Learn Hardcore Icelandic: Augun hans eru græn og falleg.

The basic noun is auga (eye), plural augu (eyes). When you add the definite ending -n to the plural, you get augun, which means “the eyes.”
In Icelandic, when you say “his eyes,” you normally mark the noun as definite and then add the possessive after it: augun hans = literally “the eyes his.” So Augun hans corresponds to “his eyes.”

Why does hans come after Augun, instead of before like in English?

In Icelandic, third‑person possessive pronouns (hans = his, hennar = her, þeirra = their) usually follow the noun: húsið hans (his house), bókin hennar (her book), augun hans (his eyes).
This is the neutral, most common pattern. Possessives that come before the noun are typically minn, þinn, sinn (my, your, one’s own), e.g. mín augu (my eyes), and they usually add a bit more emphasis.

Could I say hans augun instead of augun hans?

No, hans augun is not normal Icelandic. With hans/hennar/þeirra, the possessive comes after the noun: augun hans.
If you want a possessive before the noun, you would use minn/þinn/sinn and their forms, not hans.

What exactly does hans mean here?

Hans is the genitive (possessive) form of the third‑person singular masculine pronoun: it means “his.”
It does not change for number or gender of the thing possessed; hans is always “his,” whether it’s augun hans (his eyes), bíllinn hans (his car), or húsið hans (his house).

What form is Augun hans in – which case and number?

Augun is nominative plural neuter, definite.
It’s the subject of the sentence, so it stands in the nominative case: Augun hans (His eyes) eru … (are …).
Singular nominative would be augað (the eye), plural nominative augun (the eyes).

Why is the verb eru and not er?

Eru is the 3rd person plural present of vera (to be).
The present forms are:

ég er – I am
þú ert – you are (singular)
hann/hún/það er – he/she/it is
við erum – we are
þið eruð – you are (plural)
þeir/þær/þau eru – they are

Since Augun hans is plural (“eyes”), you must use the plural form eru.

Why are the adjectives græn and falleg, and not grænn or fallegur?

Adjectives in Icelandic agree with the noun in gender, number, and case.

Augun is neuter plural nominative, so the adjectives must also be neuter plural nominative.
For grænn (green), neuter plural nominative is græn.
For fallegur (beautiful), neuter plural nominative is falleg.

So you get Augun hans eru græn og falleg.
Grænn and fallegur are masculine singular forms and would not agree here.

Why don’t the adjectives end in -u, like grænu or fallegu?

Adjectives have two main patterns: strong and weak.

Attributive adjectives (directly in front of a noun: “the green eyes”) often use the weak pattern with -u when the noun is definite:
- hin grænu og fallegu augun – the green and beautiful eyes.
Predicative adjectives (after vera “to be,” as in this sentence) normally use the strong pattern, even if the noun is definite:
- Augun hans eru græn og falleg. – His eyes are green and beautiful.

So here, because the adjectives are after eru and describe the subject, they are in the strong form græn, falleg, not grænu, fallegu.

Is græn here singular or plural?

Here græn is neuter plural nominative.
The same form græn can also be feminine singular nominative in other contexts, but in this sentence the agreement with augun (neuter plural) tells you it is neuter plural.

Could I say Augun hans eru græn, falleg augun or something similar?

No. You either:

Use predicative adjectives after vera, without repeating the noun:
- Augun hans eru græn og falleg.
Or use attributive adjectives before the noun:
- Hann er með græn og falleg augu. – He has green and beautiful eyes.

Mixing them, or repeating augun at the end, is ungrammatical.

What does og mean, and does it affect word order?

Og simply means “and.”
It just links the two adjectives græn and falleg; it does not change the word order:
Augun hans eru græn og falleg. = His eyes are green and beautiful.

How do you pronounce Augun hans eru græn og falleg?

Approximate pronunciation (IPA and simple English-style hints):

Augun – /ˈœiːɣʏn/
- au ≈ a bit like the vowel in British “bird” plus a short ee: [œi]
- g between vowels becomes a soft fricative /ɣ/, not a hard [g].
hans – /has/ (roughly “hahs”)
eru – /ˈɛːrʏ/ (EH-ru, with a long e like in “bed” but longer)
græn – /kraiːn/
- gr is like “gr” in “green”;
- æ is like “eye”;
- final n pronounced clearly.
og – usually /ɔːɣ/ or very reduced, often sounding like a short “ohg” or just a vowel plus a soft /ɣ/.
falleg – /ˈfahtlɛɣ/ (roughly FAHT-legh)
- ll here is pronounced as a combination [t͡l];
- final g is a soft /ɣ/, not an English hard g.

Main stress is on the first syllable of each word: Áu-gun, hans, É-ru, GRÆN, og, FAL-leg.