Learn Hardcore Icelandic: Dýralæknirinn hjálpar öllum dýrum án endurgjalds. - The veterinarian helps all animals for free.

Dýralæknirinn translates to “the veterinarian.” In Icelandic you form the definite article by adding a suffix to the noun. The base (indefinite) form is Dýralæknir (“veterinarian”), and -inn is the masculine singular nominative definite ending.

Why isn’t there a subject pronoun like hann or hún before hjálpar?

Icelandic verbs are inflected for person and number, so the verb form already tells you who is acting. Hjálpar is 3rd person singular present, so you know hann/hún (“he/she”) is implied. A pronoun can be added for emphasis, but it’s not required.

Why is öllum dýrum in the dative case?

The verb að hjálpa (“to help”) governs the dative case for its object. Whenever you “help someone” in Icelandic, that person (or those beings) must be in dative. Hence allir dýr (nominative) → öllum dýrum (dative plural).

How does allur (“all”) change to öllum here, and why is dýrum plural?

Allur is an adjective that must agree with its noun in gender, number, and case. For neuter nouns like dýr (“animal”), the dative plural form of allur is öllum. The noun dýr itself has the dative plural ending -um, giving dýrum. Together, öllum dýrum = “to all animals.”

What does án endurgjalds mean, and why is endurgjalds in the genitive?

Án endurgjalds literally means “without compensation” (i.e. “free of charge”). The preposition án always takes the genitive case, so you put endurgjald (“compensation/payment”) into its genitive singular form endurgjalds.

Why don’t we see any definite or indefinite article before dýrum or endurgjalds?

Icelandic has no separate indefinite article. Definite meaning is shown by suffixes (like -inn on Dýralæknirinn). With öllum dýrum and án endurgjalds, both are indefinite or qualitatively described, so no additional article appears.

Can the position of án endurgjalds in the sentence change?

Yes. Icelandic word order is fairly flexible for adverbial phrases. You could say:

Án endurgjalds hjálpar dýralæknirinn öllum dýrum. (emphasizes “without payment”)
Dýralæknirinn án endurgjalds hjálpar öllum dýrum. (less common but possible)
The neutral, unmarked order is to put the adverbial at the end.

Is there a more colloquial way to say “without compensation”?

Absolutely. You can replace án endurgjalds with ókeypis or frítt. For example:

Dýralæknirinn hjálpar öllum dýrum ókeypis.
Dýralæknirinn hjálpar öllum dýrum frítt.
Both mean “the veterinarian helps all animals for free.”