Skugginn er langur í kvöldsólinni.

The shadow is long in the evening sun.

Breakdown of Skugginn er langur í kvöldsólinni.

• vera: to be
• í: in
• langur: long
• skugginn: the shadow
• kvöldsólin: the evening sun

Questions & Answers about Skugginn er langur í kvöldsólinni.

Why is Skugginn used instead of skuggi?

In Icelandic the definite article is not a separate word but a suffix. skuggi means “a shadow” (indefinite), while skugginn = skuggi + -inn (definite article for masculine nominative singular) means “the shadow.”

Why does the adjective langur not take a definite ending (e.g. langi) to match Skugginn?

Adjectives in Icelandic agree in gender, number and definiteness when they directly modify a noun (attributive position). But here langur is a predicate adjective (it comes after the verb er). Predicate adjectives remain in the indefinite form even if the noun is definite. Hence Skugginn er langur, not langi.

Why is kvöldsólinni in the dative case?

The preposition í can govern accusative for motion (“into”) or dative for location (“in, at”). In í kvöldsólinni we describe a static setting (“in the evening sun”), so í takes the dative. Thus kvöldsólinni is dative singular.

How is the word kvöldsólinni formed?

1. kvöld = “evening” (neuter noun). Its genitive is kvölds.
2. sól = “sun” (feminine noun). Together they form the compound kvöldsól (“evening sun”).
3. To make it definite and dative, add the feminine dative suffix -inni: kvöldsól + inni → kvöldsólinni.

Why does the compound use kvölds- (genitive) before sól?

In Icelandic compounds, the first element typically appears in the genitive case to show possession or specification. So “evening’s sun” becomes kvöldsól, rather than two separate words kvöld sól.

What is the gender and number of kvöldsólinni, and how can I tell?

kvöldsólinni is feminine (because sól is feminine), singular, definite, and in the dative case. The markers are:
• the article suffix -inni (feminine dative singular definite)
• the lack of a plural ending confirms it’s singular.

Could I change the word order to put the prepositional phrase first?

Yes. Icelandic uses a V2 (verb-second) rule. If you front í kvöldsólinni, the verb er must stay in second position:
“Í kvöldsólinni er skugginn langur.”
This still means “In the evening sun, the shadow is long,” with the verb immediately after the fronted phrase.