with.

In this sentence, it introduces the source of the statement:

• Samkvæmt lækninum = According to the doctor

It is very commonly used when reporting information from a person, report, rule, law, or source.

Examples:

• Samkvæmt veðurspánni... = According to the weather forecast...
• Samkvæmt lögunum... = According to the law...

So here, it tells us that the claim comes from the doctor.

Why is the word order Samkvæmt lækninum er hann heilbrigður instead of Samkvæmt lækninum hann er heilbrigður?