Ég á hjálm.

I have a helmet.

Breakdown of Ég á hjálm.

• ég: I
• eiga: to have
• hjálmur: the helmet

Questions & Answers about Ég á hjálm.

Why does Icelandic use á here to mean have? Isn’t á the word for on?

In this sentence, á is not the preposition á (on), but the verb á, which is the present tense form of the verb að eiga (to own, to have).

• að eiga = to own / to have (in the sense of owning or possessing)
• Ég á hjálm = I own / I have a helmet.

So á here is a verb meaning own/have, not the preposition on. It’s like English bank (a financial bank vs. a river bank): same spelling, different function and meaning, distinguished by context.

What are the basic forms of the verb að eiga (to have/own)?

Present tense singular:

• Ég á = I have / I own
• Þú átt = You (singular) have
• Hann / hún / það á = He / she / it has

Present tense plural:

• Við eigum = We have
• Þið eigið = You (plural) have
• Þeir / þær / þau eiga = They have

So Ég á is 1st person singular present: I have / I own.

What’s the difference between að eiga and að hafa? Both seem to mean to have.