Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Icelandic grammar and vocabulary.
Questions & Answers about Árið er langt.
What is the function of -ið in árið?
-ið is the definite-article suffix used on neuter singular nouns. ár means “a year,” and árið means “the year.”
Why don’t we see a separate word for the before árið?
In Icelandic, definiteness is marked by a suffix on the noun rather than by a separate word. That suffix (here -ið) tells you it’s definite.
What gender and case is árið in this sentence?
It’s neuter gender, nominative case, singular. It’s nominative because it’s the subject of the verb er, and the suffix -ið makes it both neuter and definite.
What is er and why is it used here?
er is the 3rd-person singular present of vera (“to be”). It functions like English “is,” linking the subject árið with the adjective langt.
Why does langur become langt in Árið er langt?
Adjectives in predicate position (after vera) use the strong declension and must agree with the subject’s gender, number, and case. Since árið is neuter singular nominative, the correct form is the strong neuter nominative langt.
Why isn’t the weak form of the adjective used here, even though árið is definite?
Predicate adjectives always take the strong inflection, regardless of definiteness. Weak forms only occur when an adjective directly modifies (attributes to) a definite noun.
How would you say the long year if you wanted the adjective attributively (before the noun)?
You’d say langa árið. Here árið remains the definite noun, and langur takes the weak neuter nominative singular ending -a, becoming langa, because it’s an attributive adjective on a definite noun.
How do you pronounce Árið er langt?
Roughly OW-rith er LAWNGKT. In IPA: /ˈauːrɪð ɛr lauŋkt/. The Á sounds like “ow” in “cow,” and ð is like the th in “this.”
What’s the difference between langt and lengi in Icelandic?
langt is an adjective meaning “long,” agreeing with a noun (Árið er langt “The year is long”). lengi is an adverb meaning “for a long time” (e.g. Ég beið lengi “I waited for a long time”).