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Ég vil treysta á fjölskyldu mína.

Ég vil treysta á fjölskyldu mína.
I want to rely on my family.

Breakdown of Ég vil treysta á fjölskyldu mína.

ég
I
vilja
to want
minn
my
fjölskyldan
the family
treysta á
to rely on
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Questions & Answers about Ég vil treysta á fjölskyldu mína.

Why is it Ég vil and not Mig vil?

Because vilja (“to want”) is a normal verb that takes a nominative subject.

  • Ég = “I” in the nominative case (subject form)
  • Mig = “me” in the accusative case (object form)

Normal verbs (like vilja, “to eat” borða, etc.) use ég as the subject:

  • Ég vil. – I want.
  • Ég borða. – I eat.

Some “impersonal” verbs use an object form instead, e.g.:

  • Mig langar. – I want / I feel like … (literally “it longs me”)

So with vilja you must say Ég vil, never Mig vil.

What exactly does vil do here, and why is treysta in this form?

Vil is the 1st person singular present of vilja (to want). It behaves like an English modal verb (“want to” in this case) and is followed by an infinitive:

  • Ég vil treysta … – I want to trust / rely …

The verb treysta is in the bare infinitive form. After vilja you:

  • Do not conjugate the second verb:
    • ✔ Ég vil treysta.
    • ✘ Ég vil treysti.
  • Do not use að before the infinitive:
    • ✔ Ég vil treysta.
    • ✘ Ég vil að treysta.

So vil + infinitive = “want to do X”.

Why is it treysta á and not just treysta?

Icelandic distinguishes two patterns:

  1. treysta + dative – “to trust (someone/something)” in the sense of having confidence in them

    • Ég treysti fjölskyldunni minni. – I trust my family.

  2. treysta á + accusative – “to rely on / count on (someone/something)”

    • Ég vil treysta á fjölskyldu mína. – I want to rely on my family.

So treysta á is a fixed combination (verb + preposition) that specifically carries the “rely on / depend on” meaning, which is what your sentence expresses.

What is the function of á in this sentence, and why does it take fjölskyldu?

Á is a preposition that often corresponds to English “on”. It can take either dative or accusative and the case changes the meaning:

  • á + dative – “on” in a static/location sense
    • Bókin er á borðinu. – The book is on the table.
  • á + accusative – “onto” (movement), or various abstract meanings like “on / onto / relying on”
    • Ég treysti á fjölskyldu mína. – I rely on my family.

In treysta á eitthvað, á governs the accusative, so fjölskylda (nom.) must appear as fjölskyldu (acc.).

Why is it fjölskyldu and not fjölskylda?

Because fjölskylda (“family”) is being used as the object of the preposition á, and in this construction á requires the accusative case.

Declension of fjölskylda (feminine):

  • Nominative: fjölskylda – subject
  • Accusative: fjölskyldu – direct object / after certain prepositions
  • Dative: fjölskyldu
  • Genitive: fjölskyldu

So:

  • Fjölskylda mín – my family (as subject, nominative)
  • á fjölskyldu mína – on my family (object of á, accusative)

That’s why the sentence has fjölskyldu.

Why is it míNA and not mín?

The possessive adjective minn (“my”) has to agree in gender, number and case with the noun it describes.

Here the noun phrase is:

  • fjölskyldu mína
    • fjölskyldu – feminine, singular, accusative
    • So minn must also be feminine, singular, accusative: mí­na

Some key forms of minn:

  • Masc. nom. sg.: minn
  • Fem. nom. sg.: mín
  • Neut. nom. sg.: mitt
  • Fem. acc. sg.: mí­na

So:

  • Fjölskylda mín – nominative (subject)
  • Ég treysti á fjölskyldu mína. – accusative (object of á)

The change from mín to mí­na is case agreement.

Why does mín/mína come after fjölskylda / fjölskyldu instead of before, like in English?

