Questions & Answers about Stelpan dansar með frænda sínum og frænku sinni.
Why is it stelpan and not stelpa at the start of the sentence?
Stelpa means a girl (indefinite).
Stelpan means the girl (definite).
Icelandic usually adds the definite article as an ending on the noun, instead of a separate word like the:
- stelpa = girl
- stelpan = the girl
- stelpunni = to/for the girl (dative)
- stelpunnar = of the girl (genitive)
So Stelpan tells us we are talking about a specific girl that both speaker and listener can identify, which is why your sentence starts that way.
What exactly is dansar here – does it mean dances or is dancing?
Dansar is 3rd person singular present tense of að dansa (to dance):
- ég dansa – I dance
- þú dansar – you dance
- hann / hún / það dansar – he / she / it dances
- við dönsum – we dance
- þið dansið – you (pl.) dance
- þeir / þær / þau dansa – they dance
Icelandic normally uses a single present tense for both English dances and is dancing.
So Stelpan dansar can mean either:
- The girl dances (habitually), or
- The girl is dancing (right now),
depending on context. If you really want to emphasize the ongoing action, you can also say Stelpan er að dansa, but it is not required.