Hun er omgitt av familien.

She is surrounded by her family.

Breakdown of Hun er omgitt av familien.

• være: to be
• hun: she
• familien: the family
• av: by

Questions & Answers about Hun er omgitt av familien.

Why is it hun and not henne?

Because hun is the subject form, meaning she.

In this sentence, hun is the person the sentence is about, so Norwegian uses hun:

• Hun er omgitt av familien. = She is surrounded by the family.

Henne is the object form, meaning her:

• Familien omgir henne. = The family surrounds her.

So the two sentences express a similar idea, but the grammar is different.

What exactly is omgitt?

Omgitt is the past participle of the verb å omgi, which means to surround.

In this sentence, it works like an adjective after er:

• er omgitt = is surrounded

So it is not a separate basic dictionary word you would usually learn first; it comes from the verb å omgi.

Why does Norwegian say er omgitt instead of using omgir?

Because omgir would make she the one doing the surrounding.

Compare:

• Hun er omgitt av familien.
  She is surrounded by the family.

• Hun omgir familien.
  She surrounds the family.

So er omgitt is used when she is receiving the action/state, not performing it.