Foreldrar þeirra eru hér.

Their parents are here.

Breakdown of Foreldrar þeirra eru hér.

• vera: to be
• hér: here
• foreldri: the parent
• þeirra: their

Questions & Answers about Foreldrar þeirra eru hér.

What does each word in Foreldrar þeirra eru hér correspond to in English?

Word by word, the sentence breaks down like this:

• Foreldrar – parents
  
  • Nominative plural form of foreldri (parent).
• þeirra – their / of them
  
  • Genitive plural of the 3rd‑person pronoun; shows possession.
• eru – are
  
  • 3rd‑person plural of the verb vera (to be).
• hér – here
  
  • Adverb of place.

So the structure is literally: Parents their are here → Their parents are here.

Why is there no separate word for the in Foreldrar þeirra (it feels like it should be “the parents”)?

Icelandic often does not use a definite article when English does, especially when a noun is followed by a genitive (a possessive like þeirra).

• Foreldrar þeirra literally means parents of them, which naturally corresponds to their parents.
• If you wanted the parents on its own, you would typically use the definite ending and say foreldrarnir (the parents).

Because the possession is shown with þeirra, you normally do not also mark the noun as definite. So:

• Foreldrar þeirra → their parents (neutral, normal)
• Foreldrarnir þeirra → those parents of theirs (more specific / emphatic, and also sounds a bit marked or colloquial depending on context)

In most contexts, Foreldrar þeirra is the correct and natural choice.

Why does foreldrar end in -ar, and what gender and number is it?

Foreldrar is:

• Number: plural (more than one parent)
• Case: nominative (subject of the sentence)
• Grammatical gender: masculine plural in form, even though it refers to parents of any gender.

The ending -ar is a common nominative plural ending for masculine nouns in Icelandic. The singular is:

• foreldri – parent (grammatically neuter as a singular, but behaves irregularly as a plural)

The usual pattern you see is:

• Singular: foreldri – one parent
• Plural (nom.): foreldrar – parents

So when you see -ar here, it tells you:

• plural
• nominative (subject position here)

Why is the possessive þeirra placed after foreldrar instead of before, like in English their parents?

Icelandic has two main ways to express possession:

1. Genitive after the noun (more neutral / written style):

   • Foreldrar þeirra – parents of them → their parents
   • Bíll hans – car of him → his car

2. Possessive pronoun before or after the noun (more common in everyday speech with 1st and 2nd person):

   • foreldrar mínir – my parents
   • minn bíll / bíllinn minn – my car / the car of mine

For 3rd person (his / her / their), the genitive after the noun is very normal, especially in written language:

• Foreldrar þeirra – their parents
• Vinir hennar – her friends

So the order noun + þeirra is the standard pattern when using the genitive form of the 3rd‑person pronoun.

What exactly is the difference between þeirra and forms like þeir, þær, þau?

They are different cases (and sometimes different genders) of the 3rd‑person plural pronoun:

• þeir – “they” (nominative plural, masculine or mixed group)
• þær – “they” (nominative plural, feminine)
• þau – “they” (nominative plural, neuter or mixed where neuter chosen)

These three are subject forms: they can be the subject of the verb (They are…).

• þeirra – “their / of them” (genitive plural, same for all 3 genders)

þeirra is not a subject form. It is used to show possession or relationship:

• Þeir eru hér. – They are here.
• Foreldrar þeirra eru hér. – Their parents are here.
  (literally: Parents of them are here.)

So in Foreldrar þeirra eru hér, you cannot replace þeirra with þeir; that would change the grammar and become ungrammatical.

Why is the verb eru used here instead of er?

The verb vera (to be) conjugates according to number and person.

Relevant forms of the present tense:

• ég er – I am
• þú ert – you (sg.) are
• hann / hún / það er – he / she / it is
• við erum – we are
• þið eruð – you (pl.) are
• þeir / þær / þau eru – they are

In Foreldrar þeirra eru hér:

• The subject is Foreldrar þeirra (their parents) → 3rd person plural
• So you must use the 3rd person plural form eru.

Using er would match a singular subject and would be wrong here.

Can I change the word order, for example to Hér eru foreldrar þeirra or Þeirra foreldrar eru hér?

Yes, you can change the word order, but the nuance changes a bit.

1. Foreldrar þeirra eru hér.

   • Neutral, common word order: Subject – Verb – (Place)
   • “Their parents are here.”

2. Hér eru foreldrar þeirra.

   • Starts with the place hér, so it slightly emphasizes the location:
   • “Here are their parents.” (e.g. pointing them out or introducing them)

3. Þeirra foreldrar eru hér.

   • Puts þeirra in front, which adds emphasis on their (as opposed to someone else’s):
   • “Their parents are here.” (maybe in contrast with our parents, your parents, etc.)

