Questions & Answers about Við viljum fleiri bækur í bókasafninu.
Why is við used here instead of okkur?
Icelandic has case forms for pronouns:
- við = we in the nominative (subject form)
- okkur = us in the accusative/dative (object form)
In this sentence, við is the subject – the ones doing the wanting – so nominative is required:
- Við (subject) viljum fleiri bækur… → We want more books…
You would use okkur when it’s an object, for example:
- Hann sér okkur. – He sees us.
(Here okkur is the direct object.)
How is the verb vilja conjugated, and why is it viljum here?
Vilja means to want. It’s an irregular verb (a “preterite-present” verb), and in the present tense it’s conjugated:
- ég vil – I want
- þú vilt – you (sg.) want
- hann/hún/það vill – he/she/it wants
- við viljum – we want
- þið viljið – you (pl.) want
- þeir/þær/þau vilja – they want
Because the subject is við (we), you must use the 1st person plural form viljum.