Breakdown of Við spurðum um verðið á kökunni.
Questions & Answers about Við spurðum um verðið á kökunni.
spurðum is the past-tense (preterite) 1st-person plural of the verb spyrja (“to ask”). Formation:
- Root: spyrj-
- Vowel change for past: y → u
- 1pl ending: ‑ðum
Together: spurðum = “we asked.”
In Icelandic, definiteness is marked by a suffix on the noun:
- verð = “price” (indefinite)
- verðið = “the price” (definite)
Because verð is a neuter noun, its definite singular ending is -ið.
They serve different roles:
- um
- accusative = “about” → um verðið (“about the price”)
- á
- dative = “on/at” in a locative or descriptive sense → á kökunni (“on the cake,” idiomatically “of the cake”)
So um verðið á kökunni = “about the price of the cake.”
- dative = “on/at” in a locative or descriptive sense → á kökunni (“on the cake,” idiomatically “of the cake”)
The preposition á here indicates a static relationship (“on the cake”), which selects the dative.
Kaka is a feminine noun. Its dative definite singular is formed by adding -nni to the stem:
- Stem of kaka in oblique cases: köku-
- Dative definite: kökunni = “(on) the cake.”
Yes. You can say verð kökunnar, where kökunnar is the genitive definite of kaka. Both mean “price of the cake,” but
- verð kökunnar (noun + genitive)
- verðið á kökunni (definite noun + á
- dative)
The á + dative construction is very common with prices and measurements.
- dative)
Yes. Icelandic verbs encode person and number, so you can omit the subject pronoun if context is clear:
- (Við) spurðum um verðið á kökunni.
Including við just adds emphasis or clarity.
Not quite. If you want a genitive construction with um, you’d say um verð kökunnar (“about the price of the cake”).
um kökunnar verð is unidiomatic because in Icelandic the head noun of a prepositional object normally comes immediately after the preposition.
Basic word order is Subject–Verb–Object/Prepositional Object:
- Við (subject)
- spurðum (verb)
- um verðið á kökunni (prepositional phrase = object)
Icelandic allows some flexibility, but moving um or splitting verðið á kökunni would sound awkward or change emphasis.