Questions & Answers about Danska er skemmtileg.
Why is the adjective skemmtileg and not skemmtilegt?
Because adjectives in Icelandic must match the gender of the noun they describe. The word danska (Danish) is a feminine noun, so the base adjective skemmtilegur changes to its feminine singular form, skemmtileg. If you were describing a neuter noun like sumar (summer), you would use skemmtilegt.
Are languages always capitalized in Icelandic like they are in English?
No, Danska is only capitalized here because it is the first word of the sentence. Unlike in English, Icelandic does not capitalize the names of languages, nationalities, days of the week, or months. If it appeared later in the sentence, it would be written in lowercase as danska.
Are all languages feminine nouns?
Almost all of them, yes! The Icelandic names for languages usually end in -a and are feminine nouns, such as enska (English), franska (French), and íslenska (Icelandic). This makes it very predictable when you need to match them with feminine adjectives.
Does skemmtileg mean "funny" or "fun"?
It means "fun", "pleasant", or "entertaining". English speakers often mix this up with the word fyndinn, which specifically means "funny" (something that makes you laugh). This sentence is saying that Danish is enjoyable, not necessarily that it is a joke!
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