Rakari minn segir að litun endist lengur ef ég læt ekki lita hárið of oft.

Rakari minn means my hairdresser or my barber.

In Icelandic, possessive pronouns such as minn often come after the noun:

• rakari = hairdresser / barber
• minn = my

So Icelandic often prefers:

• rakari minn = my hairdresser

rather than putting the possessive before the noun.

Also, minn matches rakari in gender, number, and case:

• rakari is masculine singular nominative
• so the matching form is minn

Here að means that and introduces a subordinate clause:

• Rakari minn segir að ...
• My hairdresser says that ...

English often leaves that out, but Icelandic commonly uses að in this kind of sentence.

Litun is a noun. It means coloring, dyeing, or a dye job.

Later in the sentence, lita is a verb meaning to dye / to color.

So the sentence uses both:

• litun = the coloring/dyeing itself
• lita = to dye

That is why the first part talks about litun lasting longer, while the later part talks about the action of having the hair dyed.

Endist is the 3rd person singular present form of endast, which means to last, to endure, or to hold up.

So:

• litun endist = the coloring lasts

It is singular because the subject litun is singular.

The -st ending is part of the verb itself here. It is not something you should translate word-for-word; just learn endast as the verb meaning to last.

Because lengur means longer, while lengi means for a long time.

Compare:

• endist lengi = lasts a long time
• endist lengur = lasts longer

In this sentence, the idea is comparative: the coloring lasts longer if the speaker does not have their hair dyed too often.

This is a very common Icelandic pattern:

• láta + infinitive

It often means to have something done or to get something done.

So:

• ég læt lita hárið = I have my hair dyed / I get my hair dyed

With negation:

• ég læt ekki lita hárið = I do not have my hair dyed

This does not usually mean that the speaker personally does the dyeing. It means they arrange for someone else to do it.

In this pattern, the person doing the action can be left unstated if it is obvious, unknown, or not important.

So:

• ég læt lita hárið literally means something like I have the hair dyed
• the doer is understood from context, probably the hairdresser

Icelandic does not need to say by someone unless that information matters.

Hárið is the definite form of hár, so it means the hair.

In Icelandic, with body parts and things closely connected to a person, it is very common to use the definite form where English would often use a possessive:

• lita hárið = dye the hair / dye one’s hair

So Icelandic says:

• ég læt lita hárið

where English naturally says:

• I have my hair dyed

Also, hárið is in the accusative here because it is the direct object of lita.

Because Icelandic hár is often used as a singular collective noun for the hair on someone’s head, much like English hair can be.

So:

• hárið here means the hair in the general sense, not just one strand

This is completely normal Icelandic usage.

Of oft means too often.

• oft = often
• of = too, excessively

So:

• ekki ... of oft = not too often

Be careful: this of is not related to English of. It is an adverb meaning too.

Because ekki negates the finite verb læt:

• ég læt ekki lita hárið
• I do not have the hair dyed

The important idea is that the speaker is not having the action done.

So the negation belongs with læt, not with lita by itself.

That would usually mean:

• if I do not dye my hair too often

and can suggest that I myself do the dyeing.

But ef ég læt ekki lita hárið of oft means:

• if I do not have my hair dyed too often

That is more natural here because the speaker is talking about what their hairdresser says, so the idea is that a professional is doing the dyeing.

This part contains subordinate clauses introduced by að and ef.

Basic structure:

• segir að litun endist lengur
• if I do not have my hair dyed too often

In these subordinate clauses, the normal order is:

• subject + finite verb

So:

• litun endist
• ég læt

That is why you see:

• að litun endist lengur
• ef ég læt ekki lita hárið of oft

The main clause is:

• Rakari minn segir ...

So the whole sentence is built from:

1. main clause: Rakari minn segir
2. að-clause: að litun endist lengur
3. ef-clause: ef ég læt ekki lita hárið of oft