Breakdown of Stigataflan er í herberginu þar sem við sitjum, er það ekki?
vera
to be
þar
there
það
it / there (existential) / the one (n)
ekki
not
við
we
sitja
to sit
í
in / into / to (before the hour, in telling time) / per (in frequency expressions)
herbergið
the room
sem
who / which / that
stigataflan
the scoreboard
Questions & Answers about Stigataflan er í herberginu þar sem við sitjum, er það ekki?
Why does the tag say er það ekki using the neuter pronoun það, when stigataflan is a feminine noun?
In English, the question tag changes depending on the subject (isn't it, aren't they, isn't she). In Icelandic, er það ekki is a fixed phrase used to ask for confirmation, literally meaning 'is that not so?'. It stays exactly the same regardless of the gender or number of the subject in the main sentence.
Why is the word for 'where' translated as þar sem instead of hvar?
The word hvar is strictly a question word used to ask 'where?'. When you use 'where' to connect two halves of a sentence and refer back to a place, you must use þar sem, which acts as a relative adverb and literally means 'there as'.
Why is herberginu in the dative case?
The preposition í triggers the dative case when describing a stationary location. If an action involved moving into the room, you would use the accusative case. Because the scoreboard is just resting there, we use the dative form herberginu.
How is the compound noun stigataflan formed?
It combines stiga, the plural possessive (genitive) form of stig meaning 'point', and taflan, which is the feminine noun tafla meaning 'board' with the attached definite article -n. It literally translates to 'the board of points'.
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