Hún saknar fjölskyldunnar sinnar þegar hún ferðast ein.
She misses her family when she travels alone.
Breakdown of Hún saknar fjölskyldunnar sinnar þegar hún ferðast ein.
hún
she
þegar
when
fjölskylda
the family
sinn
her
Questions & Answers about Hún saknar fjölskyldunnar sinnar þegar hún ferðast ein.
Why is fjölskyldunnar sinnar in the genitive case after saknar, and why is there no preposition like of?
In Icelandic, the verb sakna (to miss, to long for) always takes its object in the genitive case, and it does not use a preposition.
- Infinitive: að sakna
- 3rd person singular present: hún saknar
The noun phrase that is missed must be in the genitive:
- Ég sakna fjölskyldu minnar. – I miss my family.
- Hún saknar fjölskyldunnar sinnar. – She misses her family.
So:
- fjölskyldunnar = genitive singular definite of fjölskylda (family)
- sinnar = genitive singular feminine of sinn (her own)
No extra word like of is inserted; the case ending on the noun does the job that a preposition might do in English.
Why is it sinnar and not hennar for her?