Tölvan og kennslubókin eru á skrifborðinu.

The computer and the textbook are on the desk.

Breakdown of Tölvan og kennslubókin eru á skrifborðinu.

• vera: to be
• á: on
• og: and
• tölvan: the computer

Questions & Answers about Tölvan og kennslubókin eru á skrifborðinu.

Why are the nouns tölvan and kennslubókin ending in -n / -in instead of just tölva and kennslubók?

The endings -n and -in mark the definite form, like English “the”.

• tölva = a computer
  tölvan = the computer (feminine, weak declension → -an)

• kennslubók = a textbook
  kennslubókin = the textbook (feminine, strong declension → -in)

Icelandic usually attaches “the” to the end of the noun instead of using a separate word. So tölvan og kennslubókin literally means “computer-the and textbook-the” → the computer and the textbook.

Why is the verb eru used and not er?

eru is the 3rd person plural form of vera (to be).
Even though each noun is singular (tölvan = the computer, kennslubókin = the textbook), together they form a plural subject:

• tölvan → it is = hún er
• kennslubókin → it is = hún er
• tölvan og kennslubókin → they are = (and the verb form is just )