Við vonum að það komi framhald af þessu netnámskeiði næsta ár.

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Breakdown of Við vonum að það komi framhald af þessu netnámskeiði næsta ár.

• við: we
• þessi: this
• koma: to come

Questions & Answers about Við vonum að það komi framhald af þessu netnámskeiði næsta ár.

Why is the verb koma in the form komi and not kemur?

Komi is the subjunctive form of koma (3rd person singular, present), while kemur is the indicative form.

In Icelandic, verbs that express:

• hope (vona)
• wish
• fear
• possibility

often take the subjunctive in the clause introduced by að.

So:

• Við vonum að það komi framhald…
  = We hope that a continuation will come… (non‑factual, desired, not certain)

Using kemur would sound more like you are stating a fact (we hope that a continuation comes / is coming), and is less idiomatic in careful, standard Icelandic. In colloquial speech some people might use the indicative, but komi is the “textbook” choice here.

What exactly does að do here? Is it like English that? Can it be left out?

Here að is a subordinating conjunction (often called a complementizer). It introduces the clause that functions as the object of vonum:

• Við vonum [að það komi framhald …]
  = We hope [that there will be a continuation …]

Yes, it corresponds closely to English that in this use.

Unlike English, Icelandic normally does not drop this að. In English you can say:

• We hope (that) there will be a continuation… (and omit that)

In Icelandic, you should keep að:

• Við vonum að það komi framhald… ✔
• *Við vonum það komi framhald… ✘ (ungrammatical in standard Icelandic)