Breakdown of Við krefjumst þess að sendiherrann komi strax.
það
it / there (existential) / the one (n)
við
we
koma
to come
strax
right away
að
that (conjunction)
krefjast
to demand
sendiherrann
the ambassador
Questions & Answers about Við krefjumst þess að sendiherrann komi strax.
Why is koma in the subjunctive form komi here instead of the normal present tense kemur?
The verb krefjast (to demand) expresses a strong command, wish, or necessity. When you use a verb like this followed by an að (that) clause, the verb inside that clause must be in the subjunctive. Notice how English does something similar in formal speech: we say "that the ambassador come" instead of the usual "comes".
How do you form the present subjunctive for an irregular verb like koma?
For koma, the present subjunctive is actually surprisingly regular! You just take the infinitive stem (kom-) and add the standard present subjunctive endings. For the 3rd person singular, the ending is -i, giving us komi. It completely bypasses the vowel shift you have to memorize for the present indicative (kemur).
Why is the word þess in this sentence? Doesn't the English translation just say "We demand that..."?
Þess is the genitive form of the pronoun það (it). The verb krefjast requires its object to be in the genitive case. Because you can't put an entire að clause into a grammatical case, Icelandic inserts þess as a "dummy pronoun" to take the genitive case on the clause's behalf. Literally, the sentence says: "We demand of it that..."
The verb krefjumst ends in -st. Is this a middle voice verb?
Yes, it is the 1st person plural middle voice form of krefja. While the active verb krefja is used when you demand something directly from someone, the middle voice krefjast is the standard way to express "to demand" as a general action or requirement. Just remember that krefjast always forces the thing being demanded into the genitive case!
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