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Icelandic

In this lesson, we cover vocabulary for politics, elections, and government. To discuss things belonging to specific groups—like "the power of *the* citizens"—we need the definite genitive plural.

### The Definite Genitive Plural: -anna

In Icelandic, expressing possession uses the genitive case. When the possessing group is a specific, known plural noun (like "the citizens" instead of just "citizens"), we use the definite genitive plural.

This is one of the most uniform endings in the language. To form it, take the indefinite genitive plural ending (**-a**) and add the definite plural suffix (**-nna**) to get **-anna**. This applies across almost all nouns in all three genders.

| Definite Singular | Definite Genitive Plural | Example |
|---|---|---|
| *borgarinn* (the citizen) | **borgaranna** | *vald borgaranna* (power of the citizens) |
| *kosningin* (the election) | **kosninganna** | *niðurstaða kosninganna* (result of the elections) |
| *atkvæðið* (the vote) | **atkvæðanna** | *niðurstaða atkvæðanna* (result of the votes) |

The possessed noun usually comes first, immediately followed by the possessor in the **-anna** form.

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Notice how the **-anna** ending clearly defines exactly whose rights (*réttindi*) or whose party (*flokkur*) is being discussed.

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Definite genitive plural (-anna)

adjective

adverb

conjunction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

particle

phrase

prep

preposition

pronoun

sentence

verb

Presentative and the definite suffix (þetta er, -inn, -in, -ið)

Singular pronouns and to be (ég er, þú ert)

Singular adjective agreement

Yes/no questions (ert þú…?)

Basic negation (ekki)

Plural pronouns and to be (við erum, þeir eru)

Group 1 weak verbs (-ar)

Group 2 and 3 verbs (-ir, -ur)

Information questions (hvað, hver, hvar)

Expressing opinions (mér finnst, mér líkar)

Expressing desires (mig langar)

Numbers 1 to 10 (einn, tveir, þrír)

Direct objects on indefinite nouns

Direct objects on definite nouns

Singular object pronouns (mig, þig...)

Plural object pronouns (okkur, ykkur...)

Directional prepositions (um, í, á)

Verb-second word order

Expressing intentions (ætla að)

Needs and wants (þurfa, vilja)

Middle voice verbs (-st)

Possessive pronouns (minn, þinn)

Dative case with prepositions (í, á, frá)

Definite dative nouns (-num, -nni, -nu)

Dative personal pronouns (honum, henni, þeim)

Plural nouns (-ar, -ir, -ur)

Definite plural nouns (-nir, -nar, -in)

Accusative plural nouns

Number agreement 1 to 4 (einn, tveir…)

Singular commands

Past tense of the verb to be (var, vorum)

Present continuous (vera að)

Strong verbs in the present tense

Weather and dummy subjects (það)

Invariable possessive pronouns (hans, hennar, þeirra)

Accusative possessives (minn, þinn)

Accompaniment (með)

Dative plural (-um, -unum)

Compound sentences (og, en, eða)

"This" in the nominative (þessi, þessi, þetta)

"This" in the accusative (þennan, þessa, þetta)

Accusative adjectives (-an, -a, -t)

Numbers 1 to 4 in the accusative (einn, tvo, þrjá)

Third-person reflexive pronouns (sig, sér)

The preposition "to" with the genitive (til)

Subordinating conjunctions (að, af því að)

Simple past of weak verbs (-aði)

Question words (hvernig, hvaða)

Physical possession (vera með)

Abstract possession (hafa)

Telling time (hálf, korter)

Plural commands (-ið)

The simple past tense (-di, -ti, -ði)

Possessive noun endings (-s, -ar)

Days of the week (á mánudaginn, á mánudögum)

Kveðjur — greetings (halló, bless)

Um mig — where I am from

Kurteisi — please, sorry, congratulations

Ability and knowing how (kunna að)

Permission (mega)

Obligation (eiga að)

Plural strong verbs

Numbers 11 to 20 (ellefu, tólf...)

Counting by tens to 100 (þrjátíu, fjörutíu...)

Ordinal numbers 1st to 10th (fyrsti, annar...)

All / everything / everyone (allur)

The indefinite pronoun someone (einhver)

The indefinite pronoun no one (enginn)

Compound numbers from 21 (tuttugu og)

This in the dative singular (þessum, þessari, þessu)

These in the dative plural (þessum)

My and your in the dative (mínum, þínum)

Numbers 1 to 4 in the dative (einum, tveimur)

Adjectives in the dative singular (-um, -ri, -u)

Adjectives in the dative plural (-um)

Reflexive possessive in the accusative (sinn, sína, sitt)

Reflexive possessive in the dative (sínum, sinni)

Reflexive versus regular possessives (sinn, hans)

Demonstrative plural (þessir, þessar, þessi)

Definite genitive singular (-sins, -arinnar)

Indefinite genitive plural (-a)

Genitive prepositions (án, milli, vegna)

Prepositions of direction (yfir, undir, fyrir)

Prepositions of static location (yfir, undir, fyrir)

Weak adjectives in the nominative (-i, -a, -a)

Question	Answer
the power	valdið
the citizen	borgarinn
The power of the citizens is great.	Vald borgaranna er mikið.
the result	niðurstaðan
the election	kosningin
I want to know the result of the elections.	Mig langar að vita niðurstöðu kosninganna.
the speech	ræðan
the politician	stjórnmálamaðurinn
The speeches of the politicians are long.	Ræður stjórnmálamannanna eru langar.
the minister	ráðherrann
We listen to the speeches of the ministers.	Við hlustum á ræður ráðherranna.
the rights	réttindin
The politician understands the rights of the citizens.	Stjórnmálamaðurinn skilur réttindi borgaranna.
the vote	atkvæðið
He examined the result of the votes.	Hann skoðaði niðurstöðu atkvæðanna.
The election is exciting, but the politicians are tired.	Kosningin er spennandi en stjórnmálamennirnir eru þreyttir.
the party (political)	flokkurinn
Two parties have the power.	Tveir flokkar hafa valdið.
Is this the party of the politicians or the citizens?	Er þetta flokkur stjórnmálamannanna eða borgaranna?
I want to have the power.	Mig langar að hafa valdið.
The minister listened to the question.	Ráðherrann hlustaði á spurninguna.
One vote is important.	Eitt atkvæði er mikilvægt.
The minister talks about the rights of the citizens and the results of the elections.	Ráðherrann talar um réttindi borgaranna og niðurstöður kosninganna.