Mér líkar íslenskan.

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Breakdown of Mér líkar íslenskan.

• líka: to like
• íslenskan: the Icelandic

Questions & Answers about Mér líkar íslenskan.

Why is it Mér líkar and not Ég líkar?

Because the verb líka works differently from English “to like.”

• In English, the person who likes something is the subject: I like Icelandic.
• In Icelandic with líka, the thing you like is the subject, and the person is in the dative case.

So the literal structure is more like:

• Mér líkar íslenskan. = “Icelandic pleases me.”
  
  • mér = to me (dative of ég)
  • íslenskan = the subject (Icelandic)

Ég líkar is ungrammatical in modern Icelandic.

Is mér the subject of the sentence?

No. Mér is not the grammatical subject here.

• Mér is the dative experiencer (roughly “to me”).
• Íslenskan is the grammatical subject (nominative case, 3rd person singular).
• The verb líkar agrees with íslenskan, not with mér.

So structurally it’s like:

• Íslenskan líkar mér. = “Icelandic pleases me.”
  (This word order is also possible in Icelandic.)

What does líkar literally mean?