In Icelandic, the normal position of possessive adjectives is after the noun:

  • fjölskylda mín – my family
  • bíll minn – my car

Putting the possessive before the noun is possible but is more marked and often emphatic:

  • mín fjölskylda – my (own) family / emphasis on “my”
  • minn bíll – my car (as opposed to someone else’s)

So fjölskyldu mína is the neutral, standard order: noun first, possessive after.

Should it really be fjölskyldu mína, or more naturally fjölskylduna mína with the definite ending?

Both are grammatically correct, but there is a nuance:

  • fjölskyldu mína – without the definite article
  • fjölskylduna mína – with the definite ending -na

In practice:

  • With close, specific relationships (family, parents, etc.), Icelanders very often use the definite form:
    • Ég vil treysta á fjölskylduna mína.
  • Leaving off the definite ending (fjölskyldu mína) is still correct and can sound a bit more stylised, literary, or slightly more emphatic/contrastive (depending on context).

For everyday speech, fjölskylduna mína is very common, but your textbook sentence fjölskyldu mína is fine.

Could I say Ég vil treysta fjölskyldunni minni without á, and what would be the difference?

Yes, you can, and there is a small meaning difference:

  1. Ég vil treysta fjölskyldunni minni.

    • treysta + dative = to trust (have confidence in)
    • Here fjölskyldunni minni is in the dative.
    • Meaning: I want to trust my family.

  2. Ég vil treysta á fjölskyldu mína.

    • treysta á + accusative = to rely on / depend on
    • Meaning: I want to be able to rely on my family / count on my family.

In many real contexts the two can overlap, but:

  • treysta (dative) focuses on inner trust, confidence.
  • treysta á (accusative) focuses on practical reliance, depending on their help/support.
How would I negate this sentence? Where does ekki go?

Negation with a modal verb like vil goes after the modal and before the infinitive:

  • Ég vil ekki treysta á fjölskyldu mína.
    – I do not want to rely on my family.

Structure:

  • Subject: Ég
  • Modal verb: vil
  • Negation: ekki
  • Infinitive + rest: treysta á fjölskyldu mína

So you do not say:

  • ✘ Ég ekki vil treysta á …
  • ✘ Ég vil treysta ekki á …
What’s the difference between vilja and langar for “want”?

Both can translate as “want”, but they behave differently:

  1. vilja (with nominative subject)

    • Ég vil treysta á fjölskyldu mína.
    • Literal: I want to rely on my family.
    • Emphasises will, decision, intention.

  2. langar (impersonal verb with object case)

    • Mig langar að treysta á fjölskyldu mína.
    • Literal: It longs me to rely on my family.
    • More like “I feel like / I have the desire to”.

So both can be correct, but:

  • Ég vil … = stronger, more determined wish or choice.
  • Mig langar … = more about desire/feeling.
Is vil the same word as the dictionary form vilja?

Yes. Vil is simply the 1st person singular present form of the verb vilja:

  • Infinitive: vilja – to want
  • Ég vil – I want
  • Þú vilt – you want
  • Hann/hún vill – he/she wants
  • Við viljum – we want
  • Þið viljið – you (pl.) want
  • Þeir/þær/þau vilja – they want

So the dictionary lists vilja, but in a sentence with “I” you conjugate it to vil: Ég vil …

How do I pronounce Ég vil treysta á fjölskyldu mína roughly in English terms?

Very roughly (leaving out fine details):

  • Ég – like yeh with a slight “g/h” sound at the end: yeh-gh
  • vil – like vill (short i, as in fill)
  • treysta – tray-sta (the ey is like English ay in day)
  • á – like a long ow in cow, but single vowel
  • fjölskyldu – approximately fyuhl-skil-du
    • fjö- has a fyuh sound (like “fyuh”)
  • mí­na – mee-na (stress on mí)

Main stress is on the first syllable of each word: ÉG vil TREY-sta Á FJÖL-skil-du MÍ-na.