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Questions & Answers about Morgunninn byrjar snemma.
How does the word morgunninn get its meaning of "the morning"?
In Icelandic, "the" isn't a separate word like it is in English. Instead, it gets attached to the end of the noun. The base word for "morning" is morgunn (a masculine noun). To say "the morning", you add the masculine "the" ending -inn, making it morgunninn.
Why are there so many 'n's in the word morgunninn?
It happens because of how the word is built! The base word morgunn already ends in a double 'n'. When you add the attached article -inn (which also has a double 'n'), you just stick them together. You keep the 'nn' from the base word right before the 'inn' ending.
What is the dictionary form of the verb byrjar?
The infinitive (dictionary form) is byrja (to start or begin). Because it belongs to the most common and regular group of Icelandic verbs (the -a group), it simply takes the ending -r in the present tense for "he/she/it", becoming byrjar.
Would the word snemma change its ending if the noun were feminine or plural?
No, snemma is an adverb meaning "early," so it describes the verb (when the starting happens) rather than the noun itself. Unlike adjectives, adverbs in Icelandic do not change their endings to match a noun's gender or number.