Learn Hardcore Icelandic: Við tölum um ferðalagið í kvöld.

Because we are the ones doing the talking, we need the subject form: við, not okkur.
You would use okkur if something is done to us, e.g. Hann talar við okkur – He talks to us.

What tense is tölum, and how is it formed from að tala?

Tölum is the present tense, 1st person plural form of the verb að tala (to talk / speak).

Present tense of að tala:

ég tala – I talk
þú talar – you talk (singular)
hann/hún/það talar – he/she/it talks
við tölum – we talk
þið talið – you talk (plural)
þeir/þær/þau tala – they talk

The vowel change a → ö in tölum comes from a regular Icelandic sound pattern (u-umlaut) that often appears in the 1st person plural when -um is added.

So:

stem: tala-
ending: -um
vowel shifts: a → ö
→ tölum

If tölum is present tense, why does the sentence mean we will talk about the trip tonight and not just we talk?

In Icelandic, the present tense is often used for the near future, especially when the time is clearly specified.

Við tölum um ferðalagið í kvöld.
Literally: We talk about the trip tonight.
Naturally in English: We will talk about the trip tonight.

The time expression í kvöld (this evening / tonight) makes it clear that it’s a future plan, not a general habit.

You could also form a more explicit future:

Við munum tala um ferðalagið í kvöld. – We will (shall) talk about the trip tonight.
Við ætlum að tala um ferðalagið í kvöld. – We are going to talk about the trip tonight.

But the simple present við tölum is completely normal for future plans when there is a time expression like í kvöld.

What does the preposition um mean here, and which case does it require?

In this sentence, um means about (as in talk about something).

Important points:

Common meanings of um:
- spatial: around / about
- topic: about, concerning
um always takes the accusative case.

Here the object is ferðalagið:

base noun: ferðalag (a trip, a journey)
accusative definite singular: ferðalagið

Because um requires the accusative, ferðalagið must be in the accusative form, not nominative or dative.

Why does ferðalagið have the ending -ið? What does that ending mean?

The ending -ið is the definite article attached to a neuter noun in the singular nominative/accusative.

Base (indefinite): ferðalag – a trip, a journey
Definite: ferðalagið – the trip, the journey

For neuter nouns in the singular:

nominative singular indefinite: - (no ending) → ferðalag
nominative singular definite: -ið → ferðalagið
accusative singular is the same as nominative for neuters, so:
- acc. indef.: ferðalag
- acc. def.: ferðalagið

So ferðalagið means the trip, and it’s both definite and in the accusative (due to um).

What kind of word is ferðalag? Is it a compound, and what do its parts mean?

Yes, ferðalag is a compound noun:

ferð – a trip, journey, travel
lag – literally something like way, manner, course (among many meanings)

Together, ferðalag has the sense of a journey / trip (often the whole trip as a process or experience).

Compare:

ferð – trip, often a bit more general/shorter
ferðalag – trip/journey, often suggesting more of a journey as a whole

In this sentence ferðalagið is the trip / the journey that you already have in mind or have mentioned before.

Why is ferðalagið in the accusative case? It looks the same as nominative for a neuter noun.

Neuter nouns in Icelandic have the same form for nominative and accusative singular, especially in the definite form.

For ferðalag (neuter):

Nominative sg. indef.: ferðalag
Accusative sg. indef.: ferðalag
Nominative sg. def.: ferðalagið
Accusative sg. def.: ferðalagið

So the form ferðalagið can be either nominative or accusative; you know it’s accusative here because:

it is the object of the preposition um, and
um always takes the accusative.

So grammatically it’s accusative, even though visually it looks like the nominative.

What does í kvöld literally mean, and what case is kvöld in?

Í kvöld is a very common time expression meaning this evening / tonight.

Literally:

í – in
kvöld – evening

But as a fixed phrase, í kvöld is understood as later this same day, in the evening / tonight.

Case:

kvöld is a neuter noun, and here it is in the accusative after í.

Why accusative?

The preposition í can take accusative or dative:
- accusative often for time or movement into something
  - í kvöld – this evening / tonight
  - í vetur – this winter
- dative often for location (in/inside)
  - í kvöldinu – in the evening (more literal, less idiomatic here)
  - í húsinu – in the house

So í kvöld is í + accusative used as a time expression.

What is the difference between í kvöld, í kvöldið, and á kvöldin?

They look similar but mean different things:

í kvöld
- Idiomatic time expression
- Meaning: this evening / tonight (a specific upcoming evening, usually today).
- Most natural translation in this sentence.
í kvöldið
- Literally: into the evening / in the evening (specific)
- Grammatically possible but not used in this sense for tonight.
- Sounds odd if you mean tonight; you basically never say this instead of í kvöld.
á kvöldin
- Literally: on the evenings
- Meaning: in the evenings / at night (habitually)
- Used for repeated/habitual action:
  - Við tölum um ferðalagið á kvöldin.
    We talk about the trip in the evenings (as a general habit).

So:

specific tonight: í kvöld
general, habitual in the evenings: á kvöldin

Can I change the word order, e.g. say Í kvöld tölum við um ferðalagið? Is that correct?

Yes, that is correct, and it is natural Icelandic.

Icelandic has a verb-second (V2) rule in main clauses:

The finite verb (here: tölum) usually comes in second position, regardless of what comes first.

Your original sentence:

Við tölum um ferðalagið í kvöld.
1. Við (subject)
2. tölum (finite verb)
3. um ferðalagið í kvöld (rest)

Alternative with time first:

Í kvöld tölum við um ferðalagið.
1. Í kvöld (time adverbial)
2. tölum (finite verb)
3. við (subject)
4. um ferðalagið (rest)

Both are correct; the second version puts more emphasis on í kvöld (the when).

How do you pronounce the tricky sounds in við, tölum, ferðalagið, and kvöld?

Approximate pronunciation (not strict IPA, but close enough to guide an English speaker):

við
- v like English v
- ið roughly like ith in with, but shorter
- ð here is a voiced th (like this).
- Whole word: roughly “vith” (short).
tölum
- tö: ö is like the vowel in British bird or German ö in schön.
- lum: luhm with a short u (between uh and oo).
- Stress on the first syllable: TÖ-lum.
ferðalagið
- Stress on the first syllable: FER-ða-la-yith (very approximate).
- rð: the r is rolled/tapped; the ð is a soft/voiced th.
- gið at the end: g is usually hard (like in go), and ð again like this.
kvöld
- kv: pronounced together, like kv in kvetch (or k+v).
- ö: again like British bird / German ö.
- Final ld cluster, with l clear and d often a bit softened.
- Roughly: “kvöld” with a short, central vowel.

Main things:

stress is always on the first syllable in these words,
ð is usually a voiced th sound (like in this),
ö has no perfect English equivalent but is like bird (without the r).

Could I say Við munum tala um ferðalagið í kvöld instead? How is that different from Við tölum um ferðalagið í kvöld?

Yes, you can say Við munum tala um ferðalagið í kvöld. Both are grammatically correct and natural.

Nuance:

Við tölum um ferðalagið í kvöld.
- Present tense used with a time expression.
- Very common for plans in the near future.
- Neutral, everyday style.
Við munum tala um ferðalagið í kvöld.
- Uses the auxiliary munum (will/shall) + infinitive tala.
- Slightly more explicit or formal about the future.
- In everyday speech, it can feel a bit heavier, but it’s not wrong.

In most casual contexts, Við tölum um ferðalagið í kvöld is perfectly natural for We’ll talk about the trip tonight.