All three can be grammatically correct; the first is the most neutral for simply stating the fact.

What is the difference between hér, hérna, and þarna?

All three are location words, but they differ in how close the place is and in tone:

• hér – here (standard, somewhat neutral; can be slightly formal or written-ish)

  • Foreldrar þeirra eru hér. – Their parents are here.

• hérna – here (very common in spoken language, often sounds more colloquial or emphatic than hér)

  • Foreldrar þeirra eru hérna. – Their parents are (right) here.

• þarna – there (a bit away from the speaker, often visible or indicated)

  • Foreldrar þeirra eru þarna. – Their parents are there (over there).

In this sentence, you can swap hér for hérna without changing the basic meaning; it just sounds slightly more conversational.

How do you pronounce Foreldrar þeirra eru hér? I’m especially unsure about r, ð, and þ.

Approximate pronunciation (in simple English-ish terms):

• Foreldrar – roughly FOH-reld-rar

  • Fo- like fo in foreign (but shorter)
  • -reld- like relt but with ð / lð cluster; often the ð is quite soft, almost just smoothing between l and r
  • Final -rar: a rolled or tapped r, twice (one after the d/ð, one at the end)

• þeirra – roughly THEY-rra

  • þ is like th in think (not like this).
  • ei like the English ay in say, so þei- ≈ they.
  • Double r: short tap/trill; -rra similar to r-ra.

• eru – roughly EH-ru

  • e as in get but a bit “cleaner” and tenser.
  • r is tapped or lightly rolled.
  • u is like the u in put (not like cute).

• hér – roughly HYER (one syllable)

  • h pronounced normally.
  • é is like ye in yes, so hjér almost.
  • Final r is tapped/rolled.

Main special points:

• þ – voiceless th sound (like thin).
• ð (in other words, not here explicitly) – voiced th (like this), but in consonant clusters it’s often very soft or almost disappears.
• r – usually tapped or rolled a little, especially between vowels or at the end of syllables.

Is Foreldrar þeirra definite or indefinite? How would I say “the parents” in general?

Foreldrar þeirra is formally indefinite (no definite ending), but the possession makes it specific, so in English it translates as their parents (which feels definite).

For a general “the parents” with no possession:

• foreldrarnir – the parents (definite plural)
  
  • foreldrar – parents (indefinite)
  • foreldrarnir – the parents (indefinite stem + definite plural ending -nir)

Examples:

• Foreldrarnir eru hér. – The parents are here.
• Foreldrar þeirra eru hér. – Their parents are here.

In most cases, when you add a possessive after the noun, you leave the noun without the definite ending (as in foreldrar þeirra).

What is the singular form of foreldrar, and can I say “one parent” in Icelandic?

Yes. The singular is foreldri:

• foreldri – a parent (singular)
• foreldrar – parents (plural, nominative)

Examples:

• Eitt foreldri er hér. – One parent is here.
• Tvö foreldri or more commonly tveir foreldrar – two parents.
  (Usage can be a bit irregular; in practice you mostly see the plural foreldrar.)

In everyday language, you will much more often talk about foreldrar (parents) than use singular foreldri, unless you need to emphasize there is only one parent present or involved.

What’s the difference between þeirra and sinna in sentences with 3rd‑person subjects?

Both can relate to “their”, but they work differently.

• þeirra – “their / of them” (could refer to some other group of people, not necessarily the subject)
• sinna – reflexive possessive, “their own” (refers back to the subject of the sentence)

Compare:

1. Þeir segja að foreldrar þeirra séu hér.

   • They say that their parents are here.
   • Foreldrar þeirra could be someone else’s parents, not necessarily theirs; it’s ambiguous.

2. Þeir segja að foreldrar sinna séu hér.

   • They say that their own parents are here.
   • Foreldrar sinna refers back to þeir: it must be their own parents.

In Foreldrar þeirra eru hér, we don’t see a subject pronoun at all, so there’s no possibility for sinna to refer back. þeirra simply means of them / their in a neutral way.

If I wanted to say “My parents are here” or “Our parents are here”, how would I change the sentence?

You replace þeirra with the appropriate 1st‑person possessive, and agree in number and case.

• Foreldrar mínir eru hér. – My parents are here.

  • mínir – 1st person singular possessive, nominative plural masculine (agreeing with foreldrar).

• Foreldrar okkar eru hér. – Our parents are here.

  • okkar – “our / of us” (genitive of við). Works like þeirra, placed after the noun.

So you can have:

• Foreldrar þeirra eru hér. – Their parents are here.
• Foreldrar okkar eru hér. – Our parents are here.
• Foreldrar mínir eru hér. – My parents are here.